3D printing advice

[jorawar_b]

Hello all,

Just grabbed a gaming PC, I am looking at getting into 3D printing, is there a kit I can buy that would have the software, printer and scanner?  I just started looking on amazon for a basic printer that I can learn from. Thanks in advance. 

[ahiachris]

All you need to buy is the printer. You may have to decide to buy filament printing or resin printing. I use the resin print.

The software for slicing are mostly free e.g. "Lychee".

The home use scanner mostly can only roughly scan the outline. I don't have a scanner.

For drawing the model you can also use free CAD software e.g. "Fusion 360" from Autodesk.

 

[jorawar_b]

42 minutes ago, ahiachris said:

All you need to buy is the printer. You may have to decide to buy filament printing or resin printing. I use the resin print.

The software for slicing are mostly free e.g. "Lychee".

The home use scanner mostly can only roughly scan the outline. I don't have a scanner.

For drawing the model you can also use free CAD software e.g. "Fusion 360" from Autodesk.

 

Thank you and recommendations on a entry level resin printer?  I will checkout the software.  Thank you so much 

[ahiachris]

I bought the Anycubic M3, it is a LCD screen printer. Which one to buy, it all depends on where you live and which brand have better customer support. After acquiring the printer you have to decide which type of resin you're going to use. Usually there are water wash type or the IPA wash type. The resin is ultra violet ray sensitive (it cures when exposed to UV light), which means you may need to have your print station away from windows. You will also need to decide they way you gonna cure the prints, buying a wash and cure station, build your own curing station or use direct sunlight.

The room temperature can affect the cure rate (exposure time) of the resin. It is usually in the 25 celcius range. The resin and IPA will emit fumes that people say are harmful so you need your print station well ventilated. The is a big bunch of youtube videos on all above mentions topic.

[jorawar_b]

3 minutes ago, ahiachris said:

I bought the Anycubic M3, it is a LCD screen printer. Which one to buy, it all depends on where you live and which brand have better customer support. After acquiring the printer you have to decide which type of resin you're going to use. Usually there are water wash type or the IPA wash type. The resin is ultra violet ray sensitive (it cures when exposed to UV light), which means you may need to have your print station away from windows. You will also need to decide they way you gonna cure the prints, buying a wash and cure station, build your own curing station or use direct sunlight.

The room temperature can affect the cure rate (exposure time) of the resin. It is usually in the 25 celcius range. The resin and IPA will emit fumes that people say are harmful so you need your print station well ventilated. The is a big bunch of youtube videos on all above mentions topic.

Okay this might be more than what I planned as my workstation is next a window, I think filament might be better at this point, I just want to get my feet wet and learn and then move towards a resin printer once I get more experience.  

[Anasazi37]

7 minutes ago, jorawar_b said:

Okay this might be more than what I planned as my workstation is next a window, I think filament might be better at this point, I just want to get my feet wet and learn and then move towards a resin printer once I get more experience.  

Starting with filament (PLA) instead of resin is not a bad idea. PLA printers tend to be a lot less expensive and you don't have to worry about the messy prep and cleanup that comes with resin. I have both types, and both serve clear and complementary purposes for me (PLA for larger less detailed stuff, resin for smaller more detailed stuff). I started with PLA and am very glad that I did. Spent several months getting the hang of it, learning to effectively use the software and get reliable prints. Involved lots of reading advice online (especially Reddit threads) and experimenting. I bought a Creality CR-6 SE, mainly because it came with a bed auto-leveling feature that is VERY useful. Most companies selling PLA printers will give you a custom-branded version of the open source Cura slicing software (https://ultimaker.com/software/ultimaker-cura), but I highly recommend just going straight to the source and downloading that instead. Way more flexibility in how you can print and it's updated regularly. Most companies also run some custom-branded version of the Marlin firmware on the printers themselves, and it tends to limit the capabilities of those printers. There are communities of developers that have put together better and more flexible firmware for a lot of printers and if you're brave enough to install it, you do get better results. I've been running the "community" firmware on my CR-6 SE for more than a year and don't regret it one bit.

