Amateur 3D Printing

[Schmorglebot]

Hey guys, 

 

Anyone on the hub experiment with their own 3D printing?

Its an exciting industry that i'm only recently dabbling in but the potential for truly custom parts is really cool.

 

Anyone made their own quadlock/garmin mounts, tri-bars etc etc.

 

Keen to see whats out there

[bikebloke]

https://community.bikehub.co.za/topic/151751-high-direct-mount-fd-cover-plate-3d-printed/?hl=3d+printed

 

 

 

https://community.bikehub.co.za/topic/159586-3d-printed-bash-ring/?hl=3d+printed

[dirtypot]

I've been very seriously looking at getting a DIY printer kit recently - been doing lots of research.

My wife makes custom biscuits for kids parties, special events, etc so to be able to quickly print out a design would be great.  At the moment I'm busy making the cutters myself out of plastic strips and working it into the right shape.  It's a PITA.

But there are so many other options of things to make!  I'm keen.  And I love tinkering and building stuff, so a DIY kit is right up my alley.

[Schmorglebot]

I've been very seriously looking at getting a DIY printer kit recently - been doing lots of research.

My wife makes custom biscuits for kids parties, special events, etc so to be able to quickly print out a design would be great.  At the moment I'm busy making the cutters myself out of plastic strips and working it into the right shape.  It's a PITA.

But there are so many other options of things to make!  I'm keen.  And I love tinkering and building stuff, so a DIY kit is right up my alley.

Its definitely on my Christmas wishlist for sure, i've lost count of how many times i've need a small part or accessory and thought "wouldn't it be great to just 3D print it". There is also a massive online resource for pre-designed doodads.

[nazmo]

Fascinating technology. Not as easy/good as you might think. 

Iv been using 3d printers for years. What you need to understand that the print quality of consumer level printers is quite crap. So any printing that must be detail, or tight tolerances will probably mean you will have to finish it off by hand. 

The standard printable materials are not strong, so dont expect it to have much function.

You need to be able to use 3d cad programs to really use it.

 

That being said, you can do amazing things with the right machine, right material and proper cad ability. So dont just jump into buying a printer

[Mongoose!]

 

 

...you can do amazing things with the right machine, right material and proper cad ability. ...

 

How much will the "right machine" and "right material" set you back?

[BaGearA]

Also how much would it set me back if I have my own micro controllers and can do the programing my self?

[Schmorglebot]

Also how much would it set me back if I have my own micro controllers and can do the programing my self?

There are tons of resources online for building your own printers and what's cool is a lot of the parts can themselves be 3D printed.

 

3D printers printing 3D printers, its only a matter of time before Skynet (I mean the one from Terminator, not the courier company ) 

Edited September 23, 2016 by Schmorglebot

[Amberdrake]

So this thread is old (very old) but im doing a lot of 3d printing for myself and customizing etc, there has been some talking about it in other threads but figure better have something dedicated.

 

What am I running, Creality Ender3 

Modifications:

SKR1.3 Mainboard with TMC2209 Drivers and one DRV for extruder.

Alu Extruder replacement.

Cheap Glass bed

Bed Handle (ABS 110bed this helps)

Cable chain guides currently being installed as part of preparation for the Enclosure im building.

Hero Me cooling mount customized for a better fit between parts.

BFPtouch bed leveling using optical endstop and Servo to stow probe (0.0077 accuracy).

Blower fan.

Cork insulation under bed to maintain temp easier (this works way to well takes forever to cool down).

Quick Clip interfacing at hotend and board side to assist with easier fault finding and repair/replacement.

 

Future upgrades planned:

Belt Tentioners (metal custom made as i have access to machining tools at work)

Enclosure for better prints will be using left over Isoboard I have from the Bathroom renovation stuffs insulating and fire resistant (used some to make a tool holder it melts but doesn't catch fire and doesn't drip).

Volcano hotend upgrade (maybe not sure if this really needed atm)

Replacement hotend carriage from Alu or steel that alows for quick tool change to laser or cutter (this is very long term and still on fence about it).

I am also attempting to upgrade extruder to geared one but had some failed parts and honestly not sure i saw improved prints when I had it running).

 

Ill post some pictures etc of stuff I have made etc later today, I also printed around 20 face shields for doctors at start of lockdown, however the shortage of material and printer maintenance makes me hesitant to start that again as parts and filament are impossible to source atm. I can also not carry the costs of handing these out free like some of the organised groups are doing.

[ABrooks]

So this thread is old (very old) but im doing a lot of 3d printing for myself and customizing etc, there has been some talking about it in other threads but figure better have something dedicated.

 

What am I running, Creality Ender3 

Modifications:

SKR1.3 Mainboard with TMC2209 Drivers and one DRV for extruder.

Alu Extruder replacement.

Cheap Glass bed

Bed Handle (ABS 110bed this helps)

Cable chain guides currently being installed as part of preparation for the Enclosure im building.

Hero Me cooling mount customized for a better fit between parts.

BFPtouch bed leveling using optical endstop and Servo to stow probe (0.0077 accuracy).

Blower fan.

Cork insulation under bed to maintain temp easier (this works way to well takes forever to cool down).

Quick Clip interfacing at hotend and board side to assist with easier fault finding and repair/replacement.

 

Future upgrades planned:

Belt Tentioners (metal custom made as i have access to machining tools at work)

Enclosure for better prints will be using left over Isoboard I have from the Bathroom renovation stuffs insulating and fire resistant (used some to make a tool holder it melts but doesn't catch fire and doesn't drip).

Volcano hotend upgrade (maybe not sure if this really needed atm)

Replacement hotend carriage from Alu or steel that alows for quick tool change to laser or cutter (this is very long term and still on fence about it).

