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View Full Version : Maybe I missed it, but does sawmillcreek have 3d forum?



Clark Pace
02-04-2015, 10:16 PM
Just wondering if anyone here has a 3d printer. I got a basic CTC printer. I like it, but it would be nice to have a forum here for 3d printing. Or maybe there are so many out there it does not make sense. I'm still looking for a good one.

Bob A Miller
02-05-2015, 12:21 AM
A forum would be usefull.

However one of those things where changes are occurring in the technology regularly. Maker magazine runs a special every year on where things are in the field.

Of concern (for those who aren't aware). Type of material to print, clarity & detail able to print, size of area to print to (does it need a heated platter or not), software & ease of use. I imagine support from the seller would be a good thing.

Rich Harman
02-05-2015, 1:18 AM
I have three 3D printers and my son has one. I think the best deal for a good dual head printer right now is the Flashforge Creator or the Flashforge Dreamer. The Flashforge Creator is a clone (improved) of MakerBot's original Replicator. That was the last printer that MakerBot made open source, MakerBot no longer sells the Original Replicator, they haven't for some time now.

There are at least a couple of companies selling cheap printers that take proprietary cartridges, there are chips in them that keep track of filament usage and subsequently shut down the printer when it decides that it is time to replace the expensive cartridge. I would stay away from those.

I don't know if 3D printing fits in with the Sawmill Creek theme, I would welcome such a sub forum but do not expect it.

Keith Outten
02-05-2015, 6:49 AM
Currently we don't have enough people who own 3D printers to justify a new forum. We will create one as soon as we have the need, for the time being our Laser Engraving Forum will probably be the best place to share information.

Make sure that you use the tags feature on every thread so we can find all of your threads and move them when we create the new Forum. I have tagged this thread using 3D printer.
.

Dan Hintz
02-05-2015, 6:53 AM
I have a printer (bought it to make positives for lost wax mold making), but in many cases I found it easier to use my laser to make the positive. When I finally get around the putting together my fiber laser, the 3D printer will likely end up on a dusty shelf.

William Adams
02-05-2015, 7:12 AM
I link-dumped everything I could find about it here: http://www.shapeoko.com/wiki/index.php/3D_Printing when making my repastrapoko (a conversion of a small CNC to have a 3D print head.)

Given how simple it is to do, it's easy to get good value out of it if one can find something it makes sense to print.

Scott Shepherd
02-05-2015, 8:26 AM
We could have a 3D forum, but it would likely be too slow to read :) (if you have a 3D printer, you'll get that joke)

Gary Hair
02-05-2015, 9:48 AM
Dan - you have been so helpful on this forum that I think I'd like to give back a little help to you. I'll PM my address and you can send the 3D printer to me, no use having it take up valuable space on your shelves. I'll even let you pay for shipping so you can still feel like you are contributing... No need to thank me.

Gary


I have a printer (bought it to make positives for lost wax mold making), but in many cases I found it easier to use my laser to make the positive. When I finally get around the putting together my fiber laser, the 3D printer will likely end up on a dusty shelf.

Doug Griffith
02-05-2015, 12:13 PM
I was recently given a fused deposition hobby 3D printer (Cubex Duo) because the previous owner thought 3D printing was as simple as pressing a button. So far, my only "money making" use for it is scale versions of large products used for demonstrations to investors. My other use for 3D printing is generating prototypes prior to investing in injection mold tooling. For this type of work, hobby lasers (the kind that use filament) don't compare to "real" 3D printers. I outsource when I have to get serious.

Clark Pace
02-05-2015, 3:00 PM
I bought one and it's been really fun. Not really making any money on it. I have placed it in my shop window recently, just to maybe get peoples attention.

Larry Robinson
02-05-2015, 8:57 PM
I also have one, Delta type, and would love to see a forum on Sawmill Creek. I am sure it will be slow starter, but it is a booming market with a lot of competition in both printers and forums to serve the printer users.

I respect all the jokes about the 3d printers as they are slow, but I am certain in a couple years the ever changing 3D printer market will offer fewer laughs and a more serious business opportunity to those who figure out how to harness it.

Rich Harman
02-05-2015, 10:45 PM
I haven't made money off my printers directly except one time where someone essentially demanded to purchase a part I had printed. I mostly use it in building prototypes (or more accurately, proof of concept designs) but it has come in handy for making replacement parts of some things - and just general playing around.

For the last couple months I have been designing a small boat. Being able to 3d print a model of it is very useful. It makes a difference being able to hold it in your hands.

At CES I saw a printer that I would love to have. It is the Resin based XFab from DWS Labs. They say it will sell for five grand. The parts it made were indistinguishable quality-wise from the $90K printer next door. They looked like they came out of an injection mold. The FormLabs resin printer was good too, quite a bit cheaper but the parts were no where near as nice as the XFab.

As far as speed, I am not expecting any great leaps in performance any time soon. There is website http://www.makexyz.com where you can setup an account and list your capabilities, then people that want something printed can contact you to get the part they need. Because of the time it takes to print something it tends to be more expensive than most people expect.

Clark Pace
02-06-2015, 12:18 AM
I haven't made money off my printers directly except one time where someone essentially demanded to purchase a part I had printed. I mostly use it in building prototypes (or more accurately, proof of concept designs) but it has come in handy for making replacement parts of some things - and just general playing around.

For the last couple months I have been designing a small boat. Being able to 3d print a model of it is very useful. It makes a difference being able to hold it in your hands.

At CES I saw a printer that I would love to have. It is the Resin based XFab from DWS Labs. They say it will sell for five grand. The parts it made were indistinguishable quality-wise from the $90K printer next door. They looked like they came out of an injection mold. The FormLabs resin printer was good too, quite a bit cheaper but the parts were no where near as nice as the XFab.

As far as speed, I am not expecting any great leaps in performance any time soon. There is website http://www.makexyz.com where you can setup an account and list your capabilities, then people that want something printed can contact you to get the part they need. Because of the time it takes to print something it tends to be more expensive than most people expect.


I'm drooling. 5k is not so bad.

Kim Vellore
02-06-2015, 12:27 AM
I think DLP with resin is very promising. There are many in the market and
http://www.kudo3d.com/products/
looks real good the SW seems OK and limitation is size vs resolution.

Clark Pace
02-06-2015, 12:36 AM
I am quoting a customer right now on what could be nice little job with my laser. The jig he gave me to fit his pieces in were done on the 3d printer. I let him know I could do the same thing if he need more jigs.

Dan Hintz
02-06-2015, 8:52 AM
Unless it's a small jig (fixture), the time spent producing it would be quite large. I have left jobs running from morning until night when using 0.3mm slices, and that's in a relatively small 4-5" cube. Trying to make a 1/4 laser bed-sized fixture (assuming your printer could even get close to that size) would take an extreme amount of time... and you had better believe I would charge for that time.

