The Official 3D Printing Discussion Thread

[Lownslow]

[Spex84]

On 10/15/2022 at 1:55 PM, thatz4u said:

our library has the following for public use, your opinions on each will be helpful

Makerbot 3D printer

Nikon D3400 Camera

Blender software

Sketchup Software

Gimp software

thanks for your help..............

 

That sounds like a similar loadout to my local library!   I can't offer much feedback on the printer/camera, but I can definitely put in a good word for Blender. It has a steep learning curve but an active community so there are tons of tutorials on Youtube. If your goal is to create 3D models for 3D printing, you can do that with Blender.

 

EDIT

And Frank, it's awesome to see how you're using those scans. Looks like it injects a hefty dose of confidence into the workflow: less guess n' test and more productivity.

Edited October 24, 2022 by Spex84

[stitchdup]

Something to think about if your going to get a 3d printer. You will need at least 8gig of ram on your computer to run the slicing software. I didn't have that so had to purchase a new laptop. first print will be on saturday.

 

[MrObsessive]

11 hours ago, stitchdup said:

Something to think about if your going to get a 3d printer. You will need at least 8gig of ram on your computer to run the slicing software. I didn't have that so had to purchase a new laptop. first print will be on saturday.

 

You betcha! That, and also the CAD software programs such as Fusion 360, Blender, etc. Those can get very RAM hoggish especially when it comes to design work you're doing on a large size file for example.

I've 12GB of RAM on my laptop, and I still had Blender crash on me with no warning right in the middle of an important step. 🤯

[my66s55]

I have 8gb of RAM on my laptop. I've had Blender 2.91.2 crash on me a couple of times while working on very large files. Blender 2.82a does not crash. Chitubox slicer 9.4 will crash when trying to save large sliced files. Version 9.3 doesn't. I switched my operation system to Linux in 2010 and never looked back. Linux is much less labor intensive than windows. The other thing you need to do in Blender is to constantly save you file. I date the file I'm working on and sometimes will add a 1 or letter like A. I can always go back to a previous file if necessary. 

[MeatMan]

21 hours ago, stitchdup said:

Something to think about if your going to get a 3d printer. You will need at least 8gig of ram on your computer to run the slicing software. I didn't have that so had to purchase a new laptop. first print will be on saturday.

 

Luckily for me I was buying a new laptop anyway and loaded mine up with 16GB, with two going to the video card for an actual 14GB. Now I can't stand my wife's computer because of the difference in load speed.

[stitchdup]

My first print failed. half the supports fell off the plate at some point before it got above the tank. It did keep printing and the parts that were printed looked ok, the side that failed was a blob. I cancelled that print at the point i could see it had failed I think its because the supports were too small so attempt number 2 is under way with bigger supprts so theres a pool for them to start from. my first attempt was more like lilly pads in a pond.

[MrObsessive]

20 minutes ago, stitchdup said:

My first print failed. half the supports fell off the plate at some point before it got above the tank. It did keep printing and the parts that were printed looked ok, the side that failed was a blob. I cancelled that print at the point i could see it had failed I think its because the supports were too small so attempt number 2 is under way with bigger supprts so theres a pool for them to start from. my first attempt was more like lilly pads in a pond.

Wow, sorry to hear that.

When I'm printing, I like my support density somewhere around 65-70% for most items. Bodies and such I have medium supports----smaller parts like hood, doors, and trunk I'll use the lighter supports.

I don't know which setup/slicer you're using, but you want to check also your Bottom Exposure Time. This is the time when your build plate is bottoming out for the first time, to establish a "foundation" or base for your supports. I have mine set at 30-40 seconds. You don't want to go beyond that as that can lead to LCD damage before its time.

[stitchdup]

13 hours ago, MrObsessive said:

Wow, sorry to hear that.

When I'm printing, I like my support density somewhere around 65-70% for most items. Bodies and such I have medium supports----smaller parts like hood, doors, and trunk I'll use the lighter supports.

I don't know which setup/slicer you're using, but you want to check also your Bottom Exposure Time. This is the time when your build plate is bottoming out for the first time, to establish a "foundation" or base for your supports. I have mine set at 30-40 seconds. You don't want to go beyond that as that can lead to LCD damage before its time.

