Awesome write up Frank,
I love seeing this level of description in a thread, we need to award some carma credits for this. 
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My personal favorite is the Azteeg X3 but I hesitate to recommend it given the questionable ethics of the company:
http://www.panucatt.com/Azteeg_X3_reprap_3d_printer_controller_p/ax33dp.htm
Another great choice is the SmoothieBoard:
http://shop.uberclock.com/collections/smoothie
The latest version of the PrintrBoard is OK. It has some issues but it is defiantly better than RAMPS 1.4.
http://printrbot.com/shop/printrboard-rev-f/
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Although Iām not considering building a 3D printer soon, I am considering building one next year. I find this level of detail very informative and useful. Frank, if youāre ever interested in teaching a 3d printer construction class, Iām in. Thanks for putting this information together for those of us new to the 3d printer construction world.
If you have time @frank_lima I would love to have you teach a Reprap class.
I second the Azteeg boards, they also have the x5 which uses the smoothieboard firmware.
There are also the Rumba board but I think that probably has the same issues as the Ramps.
I havenāt heard about this, what did Panucatt do?
They claim to be open source (C SA 3.0) but as far as tell the source is not available anywhere.
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Yeah Iāve wondered about that. You should contact them and have them clarify their license status. I wouldnāt mind them being closed-source if they make a good product, they should at least clarify that they are closed-source.
I buy a ton of stuff from Banggood.
Parts
http://www.banggood.com/Wholesale-3D-Printer-Accessories-c-2363.html
Controller boards
http://www.banggood.com/Wholesale-3D-Printer-Module-Board-c-2511.html
Steppers:
http://www.banggood.com/search/nema-17/1091-0-0-0-0-0-0-price-0-0_p-1.html
hot ends/extruders/printheads:
http://www.banggood.com/search/e3d/2153-0-0-0-0-0-0-price-0-0_p-1.html
they also sell kits
http://www.banggood.com/Wholesale-3D-Printer-c-3480.html
also some cheap popular style kits from Geeetechā¦
$308 On Sale for the next 48hrs, Only 10 left, FREE SHIPPING
https://www.3dprintersonlinestore.com/diy-kit/high-speed-prusa-i3-kit
For that price that Geeetech is hard to beat. I use that same extruder and I have never had it clog. I have only used low priced PLA & flexible (Inland, Foxsmart, some completely generic I got from a guy on craigslist for $8 a roll 
)
ABS really needs an enclosed print bed. I dont see why the Printerbot extruder would be much of an upgrade. Its the same spring loaded lever type of design.
My 2 cents areā¦ maybe worth $0.02
-Andy
Iād recommend an auto-leveling firmware and sensor. Wood shifts a bit and you donāt want to spend your time leveling your bed every time the temp or humidity moves around.
In hindsight, and having done no research, I wonder if sealing the wood might not be a good idea. My wooded I3 isnāt sealed.
Omg yes!
The Graber I have now is also wood and manually leveling it is a pain.
I ordered an aluminum bed so I can use a sensor on this one.
I like the duet. Arm based. Polarized conectors. Built in ethernet and web ui. $50. Supports one extruder. Has left over pins for expansion.
Ill be doing a class on building a rostock max 2 delta from scratch sometime after christmas using this duet board.
I print abs on an unenclosed kossel. Albeit not tall parts but it is not strictly required. But there are other plastics that dont need a heated bed or enclosure. Biome3d has nice filament in this range.
Hey @frank_lima,
Iām looking at those same 3 controller boards and am currently leaning towards the Printrboard since Iām building my first printer and it is a bit cheaper than the other two.
You mentioned that you thought it has some issues, could you let me know what your experience has been? Are the issues enough that I should pay the extra for a smoothieboard or Azteeg?
Thanks!
My experience with Printrboards has been mostly good. It lacks protection circuits but it mitigates this with better documentation and unidirectional connectors. I really love my Azteeg X3 but it is quite expensive.
-Frank
ps. Make sure you get the latest revision from a reputable source (ie. has a good return policy)
My printrbot simple metal with heated bed was $713 delivered to my door. I love it and donāt regret it at all. It was a kit, a friend of mine and I built it in a casual evening drinking some beers and after getting it calibrated it works really good. A little AquaNet on the bed before I print and bobās your uncle. I just wanted to print some things, not become a 3d printer mechanic and it fits the bill well. I would buy it again without hesitation and I am VERY FRUGAL when it comes to buying stuffā¦
Thanks Frank! The best documentation Iāve seen so far on the Printrboard is on the reprap wiki:
http://reprap.org/wiki/Printrboard
Do you know of any other locations for good documentation?
Iām currently trying to pick a good wire gauge for a heated bed and I also want to make sure that the Printrboardās header for the heated bed can handle the current.
Do you have any insight on wiring up the heated bed?
Sorry for taking to long to reply. I just now saw your post.
As far as PrintrBoard documentation this is a good source as well:
https://printrbot.dozuki.com/c/7.Printrboard
This video is the best resource for heated bed info that I know of:
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