Scott Shepherd
02-06-2015, 9:45 AM
I laughed out loud when I watched a kickstarter for a large format 3D printer a while back. The guy had made a pretty huge frame, something like 2' x 4'. He was raising money because he wanted to make a bank of them so that they could 3D print frames for his kickstarter orders. It was nothing more than aluminum angle like material, yet he was 3D printing them "because he could", and wanted to make a bank of them so he could print them day and night. I was thinking at the time how clueless he was about manufacturing. It would probably take him 24 hours to print 1 frame. He could have had a machine shop cut and drill holes in aluminum angle by the stacks in less than 24 hours worth of labor.

Jason Hilton
02-06-2015, 10:53 AM
For me right now it's been much more economical to use shapeways 3-d printing service for custom parts. They can print in a lot of materials, including metals, and it's very affordable. I recently printed a Silver necklace charm that came out beautifully.

Rich Harman
02-06-2015, 2:43 PM
Unless it's a small jig (fixture), the time spent producing it would be quite large. I have left jobs running from morning until night when using 0.3mm slices, and that's in a relatively small 4-5" cube. Trying to make a 1/4 laser bed-sized fixture (assuming your printer could even get close to that size) would take an extreme amount of time... and you had better believe I would charge for that time.

That sounds like quite a long time. Printers now run at 80 - 120 mm/sec. I always print at .25mm layer height. It still is not a fast process but given that I can let it run unattended it is not so bad. Your infill choice will also have a great impact on print time.

Mike Audleman
02-06-2015, 4:15 PM
Ironic that this thread comes up now :)

I have been lookin at printers for couple years now. I was really excited about the Hyrel 3D with the possibility of 4 print heads and the maliable substance extruder (clay, playdogh, suguro, etc). I gave up. I have landed on the LulzBot Taz 4. It has a large build volume and up to 2 extruder heads though it may eventually go to 3. Its completely open source hardware and software. I have quite a few projects I want to do and they have been waiting on me actually throwing down on the printer. At this point, I am pretty confident I am within a week of placing an order on a Taz

I posted some questions on their forum but have yet to get any response yet.

Maybe I should pose them here if there are some 3d printer experts I can draw on?

One that I asked directly applies to this forum (probably should have posed it here as well)...does anyone know the safety of laser cutting/engraving the various printable materials (ABS, PLA, NinjaFlex, SemiFlex, T-glase, Nylon, Laybrick, LayWood, Natural PVA, HIPS, PCTPE, HDPE, PET and PET+? I don't have experience on the 3d printer and I thought the laser could accurately make cuts and holes where the 3d printer might not do so well.

Yes, some things I can make on the laser far faster than printing providing the stock is available and laserable. But printing will produce things the laser can't. They are, after all, two different types of tools. The laser removes material. The 3d printer creates material (or deposits it).

Rich Harman
02-06-2015, 4:45 PM
I haven't had a situation, nor can I think of one, where I would need the laser to finish off a 3d printed part. The way the paths are laid out when printing, it reinforces holes and openings so cutting a hole afterwards will leave it unreinforced.

You may need to run some tests for holes. You may find that a hole printed to be 3mm diameter in reality is more like 2.8mm due to the filament width and the way the software handles holes. I am sure that in time these things will be solved, if not already for some programs. I have seen solutions that require digging into the software but for now I am content to just keep in mind that I need to design holes slightly larger.

greg lindsey
02-07-2015, 2:26 AM
Here is one i just ordered with jobs lined up for it.

Rich Harman
02-07-2015, 2:48 AM
Here is one i just ordered with jobs lined up for it.

At first I thought you were joking, then I found out that it is a actually a real printer. Kind of pricey, but it looks well made. Five print heads would be fun. I only have two now, and I rarely use them both so I don't know that it is very practical. Whatever it's max speed is, it will be less with the mass of the additional print heads.

Dan Hintz
02-07-2015, 7:59 AM
Five print heads would be fun. I only have two now, and I rarely use them both so I don't know that it is very practical. Whatever it's max speed is, it will be less with the mass of the additional print heads.

These things really aren't speed limited by mass of the heads. The majority of the time the head is moving slowly to squirt material, with very few jumps here/there.

William Adams
02-07-2015, 10:08 AM
Isn't the chemistry of resin based printers an issue for longevity of the parts and unused materials?

Dan Hintz
02-07-2015, 11:12 AM
Isn't the chemistry of resin based printers an issue for longevity of the parts and unused materials?

Depends upon what materials you're using. There are numerous UV-curing resins that are pretty reliable over the long haul, but there are always trade-offs when choosing materials.

Clark Pace
02-07-2015, 11:31 AM
For me right now it's been much more economical to use shapeways 3-d printing service for custom parts. They can print in a lot of materials, including metals, and it's very affordable. I recently printed a Silver necklace charm that came out beautifully.

I've never used shapeways. And there is a good reason why they are needed. But If it's a smaller part, and I need it. I can have it done in a few hours. Even if its 6 or seven hours I still get it the same day. Might not make sense for sellling, but for personal use. It's wonder. Of course can't do metals. But I could print it out of plastic to get an idea, and then have shapeways make it.

Mike Audleman
02-07-2015, 2:06 PM
I've never used shapeways. And there is a good reason why they are needed. But If it's a smaller part, and I need it. I can have it done in a few hours. Even if its 6 or seven hours I still get it the same day. Might not make sense for sellling, but for personal use. It's wonder. Of course can't do metals. But I could print it out of plastic to get an idea, and then have shapeways make it.

Well, you can sorta print it in metal....
http://www.matterhackers.com/store/3d-printer-filament/colorfabb-bronzefill-175-750g

There is bronze and copper there.

And...
http://www.makergeeks.com/me3dprfi.html
They have stainless steel and iron.

Now, its not full on metal obviously. But I have seen images of the bronze/copper stuff and after cleanup, it polishes nice and even will patina like real metal.

Rich Harman
02-07-2015, 4:45 PM
These things really aren't speed limited by mass of the heads. The majority of the time the head is moving slowly to squirt material, with very few jumps here/there.

I'm not sure what you are basing that on. Mine move so fast that they are essentially just vibrating when doing tight infills. They used to move slow, not so much anymore. The infill, which takes most of the volume of a typical part, is done at the maximum speed in order to reduce print time. There are plenty of YouTube videos of fast printing. Watch one of those and you will see the print heads become a blur when they are doing the infill.

Here is a video of a pretty fast printer, lots of jumps;


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0r_b7Au5Z2w

Rich Harman
02-07-2015, 5:02 PM
Another fast printer, this one a traditional cartesian style;


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3DGRFMsU00

Lee DeRaud
02-08-2015, 10:11 AM
I've considered adding a 3D printer to my collection of toys, but decided against it: until I have a 3D scanner, the printer would probably just gather dust like my CNC.