I'm using lychee slicer. my second print didn't adhere to the plate at all. it went through all the motions but there was no print. i'm now on my third attempt and i'm using the setting from anycubics website this time along with an island base to see if it helps, and i've lowered the layers to 0.05 to increase the speed. I went through all the set up again too just in case i missed something but it all looks to be correct. could it be my using the water washable resin thats the problem? I've been told it has a quite high shrinkage rate so could it be the shrinking pulling the print off the plate? If this print fails I'll try maximising the supports on the next one. I expect to have more fails but i made sure to get extra resin so I'm not going to run out. I'm not getting upset over the fails which i would be if it was a model build failure so thats making me hopeful, usually i lose interest in things when they dont work quickly for me but this is keeping my interest but thats probably cos its totaly new to me, i still use a nokia phone and my camera is a camera is my tech level. I'm still excited by the possibilities so i think i'll manage to stay interested enough to keep going. If its still failing on the second bottle of resin is where i'll be getting annoyed, lol

[stitchdup]

I found the problem. Why would this have happened? I need to buy a new tank now which is annoying. I followed the set up correct, I double checked when it failed and using the settings anycubic recomend for their own resin and it ruins the tank.

[MeatMan]

3 hours ago, stitchdup said:

I found the problem. Why would this have happened? I need to buy a new tank now which is annoying. I followed the set up correct, I double checked when it failed and using the settings anycubic recomend for their own resin and it ruins the tank.

 

That shouldn't cause you to buy a new one. Use a small bit of hot water to loosen it and the push up slightly at the bottom and use a plastic scraper to get under it. I've had that happen before.

Btw, I use their resin on the factory settings and its not been the issue. Looking at what remains it looks like the supports didn't adhere to the bases. What were you printing?

[stinkybritches]

7 hours ago, stitchdup said:

I found the problem. Why would this have happened? I need to buy a new tank now which is annoying. I followed the set up correct, I double checked when it failed and using the settings anycubic recomend for their own resin and it ruins the tank.

As Dennis says above, you should be able to carefully pop that off of the fep. 

What is the temperature in the area that you are printing? A lot of resins are sensitive to low temps.

[stitchdup]

2 hours ago, stinkybritches said:

As Dennis says above, you should be able to carefully pop that off of the fep. 

What is the temperature in the area that you are printing? A lot of resins are sensitive to low temps.

it was probably a bit cold, the fumes were giving me a sore head so i had all the windows open.

 

5 hours ago, MeatMan said:

That shouldn't cause you to buy a new one. Use a small bit of hot water to loosen it and the push up slightly at the bottom and use a plastic scraper to get under it. I've had that happen before.

Btw, I use their resin on the factory settings and its not been the issue. Looking at what remains it looks like the supports didn't adhere to the bases. What were you printing?

I'll give that a try. It feels like it put an indent in the clear part too. I was printing a set of wheels and tyres. I did notice on the anycubic website that all the resins had the same settings. I've not ordered a new tank yet so hopefully i'll save 70 quid

[stitchdup]

Well I had a bit of luck. I left the tank upside down in the sink to try cleaning in the morning and when i got some water a few minutes ago it had fallen off by itself and the plastic is flat again. Thanks for the advice. Would warming the plate in front of the heater before starting a print help?

[my66s55]

Warm the bottle of resin.

 

[stitchdup]

Still having no luck with the prints. I've used nearly 2 bottles of resin and all i have to show for it is a few new cuss words. tried asking for help on a 3d print forum and got nothing but abuse from a group of self rightous manchilds. I've used the settings anycubic recommend, other people settings and yet my prints either fall off the plate or stick to the tank. I've warmed the plate and resin before starting, i've done the set up multiple times but every print fails. I'm starting to get irritated by this now, thats 60 quid of resin and nothing to show. where am i going wrong? i dont mind having some fails while i learn but every print is a fail no matter what i do. im about ready to hit the thing with a big hammer

[MrObsessive]

Les, did you Z axis the build plate before you started? In other words, it's recommended by most printers that you level out or "Z axis" the print area before you get started. If the plate is not fully bottomed out properly, that will affect adhesion for the supports to get a good grip in the beginning.

You'd have to check your specs on how to do that for your printer-----it can vary from brand to brand. Also, you may want to use the resin that they recommend (you may have been doing this), and switch from the washable kind.

I get folks asking me to try this or that all the time, but I like to stick with what works, and that's been Phrozen's Aqua Gray 4K resin which I've had zero issues with.

[stitchdup]

14 minutes ago, MrObsessive said:

Les, did you Z axis the build plate before you started? In other words, it's recommended by most printers that you level out or "Z axis" the print area before you get started. If the plate is not fully bottomed out properly, that will affect adhesion for the supports to get a good grip in the beginning.