I eventually picked up a resin printer when it was clear that I needed more than a few parts for the kits I was working on and I didn't want to pay exorbitant prices to have someone else print them for me (using an online service like Craftcloud). My breaking point was a project where outsourcing the resin printing would cost more than just buying a printer and figuring out how to use it. Resin is a completely different animal compared to PLA. Even the slicing software is different. I use Chitubox (https://www.chitubox.com/en/index), but Lychee is another option. I really don't like Lychee, though, because you're subjected to ads, your activities are tracked by the developers, and it can't do certain basic things like mirror parts that are already on supports. I bought an Elegoo Saturn, which has been more than sufficient for my needs. Standard resin, like standard PLA, costs about $25/kg. The printer needs to be on a level surface in a well-ventilated area that doesn't get a lot of direct sunlight (or just put a cover or box over the printer when it's in use, which is what I do because there's a window nearby). You'll also want to have a good mask (I keep a KN-95 handy) so you don't breathe in the fumes and good nitrile gloves so you don't get uncured resin on your skin. Printed parts have to be cleaned before they are cured and that's a multi-step process. I rinse in Mean Green, then water, then isopropyl alcohol. I use an Elegoo Mercury curing station, but you can also put parts out in the sun to cure. It takes a lot longer and results can be inconsistent, though. Whether you take the parts off of their supports before or after curing depends on the part. Cleaning up the printer afterwards, including pouring unused resin back into the bottle and cleaning the tank, is a bit of an art form. I developed a routine for everything I just described, but it took experimentation over time.

There are a lot of scanner options out there and until you get to the ones that cost thousands of dollars, they all suck in different ways. I've tried several and ended up building my own because I was so frustrated. Some have good hardware but crappy software. Others have good software but crappy hardware.

[jorawar_b]

35 minutes ago, Anasazi37 said:

Starting with filament (PLA) instead of resin is not a bad idea. PLA printers tend to be a lot less expensive and you don't have to worry about the messy prep and cleanup that comes with resin. I have both types, and both serve clear and complementary purposes for me (PLA for larger less detailed stuff, resin for smaller more detailed stuff). I started with PLA and am very glad that I did. Spent several months getting the hang of it, learning to effectively use the software and get reliable prints. Involved lots of reading advice online (especially Reddit threads) and experimenting. I bought a Creality CR-6 SE, mainly because it came with a bed auto-leveling feature that is VERY useful. Most companies selling PLA printers will give you a custom-branded version of the open source Cura slicing software (https://ultimaker.com/software/ultimaker-cura), but I highly recommend just going straight to the source and downloading that instead. Way more flexibility in how you can print and it's updated regularly. Most companies also run some custom-branded version of the Marlin firmware on the printers themselves, and it tends to limit the capabilities of those printers. There are communities of developers that have put together better and more flexible firmware for a lot of printers and if you're brave enough to install it, you do get better results. I've been running the "community" firmware on my CR-6 SE for more than a year and don't regret it one bit.

I eventually picked up a resin printer when it was clear that I needed more than a few parts for the kits I was working on and I didn't want to pay exorbitant prices to have someone else print them for me (using an online service like Craftcloud). My breaking point was a project where outsourcing the resin printing would cost more than just buying a printer and figuring out how to use it. Resin is a completely different animal compared to PLA. Even the slicing software is different. I use Chitubox (https://www.chitubox.com/en/index), but Lychee is another option. I really don't like Lychee, though, because you're subjected to ads, your activities are tracked by the developers, and it can't do certain basic things like mirror parts that are already on supports. I bought an Elegoo Saturn, which has been more than sufficient for my needs. Standard resin, like standard PLA, costs about $25/kg. The printer needs to be on a level surface in a well-ventilated area that doesn't get a lot of direct sunlight (or just put a cover or box over the printer when it's in use, which is what I do because there's a window nearby). You'll also want to have a good mask (I keep a KN-95 handy) so you don't breathe in the fumes and good nitrile gloves so you don't get uncured resin on your skin. Printed parts have to be cleaned before they are cured and that's a multi-step process. I rinse in Mean Green, then water, then isopropyl alcohol. I use an Elegoo Mercury curing station, but you can also put parts out in the sun to cure. It takes a lot longer and results can be inconsistent, though. Whether you take the parts off of their supports before or after curing depends on the part. Cleaning up the printer afterwards, including pouring unused resin back into the bottle and cleaning the tank, is a bit of an art form. I developed a routine for everything I just described, but it took experimentation over time.