Matt McCoy
02-08-2015, 11:42 AM
Ironic that this thread comes up now :)

I have been lookin at printers for couple years now. I was really excited about the Hyrel 3D with the possibility of 4 print heads and the maliable substance extruder (clay, playdogh, suguro, etc). I gave up. I have landed on the LulzBot Taz 4. It has a large build volume and up to 2 extruder heads though it may eventually go to 3. Its completely open source hardware and software. I have quite a few projects I want to do and they have been waiting on me actually throwing down on the printer. At this point, I am pretty confident I am within a week of placing an order on a Taz

I posted some questions on their forum but have yet to get any response yet.

Maybe I should pose them here if there are some 3d printer experts I can draw on?

One that I asked directly applies to this forum (probably should have posed it here as well)...does anyone know the safety of laser cutting/engraving the various printable materials (ABS, PLA, NinjaFlex, SemiFlex, T-glase, Nylon, Laybrick, LayWood, Natural PVA, HIPS, PCTPE, HDPE, PET and PET+? I don't have experience on the 3d printer and I thought the laser could accurately make cuts and holes where the 3d printer might not do so well.

Yes, some things I can make on the laser far faster than printing providing the stock is available and laserable. But printing will produce things the laser can't. They are, after all, two different types of tools. The laser removes material. The 3d printer creates material (or deposits it).

Mike: I decided to go with the open source Lulzbot. It was a great intro to 3D printing and a handy tool when you get your feet under you. They are pretty versatile and can print a large variety of different filaments. You can upgrade it yourself and replacement parts are printable from the micro SD card. I just printed new herringbone gears that were wearing down a little.

I think the best way to get help with questions or support is to just contact them directly.

Mike Audleman
02-09-2015, 10:21 AM
Mike: I decided to go with the open source Lulzbot. It was a great intro to 3D printing and a handy tool when you get your feet under you. They are pretty versatile and can print a large variety of different filaments. You can upgrade it yourself and replacement parts are printable from the micro SD card. I just printed new herringbone gears that were wearing down a little.

I think the best way to get help with questions or support is to just contact them directly.

40 views of my thread on their forum, not one response. Nearly 40 views of a similar thread on the 3Dprint foruns, again zero replies. I asked a lot of questions but nobody bothered to answer any of them.


I have been trying to find someone who actually has some face time with a Taz.
So what was your first impression of it? Well built? Piece of crud? What material (filament) would you suggest starting with? ABS? PLA? Other?
Have you tried it with any of the metal or wood filaments, if so what was your results (good/bad/etc)?

Are there any accessories (print heads, nozzles, etc) that you suggest getting right away when ordering the printer?

Scott Shepherd
02-09-2015, 10:37 AM
I have been trying to find someone who actually has some face time with a Taz.
So what was your first impression of it? Well built? Piece of crud? What material (filament) would you suggest starting with? ABS? PLA? Other?


Isn't it basically just a REP RAP? The REP RAP forums are very active, as well as their chat room.

Matt McCoy
02-09-2015, 10:44 AM
40 views of my thread on their forum, not one response. Nearly 40 views of a similar thread on the 3Dprint foruns, again zero replies. I asked a lot of questions but nobody bothered to answer any of them.


I have been trying to find someone who actually has some face time with a Taz.
So what was your first impression of it? Well built? Piece of crud? What material (filament) would you suggest starting with? ABS? PLA? Other?
Have you tried it with any of the metal or wood filaments, if so what was your results (good/bad/etc)?

Are there any accessories (print heads, nozzles, etc) that you suggest getting right away when ordering the printer?

Like I mentioned, the Lulzbots are easy to get going. Once you are are familiar with it, you can do quite a lot. It's a sturdy machine that can be honed and tinkered with, but will work just fine out of the box.

Any filament that Aleph Objects( Lulzbot) carries will work. I prefer ABS for its strength, but the wood Laywoo (similar to PLA) is cool too. I haven't used the brick or metal filaments, but the local makerspace has members that told me that they were messy and left bits that clogged the nozzles. I don't recall what machines they have, though.

I would print the fan hood hack if you intend to use PLA.

Mike Audleman
02-09-2015, 10:50 AM
I haven't had a situation, nor can I think of one, where I would need the laser to finish off a 3d printed part. The way the paths are laid out when printing, it reinforces holes and openings so cutting a hole afterwards will leave it unreinforced.

You may need to run some tests for holes. You may find that a hole printed to be 3mm diameter in reality is more like 2.8mm due to the filament width and the way the software handles holes. I am sure that in time these things will be solved, if not already for some programs. I have seen solutions that require digging into the software but for now I am content to just keep in mind that I need to design holes slightly larger.

While I don't have a printer yet, I can forsee wanting to laser the parts. Put a logo. Cut a precise shaped/dimensioned hole. Print a pistol grip using the wood filament and then laser etch a design on it. I am sure there are many more ideas out there like that.

I know there is sag, swelling, etc involved in the 3d print. Thats why I am looking at laserable materials. Knowing you are going to cut a hole, you an reinforce an area with thicker walls or internal tubes/structures expecting the hole to be cut/drilled later. I mean, its all about experience and learning what you need to do or not do to produce a quality end product. Its the same with day 1 with the laser. I am pretty good at getting things done now, I was not when I first got it. The same will hold true of the printer.

The early prints are going to suck, not fit, or be totally useless. I get that. And that is also why I am looking at filament extruders to manufacture filament from recycled products and failed prints. I have been saving and sorting all sorts of plastic bottles and containers knowing this was coming eventually. I also cleaned out the girls toy bin and grabbed all the ABS stuff that was broken (as a toy) and have stashed it to turn it into filament. So I have a nice supply of HDPE, PET, ABS and Polypropolene (PP) to grind up.

Mike Audleman
02-09-2015, 12:07 PM
Like I mentioned, the Lulzbots are easy to get going. Once you are are familiar with it, you can do quite a lot. It's a sturdy machine that can be honed and tinkered with, but will work just fine out of the box.

Any filament that Aleph Objects( Lulzbot) carries will work. I prefer ABS for its strength, but the wood Laywoo (similar to PLA) is cool too. I haven't used the brick or metal filaments, but the local makerspace has members that told me that they were messy and left bits that clogged the nozzles. I don't recall what machines they have, though.

I would print the fan hood hack if you intend to use PLA.

First 4 pages of google didn't produce any meaningful references to "fan hood hack taz". Got a link?



Isn't it basically just a REP RAP? The REP RAP forums are very active, as well as their chat room.

Hadn't thought about it. Guess it is based off the Prusai3 & Mendel90 though with quite a few improvements. I just did a search on their forums for "taz". Zero results.

Mike Audleman
02-09-2015, 12:13 PM
Isn't it basically just a REP RAP? The REP RAP forums are very active, as well as their chat room.

