3D Printer for Christmas?

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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby Tom&Shelly » Wed Dec 01, 2021 8:30 pm

celadons_husband wrote:
Tom&Shelly wrote:We have several places we can use this, one is in the back room of our basement/garage, which has no windows and so poor ventilation (although we can fix that if necessary). Another possible location is in the front, where we do woodworking, and can open the garage doors and windows, but, of course, we have to deal with sawdust in that room.


People have very different opinions on this. Some people claim they can't stand the smell, some people claim they can't sense it at all. Personally I don't mind the odor, it's just plastic-chemical if that makes sense. From a safety standpoint there hasn't been a lot of research (that I am aware of) into the volatiles that off-gas during SLA printing. The safest bet is to keep it in a ventilated area and away from living space so that you aren't spending a lot of time inhaling around it.

One thing to keep in mind is that resin printing is sensitive to the ambient temperature of the room. The resin vat should stay at or above 65*-70*F. If you go lower than that the resin curing is inhibited and the resin itself may separate during the print.


Thank you! Glad you mentioned the 65 - 70 degrees, as we usually keep the wood shop and back room below that in the Winter. It's the same issue we had using epoxy with fiberglass on the teardrop. We eventually bought an electric heater so we could work with it in Winter. If Shelly ends up doing a lot, we might have to invest in a propane heater to cut our heating bill.

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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby philpom » Thu Mar 17, 2022 7:26 pm

I am no expert but our youngest son was gifted a 3D printer for Christmas 2 years ago by our oldest son. FlashForge Finder. It's a filament (PLA/PVA) printer. He prints some pretty nice things with it, even pieces with moving parts all printed together. It is an "affordable" machine so I am sure there are better but he gets pretty good detail out of it. The trick is to level and calibrate them. He makes figures and other nick-knacks that young teenagers might be interested in and sells them.

Specification

Packing Size: 500mm x 500mm x 500mm
Actual Size: 420mm x 420mm x 420mm
Packing Weight: 31.5 pounds
Actual Weight: 27 pounds

Positioning Precision: 0.0001” on the Z axis, 0.0004” on XY plane
Resolution: 0.004”
Build Volume: 140mm x 140mm x 140mm
Filament Compatibility: PLA / PVA
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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby rjgimp » Tue Mar 29, 2022 9:07 pm

Well, I have been running across a few threads lately (like this one) that were begun and discussed at length late last year while I was in a coma and on a ventilator with the co-vid.Trying to catch up a bit.

Tom, I've noted that you mentioned 3-D printing a couple times in the past few months but didn't quite realize it was THAT new of a thing for you. I am very interested in this but much of what all of you are speaking sounds like a Martian-Klingon hybrid of some sort. I have a Hummer H2 and although mine has fairly low mileage many of the plastic interior knobs, switches, etc. tend to fail as the miles roll on. Many other Hummer owners talk of 3-D printing various parts. The engine, transmission, and running gear is pretty much all standard 2500 Chevrolet stuff but almost all of the interior is unique AM General and more and more of it is no longer being made and no longer available so unless you happen to be first in line when someone parts one out you are likely out of luck. One problem I already have is my power folding side mirrors no longer fold in. I'm told that one cause of this is that there are plastic gears within the mirror mounts that fail.

So for now I will sit back and listen and learn. Carry on.

Welcome aboard, celadon's husband. We're happy to have you both here. I see she also joined in November while I was out sick. I know there is a trucking company by that name. Any relation?
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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby Tom&Shelly » Sat Apr 02, 2022 9:41 am

rjgimp wrote:Tom, I've noted that you mentioned 3-D printing a couple times in the past few months but didn't quite realize it was THAT new of a thing for you. I am very interested in this but much of what all of you are speaking sounds like a Martian-Klingon hybrid of some sort. I have a Hummer H2 and although mine has fairly low mileage many of the plastic interior knobs, switches, etc. tend to fail as the miles roll on. Many other Hummer owners talk of 3-D printing various parts.


I didn't appreciate, when we bought this system for a Christmas present to ourselves last Winter, just how different the resin printing system is from filament printers. This system is great for fine detail, as Shelly needs for her doll house stuff, but probably totally inappropriate for anything that needs strength or longevity in the Sun. Of course, our eventual solution will be to buy a filament 3D printer to cover that need.

Shelly has been hard at work learning the finer points of the resin system, and, in fact, is scheduled to teach a seminar at a doll house convention in Connecticut this Fall. I'm impressed with how steep the learning curve is, which is the theme of that seminar. ("3D design for beginners by a beginner". Sign up is open, incidentally; PM if anyone is interested.) Shelly is now making stuff and started her small business.

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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby tony.latham » Sat Apr 02, 2022 11:07 am

I am very interested in this ...


If my 3D printer went belly-up today, I'd order a replacement. I find them that handy. I use Sketchup for the design side -- assuming I can't find the file at https://www.thingiverse.com/

:thumbsup:

Tony

p.s. My local-yocal library has a 3D scanner I can use should the need arrise.
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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby Tom&Shelly » Sat Apr 02, 2022 11:31 am

tony.latham wrote:My local-yocal library has a 3D scanner I can use should the need arrise.


