3D Printing questions

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So, I am a noob in the 3D printing world. I’d like to do something about that. Especially with some projects I have in mind requiring some prototyping. Despite my research I am struggling to find some answers. This seems in the most part to be down to the fact that every printer is different, as is each filament and machine set up. So if I can narrow the playing field a little and specify the Ultimaker as the weapon of choice, can anyone help me out with the below questions please.

I like the idea of the simulated wood filaments. Most places offer a 5m or 10m sample.

  1. How much does 10m of filament print?

  2. What thickness of filament should I be looking for if I am hoping to use the Ultimaker?

  3. What is the best bet for fixing parts together? Should I be designing with insets for hex nuts, or is glue best?
    I’ve even heard of acetone welding. But that sounds somewhat harmful.

  4. Is it best to economise parts into one print job or set up a print for each part individually to scrutinise quality control?

  5. 3D printers seem to economise material by creating a honeycomb support structure. Is there any way to specify you just want a solid block with no cavity at all?

Thats probably enough questions for now.

G.

Hard to answer as there are so many variables.
Breaking the project down and running a few smaller test prints usually helps.
What you will be suprised by is how much longer it all takes than you expect.
Once youve run a few test prints of your design and experimented with the materials it starts to get easier and more predictable and repeatable.

Read up on the materials you are thinking of using and look at what others have done with them and how they have set up the printer to do it.

1, This can be variable depending on what you are printing and wastage in failed prints and support material. If your wanting to know how much filament you need. The best way is to order 5 or 10meters and do a few test prints of your intended project an go from there. You will also find out what materials are best for your project by carrying out test prints.

2, The ultimaker takes 2.85mm. Theres some that say 3mm will fit. But with the rough texture of the wood filaments Id not take the risk. Some filaments advertised as 3mm turn out to be 2.85mm. You have to talk to the suppliers to make sure.

3, This all depends on the project. Glue works well but is material dependent. Super glue seems to work with a lot of materials. But test there effects. Acetone works well with ABS, it just melts the plastic a little and when you push the parts together they stick. Perfectly safe. Location tabs or plugs and sockets help line things up. But there are so many factors involved they cant be summerised here. Have a look at how others have joined similar parts on repositories like thingiverse.com.

4, again design and material dependent. You will know after a few test prints with the material and design if you can get away with filling the bed and leaving the job to print. One consideration is time.
If youve got 5 objects to print that take an hour each. They will take 5 hours if you group them or 5 lots of one hour with a little prep between prints. What suits your schedule best? If they have post print finishing to be carried out doing them individually means you could be finishing off one while the next is printing.

5, Yes, you can have 100% infill which gives you a solid structure. But it is a waste of filament on large prints. Again it depends on what you are doing and material dependent. Its useful for small or thin parts for strength. For larger prints that honeycombe or gridded infill is incredibly strong. Also a solid 100% infill may be impossible to print on larger objects due to shrinkage and warping due to heat variations in the printed object. Again design and material dependent the only way to find out for your particular design is to run a test.

Gordon

  1. enough to learn on.
    5m is a couple hundred grams of plastic. You can estimate how much plastic by “slicing” it and using the total feed, but it’s a gross underestimate when starting out.

1b) Don’t start with fancy filament.
Use “Natural” PLA / ABS to start (it’s not really clear btw); from a reputable supplier (ie not an eBay special); and remember you are prototyping, not producing. You “want” to have too much good filament so failure is painless.

  1. The wiki can tell you. Notice me subtly redirecting you so you get familiar with it :smile:

  2. Acetone is biologically benign. It’s nail polish remover; it can be flammable. It can give you headaches;

  3. for prototyping, one at a time if you can. There is a steep learning curve.
    Once you have finalised design, materials and prototyped, then you can “tray up”

It’s like traying up beers. Everyone starts at one.

  1. yes. It’s not nessecary except in poor design with these materials. It does however stuff up the manufacture stage and increase cost 2-10 fold.

You can add weight with bolts, loose fill (sand) or by embedding weights (washers) once you print well. These can be added post print or mid-print once the design is proven.