Ok, thats messed up. Browsing their forums, I found threads that do talk about the Taz as well as LulzBot. Just did a search with LulzBot and it found threads. Wonder if they have a 4 character min on search terms. Would have been nice to say so if thats the case instead of just saying zero results found.

Scott Shepherd
02-09-2015, 12:21 PM
We have a Rep Rap Prusa. Joseph Prusa (if I remember his name correctly) was in a chat room when I was asking a question one time and he helped me get some things ironed out. Really nice guy. I think he was in the USA, on an Amtrak, using their wifi when he was helping me.

Matt McCoy
02-09-2015, 1:01 PM
First 4 pages of google didn't produce any meaningful references to "fan hood hack taz". Got a link?

Hadn't thought about it. Guess it is based off the Prusai3 & Mendel90 though with quite a few improvements. I just did a search on their forums for "taz". Zero results.

I would Google "fan Taz 3D" (without quotes).

It looks like there is a MK4 out already that includes a fan, but if you find a used machine or build your own you can add it. I got results from their own forum as well.

Google "Taz RepRap"

First result: http://reprap.org/wiki/LulzBot/TAZ

Mike Audleman
02-09-2015, 2:56 PM
I would Google "fan Taz 3D" (without quotes).

It looks like there is a MK4 out already that includes a fan, but if you find a used machine or build your own you can add it. I got results from their own forum as well.

Google "Taz RepRap"

First result: http://reprap.org/wiki/LulzBot/TAZ

I wasn't searching google. Was searching on the reprap forum. When searching for "Taz" it returned no results. But searching for "Lulzbot" I got hits that even included the word "taz" in the titles leading me to believe they have a minimum of 4 characters for search terms.

I am ordering new. Do I still need to investigate a fan shroud? If so, I have collected taz things on thingverse. Would you be so kind to direct me to the one you recommend please?
http://www.thingiverse.com/Wolfie/collections/lulzbot-taz

Also, what filament do you recommend someone start with, ABS or PLA? I see complaints on both. Which is the smartest one to start with? I learned the hard way that maybe glass wasn't the smartest idea as the second thing to try to etch on my laser (not so bad since they were dollar store fodder). But with some spools going on $60, its a bit more expensive of a mistake.

Matt McCoy
02-09-2015, 3:26 PM
I wasn't searching google. Was searching on the reprap forum. When searching for "Taz" it returned no results. But searching for "Lulzbot" I got hits that even included the word "taz" in the titles leading me to believe they have a minimum of 4 characters for search terms.

I am ordering new. Do I still need to investigate a fan shroud? If so, I have collected taz things on thingverse. Would you be so kind to direct me to the one you recommend please?
http://www.thingiverse.com/Wolfie/collections/lulzbot-taz

Also, what filament do you recommend someone start with, ABS or PLA? I see complaints on both. Which is the smartest one to start with? I learned the hard way that maybe glass wasn't the smartest idea as the second thing to try to etch on my laser (not so bad since they were dollar store fodder). But with some spools going on $60, its a bit more expensive of a mistake.

You can Google forums or websites:

site:sawmillcreek.org lulzbot

As mentioned, the Taz 4 has a fan included.

Someone will always find something to complain about on the internet. :) A large portion of negative comments are probably from user error.There are pros/cons with either filament and it really depends on what you are printing.

Jason Hilton
02-09-2015, 4:02 PM
I really like the Form1+ http://formlabs.com/en/products/form-1-plus/

Primarily for the excellent software experience but also the resolution. It's a bit messier than a FDM printer but a lot higher resolution for a home 3d printer.

Rich Harman
02-09-2015, 5:15 PM
I print almost exclusively in ABS. I do like PLA though. The nice thing about PLA is that you can print it directly on heated glass - no tape needed. When the glass cools the part just lifts off - and it warps much less than ABS, providing you are actively cooling it while printing. The bad thing about PLA is that it really needs a fan cooling the filament that has just been laid down - and it smells like syrup when printing.

PLA is harder/stiffer than ABS, but ABS is more durable and you can bond parts together better. If your part will be in contact with water then PLA is not good.

Mike Audleman
02-09-2015, 6:13 PM
Thanks guys! At first, I won't likely be printing anything useful. Just the octopus and maybe some primitives getting my feet wet. So, long term survival and usability of the prints is a non factor. I am going to need to learn the printer, its settings as well as all the software and slicing ins and outs long before I produce anything worth worring about. Thats why I asked about the ease of use for PLA and ABS from a beginner's point of view.

Its really not a good idea to learn how everything works on a laser and its associated software trying to etch glass as your first material to work with. Better to start out with some cheap plywood and paper no? Well thats what I was trying to get at for the printer. Is PLA or ABS the paper/plywood to learn on? From the sounds of things PLA appears to be the best candidate to begin with no? Less warping. Less problems with heated bed temps? But requires a fan.

The place I am buying the printer is including 2kg of filament with the order so I wanted to be somewhat educated as to what to request for the starter spools.

Rich Harman
02-09-2015, 8:36 PM
Is PLA or ABS the paper/plywood to learn on?

I don't think that either of them have a clear advantage for starting out. I think the pros and cons for each are pretty well balanced.

Lee DeRaud
02-09-2015, 9:52 PM
I really like the Form1+ http://formlabs.com/en/products/form-1-plus/

Primarily for the excellent software experience but also the resolution. It's a bit messier than a FDM printer but a lot higher resolution for a home 3d printer.Leaving aside the price, is it "hobby-friendly"?

By that I mean, is it something that can sit for a week or two and then fire up and run without a lot of set-up/clean-up overhead? Or is it more suited to a run-every-day environment?

Mike Audleman
02-10-2015, 10:33 AM
I don't think that either of them have a clear advantage for starting out. I think the pros and cons for each are pretty well balanced.

Well, ok then :) I will see if they will include a spool of each insted of 2kg of one.


Leaving aside the price, is it "hobby-friendly"?

By that I mean, is it something that can sit for a week or two and then fire up and run without a lot of set-up/clean-up overhead? Or is it more suited to a run-every-day environment?

I looked at resin SLA printers and their maintenance overhead seemed to be higher than FDM type printers. They are susceptible to dust and debris entering the resin pool so they must be kept dust free and in a dust free environment. FDM printers do also need a reasonably clean environment (ie, don't set it next to your belt sander) but are less prone to problems from that environment. The filament can easily be wiped as its fed into the extruder (and I have seen many addons and attachments for exactly that purpose) and on nearly all models, rods and screws are self lubricating/cleaning. The resin, once contaminated with debris must be filtered, a slow process.

SLA do tend to produce finer details than FDM printers. But they also lack the flexibility of colors, multiple colors on same print, and lack the ability to use nearly all of the creative types of material (rubbers, stretchy stuff, wood, glow in the dark, stone and metallic) that FDMs have at their disposal.

