Waiting for my 3D printer !!

Waiting for my 3D printer !!

Author
Discussion

julian64

Original Poster:

14,317 posts

253 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
So I just spent out £1300 hard earned on a 3D printer. A Big Box Dual from E3d.

Long story short the lead time is about a month and while I'm waiting I want nominations for the coolest downloadable 3d printed model to make.

So far this is the first thing I'll print

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1564731

But I can be encouraged to change if someone spots something cooler. If its ubercool I might even make two and post one to the suggester by way of thanks, so no elephant sized prints.

NoVetec

9,967 posts

172 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
That thing on the link looks like a monster fetish fleshlight.

julian64

Original Poster:

14,317 posts

253 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
NoVetec said:
That thing on the link looks like a monster fetish fleshlight.
errr.....I'll take your word for that, I was just going to use it as a cool place to store paperclips.

silverfoxcc

7,683 posts

144 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
Julian

I saw my first 3d printer at Sandown park model show a year or two back. whilst i am more metal bashing, i watched for about 30 mins as it printed out one of those balls within balls within balls etc etc (n...n+1) I thought they were a work of art when done manually, normally far eastern original in ivory, but this was brilliant. vowed that would be the first thing i would do if i ever got one!

julian64

Original Poster:

14,317 posts

253 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
silverfoxcc said:
Julian

I saw my first 3d printer at Sandown park model show a year or two back. whilst i am more metal bashing, i watched for about 30 mins as it printed out one of those balls within balls within balls etc etc (n...n+1) I thought they were a work of art when done manually, normally far eastern original in ivory, but this was brilliant. vowed that would be the first thing i would do if i ever got one!
Ah a kindred spirit. I too am a metal basher. Only for hobby/maintaining my cars but over the years have accrued things which took my fancy. I now have a garage with lathe/ mill/ crucible/ press. In the house I have a little X1 4 axis CNC mill for small metal work, and this 3d printer will sit next to it. The plan is that amongst other things the 3d printer will prototype stuff which will then be used as a mould for my aluminium casting. I'm quite excited as to what the combination might achieve.

silverfoxcc

7,683 posts

144 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
I build railway locomotives 5in gauge. Havent got to the Bessemer stage, but might send you some details of a tender water scoop you could cast for me for a fee!!

julian64

Original Poster:

14,317 posts

253 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
silverfoxcc said:
I build railway locomotives 5in gauge. Havent got to the Bessemer stage, but might send you some details of a tender water scoop you could cast for me for a fee!!
Interesting I inherited a bunch of locomotives in the last year and have been trying to gently refurbish them. I might post a pic if you are interested, I have little idea of what they are or the history behind them, but I find making bits for them quite cathartic

bucksmanuk

2,311 posts

169 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
I bought one in February, and progress is slow, caused by me not having time to give it a proper go, I made a desk pen holder with my g/f name embossed onto it. She didn’t seem that impressed- miserable cow….

anonymous-user

53 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
There is a guy on the models page who has 3d Printed the bus from the Italian job to make his own scalextrix bus with matching 3 mini's.


julian64

Original Poster:

14,317 posts

253 months

Wednesday 27th July 2016
quotequote all
holy crap

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1643878

not that this is remotely within budget

jdw100

4,067 posts

163 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
quotequote all
julian64 said:
So I just spent out £1300 hard earned on a 3D printer. A Big Box Dual from E3d.

Long story short the lead time is about a month and while I'm waiting I want nominations for the coolest downloadable 3d printed model to make.

So far this is the first thing I'll print

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1564731

But I can be encouraged to change if someone spots something cooler. If its ubercool I might even make two and post one to the suggester by way of thanks, so no elephant sized prints.
Why do you have to wait a month, can't they just get one of their existing printers to print you out a new printer over night?

noell35

3,170 posts

147 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
quotequote all
When we got ours at work a couple of years ago I printed the hovership quad copter from thingiverse.

XslaneyX

1,334 posts

141 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
quotequote all
My mind is truly blown looking at all this 3d printing business. Can someone explain the process of how it actually works?

