Someone please convince me I don’t need a man-sized 3D printer
Most people use their 3D printers to produce small items that are handy around the house, but what if you could print furniture or huge models in one go? That's exactly what Elegoo promises with its aptly-named OrangeStorm Giga.
The best (worst?) part is that it's not even that expensive, relatively speaking.
Big printer, massive prints
Elegoo's OrangeStorm Giga is a giant fused deposition modeling (FDM) 3D printer for creating massive prints. FDM refers to the technique of melting filament and depositing it in layers, which then dries and hardens layer by layer.
Elegoo.
Most consumer 3D printers that use this method are relatively small, which means that in order to create large items, you need to break the print job up into smaller pieces and connect them together later. The OrangeStorm Giga does away with this problem by providing a massive print build volume of 800x800x1000mm, or roughly 31.5x31.5x39.3 inches.
For comparison, an entry-level Bambu Lab A1 ($399) manages 256x256x256mm, while larger enclosed printers like the Prusa Core One (from $1,100) tap out at 250x220x270 mm. This means that the Giga manages almost four times the volume of the average consumer FDM printer.
The printer includes a print bed that can hit temperatures of 100ºc (212ºF), with four independent zones that can be turned on or off depending on what you're printing. Elegoo also advertises a decent print speed of 300mm/s at the top end, though you'll get better results if you slow it down to 150mm/s.
Big print jobs also require lots of filament, so the Giga comes with spool holders capable of holding up to 5KG rolls.
Great for furniture, cosplay, and other large print jobs
A printer the size of the OrangeStorm Giga really opens up the possibilities in terms of hobbyist 3D printing. This is an industrial-scale printer for your home, and it's true that many hobbyists don't need anything like this. But I still can't help but look at the Giga and wonder "what if."
There are some drawbacks to printing at this scale, notably that the 150mm/s to 300mm/s print speeds you'll be hitting mean that large prints will take days to complete if you decide to take full advantage of all that volume (and you really should be). You'll also be getting through a lot more filament because you'll be able to print massive objects without having to think about the volume limits that most printers encounter.
But these should be non-issues if you're already considering a Giga, and I'll confess that I've given it more than a few serious thoughts over the past few days.
Elegoo
A printer of this size is ideal for printing furniture, signs, large decorative pieces, and more practical large objects that don't require you to slice them up in software beforehand. I could probably convince my partner that this would be a good purchase based on the scale of the cat fortresses, scratching posts, and toys we could build.
The space requirement is worse than the price
By far the biggest drawback for me is just how much space this thing occupies. I wasn't joking when I referred to it as man-sized , with Elegoo reporting that the "maximum size for machine activity" is 1224x1520x1570 mm (48.2x59.8x61.8 inches). The package that will be delivered to your door is slightly larger than that, so I hope you have big doors.
Surprisingly, the OrangeStorm Giga has a list price of "only" $3,125 and is currently on sale at the time of writing for $2,300. That makes it roughly twice the price of something like a tricked-out Bambu Lab X1C (around $1,700). You'll also have to factor in the increased cost of filament, which you'll be getting through a lot of.
For me, the price stings but not as much as the space I'd have to give up in my relatively small house. We've got a small guest room, and I'm not against subjecting guests to the whims of my hobbies, but once you factor in the space you need for those massive prints, all that filament, and spare parts, it's clear that there's probably not enough room in my life for an OrangeStorm Giga (yet).
Most hobbyist printheads don't own massive printers, and so many models on repositories like Printables, Thingiverse, and Maker World account for this. You can even 3D print a whole PC case in several parts , as long as you're careful to use the right materials. Thankfully, there are plenty of other great options out there, including Elegoo's own excellent Centauri Carbon .
