|
Post by Woz on Apr 23, 2014 8:15:54 GMT -5
OK so I am taking the plunge and I'm going to buy myself a 3d printer but before I splash out I just wanted to know if anyone has any experience or recommendations (under £1000). I've already started to learn CAD with openSCAD (which is like CAD for dummies). Took me a night to learn the basics and design a muzzle break for my 1/16 Sherman Firefly- So any hints, tips appreciated.
|
|
|
Post by Rolling Thunder on Apr 26, 2014 15:06:17 GMT -5
Don't panic.
|
|
|
Post by cheminhaler on Apr 27, 2014 17:34:50 GMT -5
I was reading an article that says the cheaper machines have a bad output quality. But if you're making basic shapes like that I don't see why not. This is the article I was reading. He sounds quite critical but is optimistic for future improvements in the technology so that one day the product output will be better. He also describes a huge difference in quality between injected plastic from moulds vs the output of printing machines. Gizmodo
|
|
|
Post by Woz on Apr 29, 2014 15:12:36 GMT -5
Thanks I've seen some of the stuff my mates done and I'm very impressed with the results. OK it can't compete with the injection stuff but it is useful for making extra bits, especially for vehicles. Here's a sniper rifle I've been playing around with-
|
|
|
Post by yvain on Apr 29, 2014 15:16:35 GMT -5
You might wanna hold off for a year or so. The price is still pretty high and quality questionable. A buddy of mine puts things on the shapeways website and has them print it. He makes some decent cash on alt bits and minis for dead games. Maybe that is a better route?
|
|
|
Post by Woz on Apr 30, 2014 6:05:03 GMT -5
Too late I've already ordered one. I've been waiting (and saving) for about 4 years. These things are pretty simple to upgrade when better parts come out. A bit of tweaking and I got my muzzle break to look like this-
|
|
|
Post by Woz on May 25, 2014 11:14:44 GMT -5
Got my printer and I've spent a couple of days calibrating (playing around with)it. Here's a small try out piece I did- It is a 55 Gallon drum done in 28mm scale (GW tend to rescale some things so it's smaller then the oil drum that they do). This is printed in PLA and has come straight off the print bed so it is a little grainy and needs cleaning. I can also use ABS which can be smoothed using acetone.
|
|
|
Post by dougeye on May 26, 2014 1:12:41 GMT -5
let us know what its like for priming stuff.
|
|
|
Post by cheminhaler on May 27, 2014 14:24:12 GMT -5
Excellent! Have you tried the muzzle break yet?
|
|
|
Post by Woz on May 28, 2014 16:51:46 GMT -5
Excellent! Have you tried the muzzle break yet? Needs a bit of filling but I'm quite pleased with it-
|
|
|
Post by ElegaicRequiem on May 28, 2014 17:38:36 GMT -5
Stay calm. Print on. I look forward to seeing how you make the machine dance.
|
|
|
Post by AshotNINJA on May 29, 2014 12:44:39 GMT -5
can you show us a picture of the machine? ive been interested in 3d printers for a while... i can see them more useful for making stuff like wheels and tank hulls rather than small stuff like weapons etc..
once the things printed.. is it fragile or as fragile as normal plastics of the same size etc?
|
|
|
Post by Woz on May 29, 2014 13:27:43 GMT -5
This is the one I got- Duplicator 4XIt took a few hours to put together,set up and calibrate but I managed to print a 25mm test box within about 6 hours of getting the printer out of the box. At the moment 3D printers are like PC's in that you can upgrade parts when better bits come out and there's a lot of open source models and software out there. Things are changing now that bigger companies are getting involved and a lot of open source stuff is getting patented. Which is effecting the whole 3D community. These things are pretty strong as you can change the thickness of the walls and the % of infill. But the thicker the walls and higher the infill the longer it'll take to print. You could print out a solid object that you could stand on.
|
|
|
Post by cheminhaler on May 30, 2014 14:42:54 GMT -5
Excellent seeing the printed part being used on a model tank like that.
|
|
|
Post by Woz on Jun 29, 2014 9:53:12 GMT -5
Something else I've been working on. M7 Priest This is just a try out printed pretty fast at 0.2mm. This is what a 0.1mm print looks like- you can see the layers behind the SM head. As I've posted before the nozzles on my printer are 0.4mm so the smallest thing I can print is a 0.4mm diameter dot that's 0.1mm high. I've just ordered a 0.2mm nozzle so my prints can be even more detailed (0.2mm is about the thickness of two sheets of cheap copier paper)
|
|
|
Post by ElegaicRequiem on Jun 29, 2014 11:56:41 GMT -5
Can you get good detail out of the software?