Cool! Wonder if that's worth a trip for us to Idaho someday? :thinking: :twisted:

Shelly's looking into IPads with lidar for scanning. For design software she's been using SHAPR 3D. Note all of this is her. I have too little knowledge to comment much!

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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby tony.latham » Sat Apr 02, 2022 11:38 am

Wonder if that's worth a trip for us to Idaho someday?


That's ONE good reason.

Image

My 3d designs are fairly rudimentary. I think I shared that Taco flashlight holder .STL file I uploaded to Thingiverse with you.

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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby Tom&Shelly » Sat Apr 02, 2022 3:23 pm

tony.latham wrote:My 3d designs are fairly rudimentary. I think I shared that Taco flashlight holder .STL file I uploaded to Thingiverse with you.

Tony


Yes, but I think we'll need to wait until we get a filament printer to try that one. It seems like the resin in our printer is similar to the epoxy resin we use with fiberglass. Once cured, the UV in the Sun starts to break it down quickly unless it is painted or otherwise protected.

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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby rjgimp » Sun Apr 03, 2022 12:52 am

tony.latham wrote: I use Sketchup for the design side -- assuming I can't find the file at https://www.thingiverse.com/

:thumbsup:

Tony


I scrolled through that site the other day. Boy, howdy! There sure are lots and lots of designs there for things, some of which I never even knew existed.
:?
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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby tony.latham » Sun Apr 03, 2022 9:43 am

[img]I%20scrolled%20through%20that%20site%20the%20other%20day.[/img]

I needed a stand for my iPad yesterday. Found one on Thingiverse and printed it out. Works great. :thumbsup:

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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby Squigie » Sun Apr 03, 2022 3:37 pm

tony.latham wrote:
I am very interested in this ...


If my 3D printer went belly-up today, I'd order a replacement. I find them that handy. I use Sketchup for the design side -- assuming I can't find the file at https://www.thingiverse.com/

:thumbsup:

Tony

p.s. My local-yocal library has a 3D scanner I can use should the need arrise.

I don't use my printer often. But it is very nice having one available.

When my first printer suffered multiple failures at the same time, I immediately turned to a friend that I knew had accidentally added a zero to an order, and was sitting on 180 extra Ender 3 Pros.
(He meant to order 20, and didn't notice the mistake until he was billed - at which point, the goods were already enroute.) :lol:
I was only 'without printer' for about 3 days.

Even if I did not have access to immediate replacement, and a good deal, I would have ordered one elsewhere.
Tremendously helpful for fixtures, jigs, tools, and prototyping.

I managed to resurrect the printer previously declared dead, and had two working printers for a time. But the old one is just too much of a pain to keep running. I have retired it since my last posts in this thread.


Having access to a 3D scanner would be nice.
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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby twisted lines » Sun Apr 03, 2022 6:21 pm

tony.latham wrote:
Tony

p.s. My local-yocal library has a 3D scanner I can use should the need arrise.


Watch one, wan't one; :shock:

Access would make me a minute man. I haven't asked :oops:
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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby Tom&Shelly » Fri Apr 21, 2023 8:45 am

Well, of course, this thread is a year and some months old by now. In the meantime, we've purchased a second (even nicer) resin printer and an FDM printer. Shelly uses them almost every day making miniatures (doll house furniture). From sales alone she's made back the cost. She also has an evening class she teaches at doll house conventions on how to use the printers. Very good additions to our workshop! :thumbsup:

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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby dmb90260 » Fri Apr 21, 2023 9:07 am

Tom&Shelly wrote: She also has an evening class she teaches at doll house conventions on how to use the printers. Very good additions to our workshop! :thumbsup:

Tom

One of the longest days of my life was spending 3 hours at a doll event with my Mother. Most places I go I can find something of interest. Not that day. Zero,l Zilch. Nothing. I never let her know. :shock: :o
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Re: 3D Printer for Christmas?

Postby Tom&Shelly » Fri Apr 21, 2023 9:34 am

dmb90260 wrote:
Tom&Shelly wrote: She also has an evening class she teaches at doll house conventions on how to use the printers. Very good additions to our workshop! :thumbsup:

Tom

One of the longest days of my life was spending 3 hours at a doll event with my Mother. Most places I go I can find something of interest. Not that day. Zero,l Zilch. Nothing. I never let her know. :shock: :o


ROFL! x2 :lol: :lol:

Yes! Shelly says "try spending two days at one, for 8 hours a day, behind a booth most of the time!"

I think they're dull, except once in awhile I see real craftsmanship and think "Wow, wish I were that good!" Then, now and again someone is selling used tools. The real thrill for me was building a few 1/12 scale rustic garden benches (about an afternoon or so), and having them sell for enough to buy a small scroll saw. 8)

171381

But, yah, I honestly don't quite identify with the folks who would buy this stuff for some collection, rather than make their own. But, to each their own!

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