There are a lot of scanner options out there and until you get to the ones that cost thousands of dollars, they all suck in different ways. I've tried several and ended up building my own because I was so frustrated. Some have good hardware but crappy software. Others have good software but crappy hardware.

Thank you Anasazi37 for this write up, is it okay if I reach out to you so at least I have some guidance ?   Thank you once again for all this info.

[Anasazi37]

40 minutes ago, jorawar_b said:

Thank you Anasazi37 for this write up, is it okay if I reach out to you so at least I have some guidance ?   Thank you once again for all this info.

Absolutely

[wmkjr]

Like the others mentioned, for home 3d printing it's either Filament (FDM) or Resin. FDM can print different materials depending on machine or upgrades. Anywhere from PLA, ABS, PETG, TPU, and CF blends. Some of might need proper ventilation due to hazardous fumes produced and an enclosure. Some filament might need a dry box due to being hydroscopic. Hot ends, extruders, nozzles, belts need replacing over time. Larger build volumes available compared to resin type at the same price point. Resolution of prints may be less compared to resin printers. One thing you might want to consider is a printer with tons of community support. Some brands like Creality and Prusa have a big community base that can offer support or have tons of mods for your printer versus lesser known brands.

Resin printers of the same price point are usually smaller in build size. They offer resins of various types of hardness and use. Require more post print processing. They have incredible details for prints. Usually uses a consumable clear film. The display may also have a lifespan and need replacing. Disposal of post processing material might be a hassle.  I would say a quality respirator and nitrile gloves (in case of latex allergy) are required to protect your respiratory system and prevent your skin from developing an allergy to uncured resin.

Slicer software is the one that slices your model you want to print layer by layer and sends it to your printer. There are various free ones as others have mentioned like Cura. There's also Prusaslicer which is a branch from SuperSlicer. There are others but I use these the most. 

There are many free 3d design software out there. Onshape, Fusion 360 ,  FreeCad, and Blender are some examples. Some free versions of paid software might have some features disabled. Each program has their own learning curve so try them out and find one you feel comfortable with.

 

[SodaPopinski]

This might be a good read.  Tom's Hardware's Top 3D Printers 2022.

If you plan to print small figures, you'll eventually want a resin printer.  I sure want one.  I'm pretty happy with my Prusa, which also has auto-bed leveling.  My first 3D printer was a cheapy Monoprice / Wanhao, and I cannot recommend auto bed leveling enough.  The Prusa Mini is very well rated.  I have the larger Prusa MK3S.  Though expensive, they're well rated, and you can save some money buying the kit instead of the pre-built version.  I highly recommend this, as it teaches you how to build (and re-build) a 3D printer, which unfortunately you'll likely have to learn to do anyway at some point.

[jorawar_b]

8 hours ago, SodaPopinski said:

This might be a good read.  Tom's Hardware's Top 3D Printers 2022.

If you plan to print small figures, you'll eventually want a resin printer.  I sure want one.  I'm pretty happy with my Prusa, which also has auto-bed leveling.  My first 3D printer was a cheapy Monoprice / Wanhao, and I cannot recommend auto bed leveling enough.  The Prusa Mini is very well rated.  I have the larger Prusa MK3S.  Though expensive, they're well rated, and you can save some money buying the kit instead of the pre-built version.  I highly recommend this, as it teaches you how to build (and re-build) a 3D printer, which unfortunately you'll likely have to learn to do anyway at some point.

Thank you, at this point I just want to learn 3D printing,  thank you

[Jasonc]

I started with resin printing simply because of the detail that is in the prints vs. FDM printing. That said, it is a long process in learning the quirks of it, like keeping things as clean as can be, cleaning the prints, setting up your printer to the right settings, etc. There's a lot to figure out, but when you do, it's a great way to get high detailed, good, solid prints. I do use the Lychee slicer (paid version). The ads aren't there, and there haven't been any crash issues with it. That's just my experience with it, but so far, I'm happy with my setup for it.