These are my opinions, if you don’t like the I’ve got others :wink:

Some of my others:
Gordon’s notes are good
Come on a couple of Wednesdays to learn.
Don’t hurry.
The most expensive bit of 3D printing is your time. Given that you can spend thousands on a makeshift printer of your own, maximise your value by learning first, form relationships with knowledgable people, and don’t waste money on quick fixes; do it properly and within the limits of your skill and disposable funds
Have a usable "calibration " piece. Fairly small, wider than tall, and useful in bulk. The better you get at printing, the more of them you’ll have.

Enjoy!

Thank you both for the answers. I have got myself some basic PLA to play with and a couple of short lengths of some more bespoke filaments. In my haste I have picked up a 1.75 mm filament. Do we have a printer that will extrude that? Can’t the ultimaker handle it if you crank the extrusion and decrease the print speed to compensate the amount of material?

Sorry but it wont take 1.75mm as it can kink in the bowden tube between the extruder motor and the hot end and can jam in the hot end.
Sounds like a great excuse to build your own though.

Gordon

:frowning: That sucks! FYI a lot of questions coming up about the machine, there is a page on the machine here: 3D Printer - Ultimaker 2

I really like the look of the Delta style ones because of the relatively smaller footprint. Might have a dig around on reprap and see if I can price up a small desktop one. I don’t need huge volume. This would really be for gromits, washers, clips etc.

Any recommendations, with size being the most important constraint? Delta or otherwise.

@Stuart and @laurent_muchacho are the resident experts on Delta printers.
Theyve both built kits and had good results.
Im sure they will be along soon.

Hi @Glenn,

Delta printer are really nice but you need to understand a few thing when building yours.

  • The tower need to be square if it twist you’ll get deformation in the dimension that are not fixable with calibration
  • Each arm’s length that hold the effector need to be precisely made to the same length
  • Direct drive extruder are a no go because of the weight it will put on the effector
  • Calibration is a bit more challenging when you compare to a cartesian design
  • If you want a workhorse don’t build delta

That said a Delta is relatively cheap to put together as you have access to a printer from the space you could get all the part printed for one already
Depending on the design you pick they are pros and cons

**Rostock:**http://reprap.org/wiki/Rostock
A bit big in foot print and you need good long smooth rod and good linear bearing otherwise the quality of print will drop considerably. The type of box construction might make you believe it will be cheap but

Mini Kossel: http://reprap.org/wiki/Kossel
I’ve got one of this than my view will favorite that design because I really think it is good and easy and cheap to build
Small foot print and easy to build. However don’t go bigger than the standard mini as the tower got slight tendency to twist for counteract that design issues I’ve designed some frame brace that really make a difference
http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:626279
My advice is don’t build one with expensive linear slider but got for the delrin wheel option like the think3dprint3d one or print this carriage
https://github.com/Jaydmdigital/mk_BOM_STL/blob/master/tower_slides%20V2.stl
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DABFczCJ2QI
I have the scad file at home that will allow you tweak it to make them fit the extrusion
The extrusion will still be somehow the most expensive things around £45 for the set cut to size using 20x20 instead of 15x15 will be cheaper and produce a sturdy frame but sorry can’t recommend a design for this as my delta where all made with 15x15
If you can find 16 tooth pulley it’s better than the most common 20 tooth pulley (don’t print pulley or roller)

And after there is literally dozen of designs for you pick and choose from.

Alternately depending on your budget you could buy a kit that include everything needed and documentation however for a kossel I don’t think you’ll save money but that fisher delta is pretty cheap and dought you can outsource all the part cheaper yourself.

Reprappro delta kit
https://reprappro.com/shop/reprap-kits/fisher-delta-full-kit-beta/

Think3dPrint3d mini Kossel kit
http://www.think3dprint3d.com/3D-Printer-Kits/complete-3D-printer-kits/Kossel-Mini-3dPrinter-Kit

I think that’s all for now feel free to ask any question

ps: Thx @gordonendersby for the mention

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