Going to be doing some browsing later on after work on it.

daddy cool

3,996 posts

228 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
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SystemParanoia

14,343 posts

197 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
quotequote all

bucksmanuk

2,311 posts

169 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
quotequote all
For most of the new versions of 3D printing...
You model away in the 3-D CAD system of your choice – for me this is Solidworks.
Export the geometry as file suitable for stereo lithography,
Import the file into the 3-D printer pre-processor of choice which helps you orient it to the most appropriate position.
Place supports where appropriate for tricky thin bits
Put some internal structuring in where appropriate – this bit is ace!
Then it exports the file as a load of x and y co-ordinates related to that bit of z (vertical) - export it to an SD card. Don’t ask me why it’s not a USB stick on mine!
Place the SD card in the 3-D printer slot.
Follow the instructions
Clean the platter (the bottom surface)- some special tape helps…
Press go

Imagine a vertical heated pen that has plastic “strimmer wire” as solid ink feeding through it.
Control this as per a CNC milling machine in the x and y directions.
It puts a layer of thin melted plastic down on the platter and the strimmer wire cools pretty much instantly and returns to a solid form. The platter with the first 0.1mm thick layer of the model takes a step down by a tiny bit (0.1 mm say) and then lays another sweep across what went before, putting some more plastic down.
Repeat as necessary, for a 100 mm thick part, that’s a 1000 sweeps. So most are left running over night.
Retire to bed….

Wake up the next morning, and get annoyed at the smell of melting plastic as you forgot to open the upstairs window again to let the fumes out…

Return to your 3D printer and carefully remove it from the platter
Job jobbed
Has that helped....?

Vitorio

4,296 posts

142 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
quotequote all
julian64 said:
holy crap

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1643878

not that this is remotely within budget
Would a simpler engine be doable? or maybe just an empty bottom end? Having a miniature V6/V8 on your desk should be cool, even if it doesnt have the heads/ancillaries

Insanity Magnet

616 posts

152 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
quotequote all
bucksmanuk said:
For most of the new versions of 3D printing...
You model away in the 3-D CAD system of your choice – for me this is Solidworks.
Export the geometry as file suitable for stereo lithography,
Import the file into the 3-D printer pre-processor of choice which helps you orient it to the most appropriate position.
Place supports where appropriate for tricky thin bits
Put some internal structuring in where appropriate – this bit is ace!
Then it exports the file as a load of x and y co-ordinates related to that bit of z (vertical) - export it to an SD card. Don’t ask me why it’s not a USB stick on mine!
Place the SD card in the 3-D printer slot.
Follow the instructions
Clean the platter (the bottom surface)- some special tape helps…
Press go

Imagine a vertical heated pen that has plastic “strimmer wire” as solid ink feeding through it.
Control this as per a CNC milling machine in the x and y directions.
It puts a layer of thin melted plastic down on the platter and the strimmer wire cools pretty much instantly and returns to a solid form. The platter with the first 0.1mm thick layer of the model takes a step down by a tiny bit (0.1 mm say) and then lays another sweep across what went before, putting some more plastic down.
Repeat as necessary, for a 100 mm thick part, that’s a 1000 sweeps. So most are left running over night.
Retire to bed….

Wake up the next morning, and get annoyed at the smell of melting plastic as you forgot to open the upstairs window again to let the fumes out…

Return to your 3D printer and carefully remove it from the platter
Job jobbed
Has that helped....?
You forgot: wake up to find that the job has released itself from the bed mid-print and has been turned into a plastic spaghetti nightmare. Start over...

noell35

3,170 posts

147 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
quotequote all
Insanity Magnet said:
You forgot: wake up to find that the job has released itself from the bed mid-print and has been turned into a plastic spaghetti nightmare. Start over...
And over.

Check height of plate. Check temperature, check height again, change filament just in case.

And over and then one random print works.... Nobody knows why.

CoolHands

18,496 posts

194 months

Thursday 28th July 2016
quotequote all
I can't see the point. What could you possibly make that you need, that you can't buy? It will end up sitting unused in 6 months.