[jorawar_b]

On 10/9/2022 at 2:01 PM, Jasonc said:

I started with resin printing simply because of the detail that is in the prints vs. FDM printing. That said, it is a long process in learning the quirks of it, like keeping things as clean as can be, cleaning the prints, setting up your printer to the right settings, etc. There's a lot to figure out, but when you do, it's a great way to get high detailed, good, solid prints. I do use the Lychee slicer (paid version). The ads aren't there, and there haven't been any crash issues with it. That's just my experience with it, but so far, I'm happy with my setup for it.

thank you 

[twich]

I bought a 3D printer for my wife, a Creality Ender 3 S1 Pro.  I was wondering if anyone could provide some help/links or anything to a place where I could download .stl files for stands for Macross Jets.  I found a stand on Thingaverse, that was a copy of the stand that Arcadia boxed with the Arcadia 1/60 VF-1J 30th Anniversario release, and that worked very well for my Arcadia 1/60 VF-1J 35th Anniversary edition, but I also have a Arcadia 1/60 VF-4A Hikaru use and a Bandai DX Chogokin VF-27Beta V1.  I know that the flightpose and yeti stands are not available, and I cannot find a stand that bandai put out for the VF-27 V1 and I know that Arcadia has the simple stand for 1/60, but $60 plus shipping from Japan is a bit steep for me.  I am not trying to rip anyone off, but I would like to maybe have some suggestions as to a good direction to look.  

Thank You,

Twich

[Anasazi37]

9 hours ago, twich said:

I bought a 3D printer for my wife, a Creality Ender 3 S1 Pro.  I was wondering if anyone could provide some help/links or anything to a place where I could download .stl files for stands for Macross Jets.  I found a stand on Thingaverse, that was a copy of the stand that Arcadia boxed with the Arcadia 1/60 VF-1J 30th Anniversario release, and that worked very well for my Arcadia 1/60 VF-1J 35th Anniversary edition, but I also have a Arcadia 1/60 VF-4A Hikaru use and a Bandai DX Chogokin VF-27Beta V1.  I know that the flightpose and yeti stands are not available, and I cannot find a stand that bandai put out for the VF-27 V1 and I know that Arcadia has the simple stand for 1/60, but $60 plus shipping from Japan is a bit steep for me.  I am not trying to rip anyone off, but I would like to maybe have some suggestions as to a good direction to look.  

Thank You,

Twich

What about modifying this stand on Thingiverse to meet your needs?

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2889235

I realize that it looks an awful lot like a Flightpose stand, but since those stands are unavailable, it's an option worth considering. From eyeballing the design, I think the main thing you'd need to modify in a free software program like 3D Builder is the length of the three rods.

And maybe this is the one you already found:

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3229798

Which I think could work for a variety of valks if you print appropriate adapters.

[twich]

11 hours ago, Anasazi37 said:

What about modifying this stand on Thingiverse to meet your needs?

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2889235

I realize that it looks an awful lot like a Flightpose stand, but since those stands are unavailable, it's an option worth considering. From eyeballing the design, I think the main thing you'd need to modify in a free software program like 3D Builder is the length of the three rods.

And maybe this is the one you already found:

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3229798

Which I think could work for a variety of valks if you print appropriate adapters.

Thank you, I will look into this when I am done this work stretch!

Twich

[armentage]

Ankermate M5.  Prints 10x faster than all previous printers.  There are a few more like it coming out on to the market.

https://www.ankermake.com/m5

I bought a 300mm ^3 printer.   I thought it would come in handy for large modeling related prints.  However, the more standard 200cm ^ 3 printer would be sufficient for 98% of my prints.  

(The M5 is a 200cm ^3 printer!)

Edited May 10, 2023 by armentage

[Anasazi37]

4 hours ago, armentage said:

Ankermate M5.  Prints 10x faster than all previous printers.  There are a few more like it coming out on to the market.

https://www.ankermake.com/m5

I bought a 300mm ^3 printer.   I thought it would come in handy for large modeling related prints.  However, the more standard 200cm ^ 3 printer would be sufficient for 98% of my prints.  

(The M5 is a 200cm ^3 printer!)

Yeah, that's getting really close to the speed of the Bambu Lab P1P (256 x 256 x 256) that I purchased last December. Creality recently announced the K1, which is a little bit faster than everything else on the market. All of these options are making it a lot easier to do large prints in a decent amount of time. I bought mine so I can build really large starship models.

[armentage]

21 hours ago, Anasazi37 said:

Yeah, that's getting really close to the speed of the Bambu Lab P1P (256 x 256 x 256) that I purchased last December. Creality recently announced the K1, which is a little bit faster than everything else on the market. All of these options are making it a lot easier to do large prints in a decent amount of time. I bought mine so I can build really large starship models.