|
|
|
Post by Woz on Jun 29, 2014 18:12:08 GMT -5
The CAD software (OpenSCAD)can get better detail then my printer can handle. The printer software is also limited by the printer. This shows how small my printer can go- The transparent cube is a 1mm cube, at the moment my printer can print the first cylinder (0.4mm by 0.1mm) when I get my new nozzle I'll be able to print out the second cylinder (0.2mm by 0.1mm). I have seen a printer that can go down to 0.2mm by 0.075mm. and it wont be long before they get even better. That's FDM printers which is the cheaper home user market. There are also printers that use lasers or UV light with powder or gels and these are limited by the size of the laser (which already give an almost polished finish) but you're looking at over £10,000 for these kind of machines and the materials are expensive.
|
|
|
Post by treadiculous on Jun 30, 2014 4:07:35 GMT -5
you may like Autocad123D, you can build in google sketch up and import to autocad123d then export to a 3d printer.
I've been interested in the 3d print market for some time as I can see it being the place to go for models very soon.
good work on the muzzle and priest!
|
|
|
Post by Woz on Jun 30, 2014 14:36:09 GMT -5
I downloaded Blender which (in theory) is great but it's making my brain hurt*. OpenSCAD is easy and can do everything I want to do at the moment.
* Even the "Blender for Dummies" book is written for people with some CAD experience.
|
|
|
Post by treadiculous on Jul 1, 2014 6:47:55 GMT -5
I have blender... and I'm not much good with that either!
I'm sure with time I could get the knowledge, but I'd rather paint or build in the real using green stuff than brain hurting myself!
|
|
|
Post by Woz on Sept 1, 2014 13:56:18 GMT -5
I've been busy building tank parts but the other night I downloaded a load of gaming stuff and printed a few out. These have all been printed pretty fast at 0.2mm layer hight, then primed and given a quick wash (so you can see them better). As they're straight off the print bed they're still a bit rough. The guardsman is there just for scale and isn't something I printed. These 40mm bases have been printed slower and at 0.1mm layers but again they've come straight off the print bed without any cleaning These are just dying to have some Deathwing Termies on them. Now what to do next? Not planning on doing any GW rip offs, just wanted to show you whats out there.
|
|
|
Post by jenburdoo on Sept 1, 2014 23:58:34 GMT -5
I'm curious to know how easy it is to program a 3-d printer, and how much it costs beyond the initial capital. You just need a CAD file, plug it in and print it? For so much an ounce?
My library system is probably buying a couple 3-d printers, and I'm thinking of using them to make ready-made gaming and crafting materials for work, depending on how much staff are able to use it. No GW stuff, but maybe, say, model ships.
|
|
|
Post by Woz on Sept 2, 2014 12:01:11 GMT -5
Most CAD files can’t be used on a 3d printer as the object has to be “airtight”, though it is possible to repair objects so they can be printed if you know your way around CAD software.
The CAD file (*OBJ or *STL) is then sliced into layers using Slicing software. This is pretty easy as you just position the object on a virtual print bed then tell the software the layer height you want and the speed you want it printing and it does the rest. Some slicing software will even try to repair the object if it isnt airtight.
I’ve not worked out the cost as I’ve been doing a lot of experimenting but a 1kg roll of filament (PLA, ABS) cost about £15 - £25 though you can get fancy stuff like fexiABS which is about £50. I could probably print and build an entire 1/16 scale tank (or even two) out of one roll of filament.
How you design an object can make a difference as to how much filament a print needs. Any overhangs over 45degrees needs support and the supports are wasteful.
|
|
|
Post by jenburdoo on Sept 4, 2014 19:53:11 GMT -5
Hm, so if you don't use CAD, what do you use? And does it require a lot of training, or are files readily available?
|
|
|
Post by Woz on Sept 4, 2014 20:34:52 GMT -5
I use Openscad It's like CAD for dummies and there's plenty of tutorials online. I have no CAD experience but I learnt the basics of Openscad in a night and designed this gun for a RC tanks an few days later-
|
|