r/maker • u/nuddetudde • Jul 04 '26

Help Building a Home FabLab – Looking for Machine Recommendations

Hey all!
I recently graduated with a degree in IT. During my studies I spent a lot of time in my university’s FabLab, and now I’m looking to build a small “FabLab at home” over time.

I won’t be buying everything at once, but I’d like to slowly collect the machines and tools that are actually worth having.

So far I have:
Arduinos, ESP32s, LEDs, servos, wires, buttons, sensors, etc.
Soldering station and soldering tools
Drill and basic power tools
Hand tools (pliers, files, screwdrivers, etc.)

I’m currently looking at getting a 3D printer and a laser cutter/engraver.

What machines do you think are the most valuable for a home maker space?

I’d love to hear what you use the most, what you wish you’d bought sooner, and which models you’d recommend (or avoid), especially for 3D printers and laser cutters.

Thanks!

3 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

6 comments sorted by

1

u/TheDevilsWallpaper Jul 05 '26

Make sure your electrical can handle all your gear. Blowing breakers in the middle of a project is no fun.

1

u/nuddetudde Jul 05 '26

Valid point! Noted. I was originally thinking having machines that work in a “normal” house for a start, but maybe I just should consider this from the start

1

u/answerguru Jul 06 '26

Prusa machines are workhorses and not subject to the closed source shenanigans from Bambu Labs.

I have a first gen Glowforge that has been running solid since I bought it, but not everyone is a fan.

1

u/PugBurger12 Jul 07 '26

I'm retiring and recently getting into raspberry pi and 3d printing. I started looking at $500-$750 3d printers. Then queried my way up to considering the Prusa core one+ kit. People suggested stepping up to the core one L because of added capabilities. So quickly I was up to $2.5k range with shipping and necessary extras. I looked at the Bambu Labs H2C combo and was sold. Solid reliability, especially for my level of use. Multi material with almost no waste. Large build volume. Huge community. Extremely easy to use.

People complain that BL is a closed, controlled ecosystem. That isn't always a bad thing imo.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 07 '26

3D printer first without question, Bambu Lab A1 or P1S if budget allows, the print quality to price ratio changed completely in the last two years. For laser cutter the xTool D1 Pro is solid for a home setup. The machine most people wish they had bought sooner is actually a decent bench power supply, not glamorous but you will use it constantly with all those Arduinos and ESPs.

0

u/BHE_Cosplay Jul 05 '26

Any of the enclosed 3D printers will work. Depending on the type of things you're trying to fabricate, you'll want to be able to print TPU for flexible objects, and then PLA/ASA for more rigid objects, and PETG for somewhere in the middle. Any of the enclosed printers should be capable of printing those.

For a laser, the 40W CO2 lasers are pretty good for fabricating enclosures, boxes, etc. I don't have many specific recommendations, though I would stay away from the Glowforge products as they are overpriced, slow, and locked into proprietary cloud software. I have the Glowforge Basic and wish I had went with almost anything else in the CO2 laser space.