TL;DR: For detailed miniature painting and tabletop gaming in 2026, resin printers win on detail every time — the Elegoo Saturn 4 Ultra is our overall pick, with the Anycubic Photon Mono M5s as the best value. Choose the Phrozen Sonic Mighty 8K if you want the finest detail money can buy. Sticking with FDM? The Bambu Lab A1 Mini handles terrain and larger pieces well, but it can’t match resin for 28mm character minis. ...
TL;DR: For quality miniatures, print in resin (SLA) — it captures detail filament can’t. Use a 4K/8K/12K resin printer like the Elegoo Saturn 4, a standard gray/8K resin, tune layer height to ~0.03–0.05mm, rely on automatic supports with light manual touch-ups, then wash, cure, and cleanly remove supports. This guide covers the whole workflow. Quick Answer: How Do You Print Good Miniatures? The workflow in 5 steps: Get a resin printer (detail is the whole point) — see best resin printers. Slice with proper settings: 0.03–0.05mm layer height, ~2s layer exposure (tune to your resin), 3–4s bottom exposure. Orient the model and add supports (automatic “light” support type works well). Print, then wash in IPA (or wash station) — carefully remove supports while the part is still soft-ish, then cure under UV. Post-process: sand nubs, prime with a miniature primer, and paint. For D&D/Warhammer-scale (28–32mm), resin beats FDM every time on detail. See resin vs FDM for details. ...
TL;DR: The best resin 3D printer of 2026 is the Elegoo Mars 5 Ultra for value and ease, with the Elegoo Saturn 4 Ultra for large miniatures and the Anycubic Photon Mono M5s as the closest alternative. If you print for jewelry or dental work, step up to a high-resolution 4K/8K machine. All require proper safety gear and a wash-and-cure station. Quick Answer: Which Resin Printer Should You Buy? Resin (SLA/DLP) printers are the choice for detailed miniatures, jewelry wax masters, dental models, and smooth-surfaced parts. They trade filament’s easy workflow for significantly better detail. Here are our picks: ...