Changing material on a resin SSS is also an extended process, far more complicated than FDMs and simply backing one filament out of the extruder and feeding the next one in which can be done while paused making a model. I don't believe that resin can be changed during a print though I am not entirely positive on that aspect.

With resin SLA, you are working with a liquid and spills are going to happen. With filament FDMs, well, its impossible to spill a solid filament :) If it slips, just wind it back up.

Those here who are into 3d printing may find this project of interest. Its somewhat related to the current thread. It combines SLS (Selective Laser Sintering) with a laser etching/cutting machine. Yea, you can build an addon to your laser CNC machine and turn it into a SLA printer. And they were doing it on a 40w and 80w machine which many of you own :)
http://reprap.org/wiki/OpenSLS

Lee DeRaud
02-10-2015, 8:45 PM
I looked at resin SLA printers and their maintenance overhead seemed to be higher than FDM type printers. They are susceptible to dust and debris entering the resin pool so they must be kept dust free and in a dust free environment. FDM printers do also need a reasonably clean environment (ie, don't set it next to your belt sander) but are less prone to problems from that environment. The filament can easily be wiped as its fed into the extruder (and I have seen many addons and attachments for exactly that purpose) and on nearly all models, rods and screws are self lubricating/cleaning. The resin, once contaminated with debris must be filtered, a slow process.
...
With resin SLA, you are working with a liquid and spills are going to happen. With filament FDMs, well, its impossible to spill a solid filament :) If it slips, just wind it back up.
That's kinda what I was afraid of. While I can provide a relatively clean environment (i.e. the same spare bedroom the laser is in), keeping what amounts to an open paint can dog-hair-free would be a full-time job, and I wouldn't be able to just blow it out with compressed air like I do the laser.
I was blown away by this technology when I first saw it in action (mid-'80s?)...never expected it to get down to this price point. So it goes.

Lee DeRaud
02-10-2015, 8:57 PM
With filament FDMs, well, its impossible to spill a solid filament :) You've clearly never done any fly fishing. :p:eek:

Dan Hintz
02-11-2015, 6:40 AM
You've clearly never done any fly fishing. :p:eek:

Truth. Once the tension releases in some of those spools, you have FDM filament that will never tighten up again. Ever used a weedwhacker with line feed problems? Same issue...

Jason Hilton
02-11-2015, 9:49 AM
In my opinion the messiness of an SLA printer is all down to it's design. That's why I gravitate toward the Form1, it's resin trays have sealed covers and UV coating so you can store resin in the swappable trays without pouring back and forth into storage containers. It is still messier than FDM, especially because once printed you have to wash the finished piece in a finishing bath to remove excess resin.

My main reason for preferring Form1+ over FDM is resolution. You can get a much higher fine detail out of it.

Clark Pace
02-11-2015, 11:30 AM
So ihave ctc printer. Maker bot clone. I got 1 off ebay and it was bad, but the second. Replaced under warranty. The second one works great. It like pla better. Mainly due to the smell of abs. It gives me bad headaches. Although if i have to use abs i set up my vent system which works well. But i move my printer from place to place.

Rich Harman
02-11-2015, 4:26 PM
Truth. Once the tension releases in some of those spools, you have FDM filament that will never tighten up again. Ever used a weedwhacker with line feed problems? Same issue...

I've used quite a number of different filaments, never had that kind of issue - at least not to the extent that it became a problem. I did have one spool of 3mm PLA that was wrapped around a ridiculously small 4" spool. The stiff PLA didn't want to come off the spool. Trying to re-roll onto a larger spool was a disaster because the PLA retained the original set. I think they spooled it before the PLA cooled sufficiently.

I don't do anything special to hold the ends of partially used spools, and they all work fine - except for that one PLA spool.

Rich Harman
02-11-2015, 4:40 PM
That's why I gravitate toward the Form1, it's resin trays have sealed covers and UV coating so you can store resin in the swappable trays without pouring back and forth into storage containers...

...My main reason for preferring Form1+ over FDM is resolution. You can get a much higher fine detail out of it.

The DWS Labs printer also uses trays. I have compared the Form Labs and the DWS printer side by side - last year. The DWS prints were much higher quality than the Form Labs. If you need that kind of resolution, but not durability, then a resin printer is a good choice.

I certainly want a resin printer but it doesn't do anything I need it to. Even if I had one I would still use my filament printer most of the time because most things that I print need to durable.

Mike Audleman
02-22-2015, 12:53 AM
And something for you 3D printer folks to do with your laser :) Made these up while I wait for mine to be delivered.

Blue - Etch 3/4 through your material
Yellow -Dotted. For standard Avery #8560 label
Orange/Red -Cut.

I used 3mm ply. Feel free to use whatever. No joints, so make it out of scrap anything.

Top tabs have 4 shapes for general filament classification (by feel), Square=ABS, Rounded=PLA, House=Nylon, Triangle=Other
CDR has master for adding new tab shapes to.

Cut. Use hot glue gun to add 4" or so sample. Print/Write and attach label. Hang on pegboard or on bucket containing said material for easy identification as to whats in the bucket.

I put the product name, color and print temperature rage on the label for reference.

These are set up for 3mm filament. If you use 1.5, scale the blue etch zone appropriately.

307525
307524

Jason Hilton
02-23-2015, 11:20 AM
The XFAB looks very cool. I hadn't seen those before, will check them out.

Clark Pace
02-23-2015, 11:50 AM
What free programs do you use to design our objects?

I use Blender, and Netfabb.

Jason Hilton
02-23-2015, 2:24 PM
I don't use any free programs. I've been doing 3d in Lightwave and autoCAD for many years, they're still my go-to. I've heard great things about Autodesk's 123D line of free apps, but I haven't had time to try them properly yet.

http://usa.autodesk.com/autodesk-123d/

Matt McCoy
02-23-2015, 2:26 PM
SketchUp is another option.

Mark Ross
02-28-2015, 10:03 AM
We have a Dimension BST768 from way back and it has been a workhouse. Resolution is 0.010" and it prints abs. Slow, but built like a brick chicken coop. We also have an Object 30 Pro, so yes....

neener neener neener I can print CLEAR plastic! Only 55k. It has more than paid for itself since not everyone can afford to buy one, but wants one off clear parts. The material is more expensive than the best liquor I've ever drank in my life. $750 bucks for a 2 Liter. That there is some EXPENSIVE Mountain Dew.

Mike Audleman
03-02-2015, 3:20 PM
I don't use any free programs. I've been doing 3d in Lightwave and autoCAD for many years, they're still my go-to. I've heard great things about Autodesk's 123D line of free apps, but I haven't had time to try them properly yet.

http://usa.autodesk.com/autodesk-123d/

I tried them and, well, they are free. I hate 123D. It insists on phoning home just to open a file. In fact you can't open ANY file if you block 123D's internet access.

