Kossel Pro 3D Printer Grows Up — Signs on with Two Distribution Partners

January 19, 2015 by Heidi Milkert 3D Printers 3D Printing

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It’s been over a year and a half since OpenBeam launched their 3D printer kits for the Kossel Pro on Kickstarter. With a funding goal of $60,000, even the team behind the company couldn’t have expected the success they had. When all was said and done, the Kossel Pro 3D Printer raised over $122,000 via Kickstarter. This was only the beginning for the young company, which later went on to raise an additional $62,700 via pre-orders on Shopstarter.

With continued strong demand for the kits which are used to construct their delta-based 3D printer, OpenBeam has decided it is now time to become a legitimate company and has thus turned to distributors

“Today, I am happy to announce that we are taking the next step toward making this a more stable and sustainable company by shutting down our Shopstarter page, and handling all future printer kit sales through our distributors,” stated Terence Tam, founder of OpenBeam. “We would like to welcome Solarbotics and MatterHackers as our launch distribution partners.”

MatterHackers is one of the largest distributors of 3D printers and supplies online. They offer filament, supplies, and the actual hardware, while Solarbotics is a supplier to ‘geek culture’ and carries products ranging from solar-powered robotics to Arduino to now 3D printers. This move should provide OpenBeam the much needed support for growth, and allow them to concentrate on creating and improving upon their high quality 3D printer kits.

“Both companies are also staffed with makers who are passionate about advancing the state of the art of low cost 3D Printing,” stated Tam. “We can’t ask for better launch partners in our endeavor.”

For those who are not familiar with the Kossel Pro 3D Printer Kit, the assembled machine runs on a Delta-bot framework, and utilizes carbon-fiber swing arms to produce exceptionally accurate prints. The machine has a build envelope of 250mm in diameter x 250mm in height, and has a linear actuator resolution of 0.2mm. The printer also features automated bed leveling, and has the ability to print with both PLA and PET+. The Kossel Pro will be priced at $1,349 at both distributors, and the first units will be available for purchase on either of their websites by the end of March.

Let us know if you have ever assembled and used a Kossel Pro 3D printer. Were you one of the original backers of this machine on Kickstarter? Discuss this story in the Kossel Pro forum thread on 3DPB.com.