3D SYSTEMS CUBIFY CUBEX 3D PRINTER DOUBLE HEAD PRINT

3D Systems is a pioneer in the 3D printing field. In the mid-1980s its founder, Charles W. Hull built what is widely considered the first 3D printer, which used a technique called stereolithography (from which the .stl 3D CAD file format gets its name). The company has traditionally made expensive commercial 3D printers for architects, engineers, and shop floors, but in recent years has ventured into the hobbyist and consumer arenas as well.

With a large 275x265x240mm build platform, the CubeX is big enough to print a plastic basketball. It’s also the only one of our crew that has dual extruders, allowing for multicolour prints or ABS/PLA combinations to create easily removable supports. A touchscreen makes it quick and easy to set up, especially as it has the ability to print from a USB key. The supplied software, however, lacks control over essential settings such as the number of shells (how thick outer layers are), which meant many of our ABS prints came out with splits in them. 3D Systems has promised an update, and users have had more success with third-party software, but for this money, we’d like everything ready to run.