Myself, I go to Hexagon, Modo and Zbrush. Of course those are not free by any stretch of the imagination. In fact the three probably cost more than the 3D printer.

I found access to an older version of Simplify3D (past version of their demo). Sadly they no longer offer ANY demo so I had to resort to these measures (thank you waybackmachine ;) to try it out. Its not a molder, but its the slicing and layup engine. Because its an older version, it didn't list configs for my brand new Taz5 (just released late Feb 2015) so I had to learn myself. Which is probably a good thing as I learned more than if I had been given the proiles. I think its got WAY better support generation than Cura, and it allows manual placement of supports The slicing is way faster and does a better job than Slicer or Cura. And the generated Gcode is faster. I recent example that I compared. I loaded up a STL (same one in both apps). I set the same layer sizes, same fill rates but I disabled supprts so I could compare even steven. Cura and slicer both produced an estimate of 53 minutes print time. When I run the same STL in Simplify3D with all the appreciably comparable settings set to identical settings, it produced a print that estimated at 18 minutes. I printed it in both. Both estimates were pretty spot on. The prints were different in quality! The Cura sliced one was noticeably poorer quality than the same STL printed from Simplify3D. And the Simplify3D print took 1/3 the time! I have to say, I am pretty impressed and I will probably buy Simplify3D. Its $150.


Bottom line here is yea there is free stuff out there. Yea,it works, mostly. But, some of the pay applications have proven to me they are worth the investment.

Mark Ross
03-03-2015, 7:43 AM
Here is an example of a clear part off of our Objet30 Pro after post processing.

308293

Larry Robinson
03-03-2015, 10:14 PM
Mark that is incredible.

I have looked at the many offerings from Stratasys, but the cost of materials and the post processing seems to make it unprofitable for production runs of the designs I have. Have you found it profitable to use the Objet printer?

Mark Ross
03-09-2015, 11:14 AM
Larry,

Our Objet30Pro paid for itself in one month. We landed a huge contract for production parts when we showed our customer the prototypes that the objet made. Now, don't get me wrong, that picture I show is with additional post processing. This entails over exposing the UV sensitive clear material, basically they call the process photo bleaching. A large LED lamp that outputs 6500K for its color temperature, we leave the part exposed for 24 hours. Next we progressively sand starting at 400 grit to 1000 grit, then we wet sand to 12000 grit, then we polish using the headlight restoration kits. Then we wash the part to remove any left over polish. Then we hit it with a clear coat. So it can be a lot of post processing but it was worth it in our case.

The Objet30 pro will do other materials in various colors and they just came out with a material called duris which is close to simulating polypropelene. They also have a high temperature material. The nice thing is the resolution on the printer is 100 microns so we can do some really accurate stuff.

Mark Ross
03-15-2015, 4:31 PM
There will be a 3D printing conference taking place in Northwest Indiana next weekend. Check out http://midwestreprapfest.org/ if you have an interest in 3D printing. It is absolutely amazing how far this technology has come. We make a lot of our low stress tooling for fixtures at work on our Dimension BST768. That model is obosolete, but ours has been running since around 2002 (so I've been told).

We also have an Objet 30 pro that prints clear but that technology is a liquid photopolymer, so the 3D technology is more like inkjet but it has a resolution of 100 micron. I went to this show last year and it was busting at the seams. This year, they expect 5,000 people, everyone from hobbyists and hackers to people like me, wanting the technology of a $50,000 Objet in a $5,000 open source system. Hope to see you there! I will report on what I see next weekend.

What this technology does for people is amazing. If you need a certain jig that has a tolerance of +/- 0.010"? No problem, you can print it up. That being said, I work with Autodesk Inventor and the design process to printing is seamless. At a more basic level, I don't know what is out there for low cost or no cost open source 3D CAD programs.

What have I been able to do with the 3D printer? More work jigs than I can shake a stick at. When they wear out, we print more. On our dimension, we can print up production intent models, sand them, fill them with body filler, sand them, paint them and you are going to be hard pressed to not think they didn't come off a finished plastic injection molded tool. 3D printers will never replace injection molding but they are a great complimentary tool.

If it would take you a couple of days to make a jig that you can draw up in 3D and print while you sleep...well...we do it. Right now for us, it is feast or famine. We can go months running the printer 24/7 then go a few days with nothing to do. But, trust me, this technology is here to stay.

Want a pool table leg? Design it in 3D, 3D print it, 3D scan it, and voila, you have your CNC wood engraving equipment doing custom designs. That reminds me, I have to check out 3D CAD to 3D woodworking CNC....

William Adams
03-15-2015, 4:40 PM
At a more basic level, I don't know what is out there for low cost or no cost open source 3D CAD programs.

I've tried to list all the opensource and legitimately free things here: http://www.shapeoko.com/wiki/index.php/CAD#3D

I'd be glad to know of anything which I missed.


List of inexpensive (and expensive) and free stuff which is license limited here: http://www.shapeoko.com/wiki/index.php/Commercial_Software#3D_CAD

Doug Griffith
03-15-2015, 4:47 PM
There will be a 3D printing conference taking place in Northwest Indiana next weekend. Check out http://midwestreprapfest.org/ if you have an interest in 3D printing. It is absolutely amazing how far this technology has come. We make a lot of our low stress tooling for fixtures at work on our Dimension BST768. That model is obosolete, but ours has been running since around 2002 (so I've been told).

We also have an Objet 30 pro that prints clear but that technology is a liquid photopolymer, so the 3D technology is more like inkjet but it has a resolution of 100 micron. I went to this show last year and it was busting at the seams. This year, they expect 5,000 people, everyone from hobbyists and hackers to people like me, wanting the technology of a $50,000 Objet in a $5,000 open source system. Hope to see you there! I will report on what I see next weekend.

What this technology does for people is amazing. If you need a certain jig that has a tolerance of +/- 0.010"? No problem, you can print it up. That being said, I work with Autodesk Inventor and the design process to printing is seamless. At a more basic level, I don't know what is out there for low cost or no cost open source 3D CAD programs.

What have I been able to do with the 3D printer? More work jigs than I can shake a stick at. When they wear out, we print more. On our dimension, we can print up production intent models, sand them, fill them with body filler, sand them, paint them and you are going to be hard pressed to not think they didn't come off a finished plastic injection molded tool. 3D printers will never replace injection molding but they are a great complimentary tool.

If it would take you a couple of days to make a jig that you can draw up in 3D and print while you sleep...well...we do it. Right now for us, it is feast or famine. We can go months running the printer 24/7 then go a few days with nothing to do. But, trust me, this technology is here to stay.

