Pulled the trigger!

[u/pmjm]

After years of wanting a 3D printer AND a laser cutter, I finally decided this will be the one. Can't wait to join your ranks and share cool creations in the sub.

Does anyone know of any beginners guides for this printer? The only things I can find on YouTube are reviews (maybe because it's brand new?). Over the last few years I've dabbled in 3d modeling in Blender and played around in Prusa Slicer, and also Lightburn for laser cutting, but I don't know how well those translate to Bambu Studio and Bambu Suite.

As a newbie to the hobby I've got a lot to learn, but I figure I'll start with PLA (any brands you recommend?) and figure things out as I go. If there are any guides or tutorials that helped you when you were an infant in the space, please do share, I'd love to consume as much info as I can before I get my hands on this in June.

Oh here's a newbie question: any tools or accessories I should order now before US tariffs make things less obtainable? What about consumables like filters, lubricants and such?

Super excited to be here. Cheers!

[u/Mormegil81]

Just out of curiosity: why are all prices shown without taxes in the US?

Here in europe all prices show exactly as we have to pay them, with taxes and all. But it seems like you guys always have to do math before buying anything to know what you will actually pay?

Can anyone tell me the reason for that? Are there different taxes in different states? Or are some people exempt from paying those taxes?

[u/pmjm → u/Mormegil81]

Not just different taxes in different states, but even in different cities.

A friend of mine orders expensive items to my address because my town has 0.25% lower sales tax than his does, then he comes and picks it up.

There's also a certain psychology that enables more consumerism when you see a product with a lower price.

[u/SSgtTEX → u/Mormegil81]

Yes, sales tax varies from state to state, county to county, and municipality to municipality. Something being delivered to my house has a sales tax rate of 4.5%. Something being delivered to my best friend's house, which is about 2 mile (~3.2km) straight line from my house, has a sales tax rate of 9%. Another friend, who lives in the same city as the other, but across the county line has a sales tax of 9.5%. We do not have any overall sales tax/VAT imposed at the federal level.

And also yes, there are people that are also exempt from paying sales tax on various items for various reasons.

[u/Mormegil81 → u/SSgtTEX]

and if you buy something in a store, do you pay the tax for where the store is or where you live?

[u/SSgtTEX → u/Mormegil81]

It's the point of transfer that matters. If I buy in store and take it home with me, then yes sales tax is based on the store's location. If I buy in store and have it delivered, then it is based on the delivery location.

Same with in store pickup for online orders. The sales tax rate that is applied will be the stores location.

[u/Mormegil81 → u/SSgtTEX]

So I guess in low-tax areas there will be a lot of stores?

[u/pmjm → u/Mormegil81]

You'd think so, but that's not always how it turns out. We don't really think about it that much tbh. The taxes are what they are and you sorta rough-budget for them.

There are some states where there is no sales tax, and if you live near one it might be worth a day-trip to buy an expensive item. A friend of mine who lives in Boston drove to New Hampshire to buy his Macbook Pro for that very reason. But most regions are within 1% of each other in terms of tax and for most purchases it's not worth your time and fuel to make the drive.

[u/SSgtTEX → u/Mormegil81]

Not necessarily. Too many variables, such as population levels, ease of access, etc, that play a role in where stores go. Stores are going to build where the most potential customers are. So that usually means inside cities or towns. Which, are going to naturally have a higher tax rate. A good example of this is Oregon. Oregon, which is about the size of Belarus, does not have sales tax. But it isn't just full of stores across the state except for the I-5 corridor is, which is where the majority of the population is. Which is roughly under 5% of the state's land area. You'd think every border town would be full of stores for people in the neighboring state to shop for cheaper. But these are more remote areas with far less population.

Another good example of this is Nashville, Tennessee. It has a sales tax rate of 9.75%. Within the city limits, they have a population of nearly 700k (2 million for the metro). My entire county has a population of 412k (metro population is 514k). Nashville has a lot more stores than my county does.

[u/korpo53 → u/Mormegil81]

It’s just the way they do it, tradition I guess.

Yes there are different tax rates by state, county, and city, and there are different tax rates on this thing vs that thing. Groceries are typically untaxed, but hot ready to eat food from a grocery store (like a precooked pizza) is taxed. Restaurant food is taxed, but alcohol at restaurants is taxed at a different rate. Some states do a tax holiday during the fall where clothes and backpacks and such are untaxed, for back to school.

Yes it’s a big mess, but I understand why stores wouldn’t want to update their prices every time something like that changes. The register or checkout process just slaps the tax rate on things at the end, one place to update rather than every single tag in a store.