And soon enough, I'm sure we'll see 300^3 printers that run at these speeds! 

It IS very nice to print out giant starships...

 

 

[Anasazi37]

2 hours ago, armentage said:

And soon enough, I'm sure we'll see 300^3 printers that run at these speeds! 

It IS very nice to print out giant starships...

 

 

Very nice!

So far I've printed (but have yet to build...) these monsters:

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/various/aliens-apc

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/various/1-35-aliens-dropship

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/various/1-35-gunstar-the-last-starfighter

https://www.cgtrader.com/3d-print-models/hobby-diy/other/babylon-5-starfury-starfighter-3d-stl-printable-files

I'm printing this one right now:

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/various/sulaco

And these are up next:

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/various/1m-long-babylon-5-omega-class-destroyer

https://cults3d.com/en/3d-model/various/stargate-bc304-daedalus

https://www.cgtrader.com/3d-print-models/hobby-diy/other/babylon-5-thunderbolt-3d-stl-file-1-48th-scale

[armentage]

17 hours ago, Anasazi37 said:

https://www.cgtrader.com/3d-print-models/hobby-diy/other/babylon-5-starfury-starfighter-3d-stl-printable-files

OH MY STARFURIES!

 

[Anasazi37]

6 hours ago, armentage said:

OH MY STARFURIES!

 

The kit has a crazy amount of detail. Was actually a lot of fun to print. I even designed custom clear resin panes to fill in the canopy frame.

[VF-1A Grunt]

I’ve found Australian modeler Luke Towan’s YouTube channel to be very informative and inspirational about what can be done with 3D printing for modeling. He’s primarily a model railroader, but he includes basic information about the software and techniques he uses to design his prints. I found it helpful to see examples of the different sized objects he’s able to print with the various resin printers he gets from his sponsors, and how the cleanup process works.

Luke Towan

I also like British modeler Kathy Millatt’s channel. She does a lot of sci-fi projects and frequently resized or modifies designs that she purchases or downloads for free.

Kathy Millatt

I’m getting ready to dive into 3D printing once we get settled after an upcoming move and find it helpful to watch channels like these to get a better understanding of what’s possible, and what’s involved in getting there.

[Chronocidal]

How fast are we talking for these really big prints?  I'm working on some printed cockpit components for an F-14 simulator pit for flying in DCS, and there are lots of models around to print the major instrument clusters.

I've got a nice big enclosed Qidi X-Max with about a cubic foot of volume, so I'm not hurting for space, but the speed things tend to print at can get pretty long.  I imagine it's related to the layer heights, but this piece I just printed (half of a flap lever box) took about 10 hours.  The long side is about 9 inches, and I used a 0.1mm layer height on it.

The main thing I learned to avoid is the type of printer with a translating bed.  I know many of them rely on that, and my first printer had one, but it also destroyed a ton of my prints by shaking them back and forth until they broke loose.  The one I have now has a head that moves in X and Y, with a bed that only moves up and down, and it's helped keep my taller prints nice and solid.

Edited May 21, 2023 by Chronocidal

[Anasazi37]

11 hours ago, Chronocidal said:

How fast are we talking for these really big prints?  I'm working on some printed cockpit components for an F-14 simulator pit for flying in DCS, and there are lots of models around to print the major instrument clusters.

I've got a nice big enclosed Qidi X-Max with about a cubic foot of volume, so I'm not hurting for space, but the speed things tend to print at can get pretty long.  I imagine it's related to the layer heights, but this piece I just printed (half of a flap lever box) took about 10 hours.  The long side is about 9 inches, and I used a 0.1mm layer height on it.

The main thing I learned to avoid is the type of printer with a translating bed.  I know many of them rely on that, and my first printer had one, but it also destroyed a ton of my prints by shaking them back and forth until they broke loose.  The one I have now has a head that moves in X and Y, with a bed that only moves up and down, and it's helped keep my taller prints nice and solid.

I moved to a CoreXY (head moves in X and Y) printer recently and won't ever go back to the translating bed system for the same reasons. My last printer (Creality CR-6 SE) topped out at 100mm/sec, which is pretty standard, and my new one (Bambu P1P) tops out at 500mm/sec. That's turned out to be an accurate estimate. My large prints (at 0.1mm vertical resolution) are indeed completing five times faster. I believe the new Creality K1 tops out at 600mm/sec.