Want a pool table leg? Design it in 3D, 3D print it, 3D scan it, and voila, you have your CNC wood engraving equipment doing custom designs. That reminds me, I have to check out 3D CAD to 3D woodworking CNC....

I work with 3D printing like you. Not for production parts but it helps with just about every other process. I'm not sure about your last sentence though. Why scan something 3D printed? The geometry is already digital. It's building the final product one step too many.

Mike Audleman
03-16-2015, 8:37 PM
There will be a 3D printing conference taking place in Northwest Indiana next weekend. Check out http://midwestreprapfest.org/ if you have an interest in 3D printing.

Thats only a 3hr drive from Milwaukee. I think I may just go down for the day. It looks like a lot of fun!

Dave Sheldrake
03-16-2015, 9:59 PM
Z-Corp Z650......never again..biggest boat anchor I ever purchased, expensive to run, expensive to buy and slower than molasses in -50 degree temperature :(

Rich Harman
03-17-2015, 12:01 AM
Z-Corp Z650......never again..biggest boat anchor I ever purchased, expensive to run, expensive to buy and slower than molasses in -50 degree temperature :(

Did you not know what the expenses and speed would be before you purchased?

I know someone with a Dimension 3D printer. It is a boat anchor for him too. Something about needing to keep up with service fees and updates else the printer no longer works. I think he also said that if you chose to start the services again you would need to pay for all the months that you missed. He's quite an unhappy customer. And I know another guy that works in special effects in Hollywood. He seems pretty happy with his Dimension printer.

I know another place that runs two Dimension printers, I've seen and held their parts. They are better than what I can do, but honestly, not by that much. Those machines cost 50 times what mine did. I'd say they make parts about 1-1/2 times better. Sometimes that extra little bit makes all the difference. Much of the time it doesn't.

Keith Colson
03-17-2015, 12:24 AM
I built my own 3d printer a couple of years ago. It is a Tantillus. Due to its small build size and precision parts I put in. it does much better prints than the ABS Dimension I used at my previous job. When I print a test cube it typically has less than 20 to 30 microns of error The catch is it takes a lot more maintenance e.g. nozzle cleaning and filament feeder cleaning. I made some mods to it which makes the maintenance fast so its not a problem. It can print PLA ABS PETG and Nylon which is a bonus. I try to laser cut as much as I can because it is so much faster.

Edit. The biggest bonus was it only cost $500 for everything.

William Adams
03-17-2015, 10:43 AM
Keith --- do you have a B.O.M. for your upgraded Tantillus? I've been considering building one, and doing a precision unit would help me to justify it.

Matt McCoy
03-17-2015, 9:22 PM
Here's a pretty fast 3D printer:

http://3dprint.com/51566/carbon3d-clip-3d-printing/

Clark Pace
03-17-2015, 9:50 PM
I just picked up my second 3d printer. It's a da vinci 3d printer. Bad support, but I love the prints. Even with the negative reviews about the average print quality I am happy. It's does a better job then my other 3d printer. I'm thinking the bad reviews may have been with a previous software version. Mine really prints fanastic.

It also has a 3d scanner built in. Very fun!

Dave Sheldrake
03-17-2015, 10:07 PM
Did you not know what the expenses and speed would be before you purchased?

Yea, I knew what to expect and the machine paid for itself and made a profit on the job I got it for but since then it's been sat doing nothing for a year :) the material science and speed just aren't there yet but I'm sure in the not so distant future it will be and destructive machining will end up being a thing of the past.

cheers

Dave

Rich Harman
03-17-2015, 10:44 PM
I just picked up my second 3d printer. It's a da vinci 3d printer.

I've come close to getting that printer a couple times, very affordable. I don't like their business model of charging extra for their proprietary filament cartridges, but fortunately it is fairly easy to bypass and use the filament of your choice.

Keith Colson
03-17-2015, 11:21 PM
Hi William

I built the metric laser cut Tantillus. You should be able to find all the info at these sites
http://www.reprap.org/wiki/Tantillus
http://www.tantillus.org/ which is down right now for some reason

The mods I did are as follows.
I straightened the shafts to within 10 microns, which is the most important process to making a really accurate printer. My video is here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRtIxG2co5w

I modified it to use belts instead of gears
My video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfkB6idPDPU

I added a heated bed that works really well here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFj2S6i-FGs

I added a part I designed here to get rid of z wobble here
http://forums.reprap.org/read.php?279,288882,288882#msg-288882

I also added thumb nuts for quick head cleaning and relocated the extruder drive for smoother flow. I spent way too much time on it but I enjoyed the journey. If you need any info just send me a private

Dan Hintz
03-18-2015, 6:32 AM
Here's a pretty fast 3D printer:

http://3dprint.com/51566/carbon3d-clip-3d-printing/

The speed is on par with other similar printers that have been out for several years now... but I cannot wrap my head around their claimed technology.

They claim an O2-permeable window, which makes no sense to me... nor can I see any benefit. The resins are UV-curable, which is why a UV laser is used (that, and the short wavelength leads to great detail), so there's no need to block oxygen. Comments like "Instead of printing an object layer-by-layer... this new process harnesses light as a way to cure the resin, and oxygen as an inhibiting agent, to print in true 3-dimensional fashion." As far as I can see, they're still printing a layer at a time (not all at once, mind you, but through rastering a laser across the layer), then raising the object by that thickness... but that's no different than several machines out there that do the exact same process (such as the Form1).

Yet again, I'm getting that hand-waving magic marketing speak that either defies logical explanation or is simply cherry-picking words to make it seem more than it is.

What am I missing?

EDIT: BTW, Matt, this isn't an attack on you, I just can't figure out why these companies keep acting like they're the best thing since sliced bread... but they're sharing the same baker.

Matt McCoy
03-18-2015, 10:17 AM
The speed is on par with other similar printers that have been out for several years now... but I cannot wrap my head around their claimed technology.

They claim an O2-permeable window, which makes no sense to me... nor can I see any benefit. The resins are UV-curable, which is why a UV laser is used (that, and the short wavelength leads to great detail), so there's no need to block oxygen. Comments like "Instead of printing an object layer-by-layer... this new process harnesses light as a way to cure the resin, and oxygen as an inhibiting agent, to print in true 3-dimensional fashion." As far as I can see, they're still printing a layer at a time (not all at once, mind you, but through rastering a laser across the layer), then raising the object by that thickness... but that's no different than several machines out there that do the exact same process (such as the Form1).

Yet again, I'm getting that hand-waving magic marketing speak that either defies logical explanation or is simply cherry-picking words to make it seem more than it is.

What am I missing?

EDIT: BTW, Matt, this isn't an attack on you, I just can't figure out why these companies keep acting like they're the best thing since sliced bread... but they're sharing the same baker.

For discussion:

"an entirely new breakthrough 3D printing process, which is anywhere between 25 and 100 times faster than what’s available on the market today."

