Hi guys,
So I have a Form2 that is sitting around not doing and anything and I would like to rent out the printer so it does not idle. Therefore someone gets a good use out of it. I’m looking at renting the entire printer - rather than me being the user offering a printer service. Has anyone had experience with doing this before?
Any idea what should I charge in terms of rent?
Do I charge per day/print/resin/print time
Seems like more trouble than its worth to me.
Do you expect people that are renting it (for a day?) to know how to properly treat and use the machine? Not hard to imagine it coming back with all kinds of resin/oil fingerprints all over.
I would also be concerned about frequently shipping the unit. It has to be cleaned and properly packed both ways. And even then - I would imagine that getting shipped is a potentially rough experience for the calibrated and fragile components. What if the printer gets damaged by the shipping/transit? How do you know that it wasn’t the renter that is responsible for damages?
It seems like it would be only a matter of time until you were battling or even litigating with your customers.
completely agree… I wouldnt rent mine out to anyone (and im not using it either.) i bought a 3500$ door stop (oh and i keep buying resin and trays for NO REASON) Im hoping i find something to do with it haha
If you’re not using it,and don’t want to run a print service, selling seems like a better option.
id love to run a print service, but 3dhubs has gone downhill… i once got a lot of work from there haha… right now its just a hobby
. but im guessing you were referring to the OP
The guy I have in mind is a professional model maker with years of experience in printing and cad work. So reliability is not an issue as such. As you guys picked up I wouldn’t rent/ship it out frequently. He’d take it off my hands for let’s say a good 6 months maybe more. I’d love not to sell it as I will use it myself with upcoming projects at some point. Just can’t seem to justify having that 3 grand door stop as you say.
If your Form2 is idle, it just means you’re not really trying! There MUST be a mental catalog of things you always wanted to make yourself once you had the means, and now you do! I’m always printing out ship models from Star Trek or Star Wars, for no other reason than I always wanted to and now I can! Granted, that rationale doesn’t fly so well with my financial adviser (wife), but still…
im not worried about the financial part of it… ALthough150-200 bucks a pop for resin is simply INSANE. but i just printed an Millenium falcon the other day and it was warped (it was Makerjuice resin). unuseable. Makerjuice works great for chess pieces and some other stuff tho.
I just dont know why they are charging so much for resin. It just doesnt make sense.
That said, I just cant think of things to print.
I agree with the trust and training issue. My car sits unused for 95% of an average day. And that is roughly 10x the price of a F2. Doesn’t bother me one bit.
Just my $0.02.
Because they can? Honestly Form isn’t facing pricing pressure at the movement. Finding some key contacts who have an intrest in 3D printing high quality designs which require such resolution is key to ever making money back on your printer.
Jeez, Brandon, what do you drive anyway? I bought my second-hand Renault Clio for actually slightly LESS than the F2! 
Haha, I said roughly! 2013 Golf TDI with all the boxes ticked… No worries, VW is cutting me a big check for that real soon supposedly, and I can start over used like a sane person.
If you have one person you can rent it to, go for it. I would train him or at least orient him to it. It might make sense to have him do a security deposit. If you know him real well then maybe not.
I have little things here and there I would love a Form printer for since it’s reiterative in a couple hours, but the price makes buying one not an option. Shapeways takes weeks, not hours, though. A time-share of a few people sounds terrific. I wonder if anyone has such a setup working and how they do it.
Agreed, I get to use work’s F1+ whenever I want (I just have my own separate resin supply) which is great. I otherwise would be in the same boat.
I’m interested to see if anyone with a situation like you describe stumbles into this thread.
The idea of a makerspace is something that appeals to me. As an alternative it might be worth looking at nearby schools that have a machine and offer public use hours. Probably a longshot but can’t hurt to check.
Are you still looking to rent this machine? I would love to rent it from you for 6 months if you are still looking for someone? I have a small project I am working on which is comprised of a few parts. I will likely need to print several revisions to get them perfect. I would love to buy one but am not sure if I will have use for it after this particular project, however if I do I would be willing to buy it from you maybe at that time? Please let me know if you’re still looking, oh btw I am a design engineer by trade, 7-8 years professional engineering & design experience. I have experience using home built 3d printers as well as higher end stratasys printers.
Hello everyone, an industrial designer has designed a cavity mold for me. I want to get it test printed on a form 2 before i rush out an buy the printer. i dont want to make the mistake of buying the printer if the resolution isnt good enough on the form 2. can anyone in Australia do a test print for me?