Affordable 3D printer The Buccaneer hits $100,000 Kickstarter goal in ten minutes

 

James Vincent
Friday 31 May 2013 12:00 BST
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The design for The Buccaneer 3D printer, an affordable model built for domestic use
The design for The Buccaneer 3D printer, an affordable model built for domestic use (Pirates 3D)

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New 3D printer ‘The Buccaneer’ has raised its Kickstarter goal of $100,000 in just ten minutes.

The Buccaneer aims to provide a high quality 3D printer for the low price of $347, making the new technology more accessible to the general public.

The market for domestic-use 3D printers has been rapidly growing, but most models remain expensive.

Cheaper models retail for around $1,000, while the latest version of the popular ‘Replicator’ 3D printer by MarketBot is priced $2,199.

Pirate3D Inc, the company behind the low-cost Buccanneer, claims that its printer provides a “full 3D printing solution for home consumers” and hopes the funding will “bring this technology to everyone at a price that is easily affordable”.

While the design of the new 3D printer is a step above the usual home-built look of most 3D printers, the actual build envelope (the size that the printer can print to) is smaller than most at 15 x 10 x 12 cm.

The success of The Buccaneer on Kickstarter is one of a number of 3D printers that has attracted funding on the site. The Form 1, a model designed by three MIT graduates, raised just under $3 million in late 2012, although its $2,000 price tag differs from what The Buccaneer hopes to achieve.

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