309382

Lee DeRaud
03-18-2015, 10:36 AM
http://www.tantillus.org/ which is down right now for some reason
Not just "down": I'm getting a "domain expired" message, which would normally indicate abandonment.
The Reprap wiki entry hasn't been updated since last July, and the Github repository's last commit was last May.

Unfortunate that, as reverse-engineering everything from the part files doesn't sound like a whole lot of fun.

Dan Hintz
03-18-2015, 11:06 AM
For discussion:

"an entirely new breakthrough 3D printing process, which is anywhere between 25 and 100 times faster than what’s available on the market today."

309382

Notice how they're comparing their machine to completely different technologies, though... that truly is an apples to oranges comparison. If you compare their machine to something similar in technology, like the Form1, they're on par. Again, it's marketing that feels like they're right on the edge of lying without actually telling falsehoods.

And I absolutely, 100% call foul on the claim of "25-100 times faster than what’s available on the market today." that only holds true if you're comparing against other technologies. If you compare against the SAME technology, that claim falls flat on its face. Considering they don't specify "other technologies", I call that claim a bald-faced lie.

Matt McCoy
03-18-2015, 12:03 PM
Dan: I'm confused. The Form 1, that you mention, is a SLA printer. This is from the Tech Specs on the Form 1 website:

"Technology - Stereolithography (SLA)"

It looks like SLA is noted in the Carbon3D chart.

Also from the Formlab website:

"How fast does the Form 1+ print?

The build speed is comparable to FDM machines when comparing layer thickness and density. As a general rule, the build speed is 1-3 cm/hour along the Z axis when printing at 100 microns"

Here is the white paper on the Carbon3D printer:

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/early/2015/03/18/science.aaa2397.abstract

If you click Supplementary Materials, there are two videos where models are printed at 500 mm/hour which looks to be about 50 X faster than Formlab's fastest printer.

Dan Hintz
03-18-2015, 1:17 PM
I'm about to head out for the day... lemme dig into tonight and see if I'm off base...

Dave Sheldrake
03-18-2015, 1:28 PM
I know of DeSimone by reputation, unlike many of the claimants who have the "next best thing" this chap is indeed capable of the real thing and if he makes a claim it is well worth looking at.

Matt McCoy
05-16-2015, 12:19 PM
Here's an interesting TED Talk on the new 3D printing technology I posted about a while back:

http://www.ted.com/talks/joe_desimone_what_if_3d_printing_was_25x_faster

Bill George
05-20-2015, 8:14 PM
Thats only a 3hr drive from Milwaukee. I think I may just go down for the day. It looks like a lot of fun!
So Mike what did you end up getting? I was dead set against a 3D printer, BUT selling one of my shop toys and it dawned on me I could re-invest (waste) the money on a 3D printer. But I am still trying to figure out how its going to make me money, and maybe it will just be to learn something new!

Mike Audleman
05-21-2015, 4:59 PM
So Mike what did you end up getting? I was dead set against a 3D printer, BUT selling one of my shop toys and it dawned on me I could re-invest (waste) the money on a 3D printer. But I am still trying to figure out how its going to make me money, and maybe it will just be to learn something new!

I ended up with a LulzBot Taz 5.
http://cdn.ipernity.com/200/35/22/37153522.ae07dfe7.500.jpg (http://www.ipernity.com/doc/wolfie/37153522)

Since then I designed and constructed a new hot end cooling system for the Hexagon hot end:
http://cdn.ipernity.com/200/87/04/37688704.6205de28.500.jpg (http://www.ipernity.com/doc/wolfie/37688704)
(All of the parts in the photo, I printed)

My latest design is a new one for the E3D v6 hot end:
http://cdn.ipernity.com/200/11/50/38081150.42e12caa.500.jpg (http://www.ipernity.com/doc/wolfie/38081150)
(All of the parts in the photo, I printed)

The above photo also includes my filament tube holder bracket I designed. It prevents flexing of the filament at a sharp angle and that stops breaking brittle filaments such as LayBrick.
http://thingiverse-production-new.s3.amazonaws.com/renders/4a/49/12/cd/5f/13A_3830_preview_featured.jpg


I have also improved my laser cutter using my 3D printer. See, I found that the side mounted red dot aiming was, well, botchy at best. Its almost never right. Its only right IF the laser is exactly focused and is over a flat object and IF the red dot has not been bumped. If you are above or below focus, the red dot is NOT where the laser will fire! And on round objects, its really hard. Another failing is its inability to tell if a part is square with the laser carriage. Other than moving the carriage back and forth or front and back and watching the dot, there really isn't an easy way. And if the surface is not flat, then that method becomes even less functional.

So, I solved ALL that by designing a laser crosshair fixture! It holds two line lasers at 90 deg to each other and one dot at 45 deg between. The line lasers shoot straight down and the dot is at an angle. Once adjusted, the lines cross 90deg to each other and are each in paralell with their axis (x and y). Now I have a laser line indicating where the laser carriage will move in both the x and y axis. Perfect for squaring up paper to be lasered. Also handy for aliging along the center of round things (bullets, scopes, glass). Where they cross is where the laser will fire. And height doesn't matter! It could be dead nuts on focus height or it could be 4" above or below focus, the lines still cross at the fire point because they are straight and square. The dot is adjusted so it aligns with the crossing lines exactly at the focus height. If the laser head is too high, the dot will overshoot the cross in one direction, and if its head is too low, it will undershoot the cross in the opposite direction (just like the old red dot did). The dot is now a perfect focus indicator! I have all but discarded my focus tool. Its not needed anymore! I simply adjust the head height until the dot crosses the x and I know the laser is focused. And the position of the dot tells me whether its high or low and by how much.

Sorry, haven't taken any photos of that rig yet.


Not sure if a link to Thingiverse is permitted here....so.... If anyone wants my designs to print, most of them are on Thingiverse. Just search for user "Wolfie" and look for the one with the same target avatar image you see here. The laser printer fixture is not up there yet though.

Dave Sheldrake
05-21-2015, 5:16 PM
Been having a bit of a giggle with a Robox 3d printer :)

Cheap as chips to buy and plug & play ;)

Dan H will know what I'm on about...when we get an army printed to take over the world Eh Dan? ;)

Bill George
05-21-2015, 8:14 PM
Been having a bit of a giggle with a Robox 3d printer :)

Cheap as chips to buy and plug & play ;)

Dan H will know what I'm on about...when we get an army printed to take over the world Eh Dan? ;)

I tried to find out about that 3D printer Dave but the website was so annoying I finally gave up. Wants to show me a video and then the Flash animation took over!! All I wanted to do is see what it looked like and what it could do.

Dan Hintz
05-22-2015, 6:18 AM
Dan H will know what I'm on about...when we get an army printed to take over the world Eh Dan? ;)

You will be upgraded.