You'd have to check your specs on how to do that for your printer-----it can vary from brand to brand. Also, you may want to use the resin that they recommend (you may have been doing this), and switch from the washable kind.

I get folks asking me to try this or that all the time, but I like to stick with what works, and that's been Phrozen's Aqua Gray 4K resin which I've had zero issues with.

I've done the z axis every time i've removed the build plate or tank. I'm going to try and find someone local that has some experience to pop along and see what i'm doing wrong. I'll give your resin a try,maybe its just the resin thats wrong. the prints seem to stop sticking to the plate when it starts printing the first layers of the parts and then it either sticks to the tank or half of the prints droops down. its got to be somethig simple i'm doing wrong, i just cant figure it out

[MrObsessive]

Les, if you haven't done this, I'd give this a try. In your original package for the printer, they may have given you a large 80 grit sanding disc. What may be happening is your build plate is too smooth for the resin to "bite" into and stay adhered to the plate. If you scuff up the plate (on a flat surface), this will give the plate some teeth so that the resin will perhaps better adhere in its initial buildup phase.

I remember having this issue with the first smaller printer I got from Phrozen where prints/supports would not adhere in the first couple tries. After I scuffed the heck out of the plate I had no more issue. The newest ones from them (including the larger printer I got) have a much coarser surface as they may have got quite a few complaints about the plates being too smooth.

See if that works................ 👌🏽

[stitchdup]

1 hour ago, MrObsessive said:

Les, if you haven't done this, I'd give this a try. In your original package for the printer, they may have given you a large 80 grit sanding disc. What may be happening is your build plate is too smooth for the resin to "bite" into and stay adhered to the plate. If you scuff up the plate (on a flat surface), this will give the plate some teeth so that the resin will perhaps better adhere in its initial buildup phase.

I remember having this issue with the first smaller printer I got from Phrozen where prints/supports would not adhere in the first couple tries. After I scuffed the heck out of the plate I had no more issue. The newest ones from them (including the larger printer I got) have a much coarser surface as they may have got quite a few complaints about the plates being too smooth.

See if that works................ 👌🏽

its not a smooth surface, it feels similar to a non stick frying pan with fractional dimples

[stinkybritches]

2 hours ago, stitchdup said:

I've done the z axis every time i've removed the build plate or tank. I'm going to try and find someone local that has some experience to pop along and see what i'm doing wrong. I'll give your resin a try,maybe its just the resin thats wrong. the prints seem to stop sticking to the plate when it starts printing the first layers of the parts and then it either sticks to the tank or half of the prints droops down. its got to be somethig simple i'm doing wrong, i just cant figure it out

You have an Anycubic printer, right? If so, check your UV power percentage. The UV power can be adjusted and maybe your power was set low from the factory.

[CabDriver]

Also make sure the supports aren’t too skinny - if you’re using light, try medium, for example.  It looked like from your previous pic that it was printing the ‘feet’ of the supports ok but not much further…that might help 👍🏻

[MeatMan]

8 hours ago, CabDriver said:

Also make sure the supports aren’t too skinny - if you’re using light, try medium, for example.  It looked like from your previous pic that it was printing the ‘feet’ of the supports ok but not much further…that might help 👍🏻

I agree. If you could screen print your last failure in the slicer we can maybe see the issue.

Also, in the slicer do you move the slider and watch for things that may cause an issue? If you move the slider and see that prints begin in thin air rather than on a support (called islands) it is a possible point of failure. Note the circled area in the pic.  That would concern me as a failure point. In the next pic the support grows into it, but possibly not after the print has already failed.

Did you print the test cube that came with the printer? It is added to identify possible issues. If you can't print the cube on factory settings you could have a lemon.

I recommend going back to factory settings and printing the cube. It takes a while but I think it will help ID any issues. We're here for you Les, so hang in there.

Edited November 2, 2022 by MeatMan

[CabDriver]

1 hour ago, MeatMan said:

If you could screen print your last failure in the slicer we can maybe see the issue.

I'd be interested in seeing that too

Am I right in thinking you tried the test piece (the little boat model) and that didn't work either Les?

[MeatMan]

On 11/2/2022 at 10:09 AM, CabDriver said:

I'd be interested in seeing that too

Am I right in thinking you tried the test piece (the little boat model) and that didn't work either Les?

The cube is the test piece that comes with Anycubic printers.