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| Hey guys, you can print a 3D printer with a 3D printer! |
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| WHAT?!?! |
Yusuf is right, there is such a thing as a 3D printer that prints another 3D printer. It is part of the open-source project called RepRap. The project, started in 2007, already has thousands of users, but as with many open-source projects it is mainly used by hobbyists making it the Apple I of 3D printers. This project has been good for getting the small-scale 3D printer movement going, but it is not for the faint of heart because the coding is very technical.
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| Prusa Mendel, one of RepRap's basic models |
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| Mendel model "parent" with two of its "children" |
Since the founding of RepRap there have been many companies that have been founded, or decided to start a project, to develop more consumer friendly 3D printers, but because it is free RepRap still reigns as one of the most used.