I am also attempting to upgrade extruder to geared one but had some failed parts and honestly not sure i saw improved prints when I had it running).

 

Ill post some pictures etc of stuff I have made etc later today, I also printed around 20 face shields for doctors at start of lockdown, however the shortage of material and printer maintenance makes me hesitant to start that again as parts and filament are impossible to source atm. I can also not carry the costs of handing these out free like some of the organised groups are doing.

 

Are you happy with the Ender 3? I am looking at buying one after lockdown. The price for a new stock one seems to be around R4500 would you recon it's the best printer in this price range? Where did you buy your printer?

[ABrooks]

So this thread is old (very old) but im doing a lot of 3d printing for myself and customizing etc, there has been some talking about it in other threads but figure better have something dedicated.

 

What am I running, Creality Ender3 

Modifications:

SKR1.3 Mainboard with TMC2209 Drivers and one DRV for extruder.

Alu Extruder replacement.

Cheap Glass bed

Bed Handle (ABS 110bed this helps)

Cable chain guides currently being installed as part of preparation for the Enclosure im building.

Hero Me cooling mount customized for a better fit between parts.

BFPtouch bed leveling using optical endstop and Servo to stow probe (0.0077 accuracy).

Blower fan.

Cork insulation under bed to maintain temp easier (this works way to well takes forever to cool down).

Quick Clip interfacing at hotend and board side to assist with easier fault finding and repair/replacement.

 

Future upgrades planned:

Belt Tentioners (metal custom made as i have access to machining tools at work)

Enclosure for better prints will be using left over Isoboard I have from the Bathroom renovation stuffs insulating and fire resistant (used some to make a tool holder it melts but doesn't catch fire and doesn't drip).

Volcano hotend upgrade (maybe not sure if this really needed atm)

Replacement hotend carriage from Alu or steel that alows for quick tool change to laser or cutter (this is very long term and still on fence about it).

I am also attempting to upgrade extruder to geared one but had some failed parts and honestly not sure i saw improved prints when I had it running).

 

Ill post some pictures etc of stuff I have made etc later today, I also printed around 20 face shields for doctors at start of lockdown, however the shortage of material and printer maintenance makes me hesitant to start that again as parts and filament are impossible to source atm. I can also not carry the costs of handing these out free like some of the organised groups are doing.

 

Would you also mind sharing typical cost of printing, maintenance etc? 

[Vetplant]

Are you happy with the Ender 3? I am looking at buying one after lockdown. The price for a new stock one seems to be around R4500 would you recon it's the best printer in this price range? Where did you buy your printer?

I need to jump in here and just mention the HP printer, the guys at Mentis 3D is running this:

 

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/marcodelport_covid19-3dprinting-additivemanufacturing-ugcPost-6655530964241920000-N1Ds

 

The part qualitiy is astonishing and the price point is getting very competitive with production runs on other technologies.

 

I know allot of people are enjoying the thrill of figuring out 3D printing for themselves and there will always be a place for that. 

 

But this has all the benefits of 3D printing without the capital outlay to buy your own machine. 

-Less manufacturing constraints

-quick to manufacture

-FDM comes nowhere close to the parts finish quality

 

I got some test prints for some of our components within 3 days from these guys and I was seriously impressed with the look and feel of the products.

 

Give Marius a shout and let him quote for you on a print of any* size and shape

http://www.aditiv.co.za/

 

*within reason

 

Disclaimer: Old colleague/friend of mine, thus the reason I can vouch for them. I have no financial benefit in this

HP 3D High Reusability PA 12 Data sheet (002).pdf

[Amberdrake]

Personally right now I would buy a Ender 5 if I could stretch the budget a bit (they around 6k).

Ender3 is a good starting point. Out the box you can get decent prints with stock parts.

Check the XT90 connectors and the Power supply fan voltage.

Also rewire the fan for mainboard directly to 24v for always on.

Get glass plate and glue stick once you manage to damage original print surface(its gonna happen don't worry not best surface anyways).

After that you can either upgrade parts like me or just run it.

I do agree parts are nowhere near that of the HP stuff.

 

Running costs depend Hotend thermistor and cartridge cost me R100. Nozzles around R40 each. Glass bed was R50 Glue stick R10? didn't check tbh.

Filament is anywhere from R260 a roll up depending what your buying.

Ender 3 does pla well for ABS your gonna need enclosure.

I have Petg havnt used it yet but will try it at some point (always use glue stick with PETG it sticks to bare glass and wont release).

A roll of filament can go a long way but often you find yourself going ooooo nice colour that will look so good for that part in that spot, or kids will love it but in pink.......

Somewhat like cycling, the filament can get costly.

Personally I imported my printer more than year ago, worked out to R3800 landed with duties.

You will be hard pressed to get that pricing anytime soon again due to shipping issues.

 

Watch youtube videos setting about setting it up it will make life lot easier. 

 

I enjoy it because its a creative engineering outlet I don't get elsewhere. I also like fiddling and it allows me to prototype projects myself in parts quickly before final prints.

one eg I tried to make a mount for BFPtouch on the Petsfang cooler, did about 8 versions before I got one that worked. In my experience shipping would be a killer for something like that.

[ABrooks]

I mainly want to print functional parts to support my other hobbies. I wanted to go with the Ender 3 for the relatively low price so I did not even consider the Ender 5. The main advantage seems to be additional stability of the frame and the bed that only moves in the z-axis.

 

I will see what I can find after lockdown and take it from there.

[Amberdrake]

I mainly want to print functional parts to support my other hobbies. I wanted to go with the Ender 3 for the relatively low price so I did not even consider the Ender 5. The main advantage seems to be additional stability of the frame and the bed that only moves in the z-axis.

 

I will see what I can find after lockdown and take it from there.

Your likely gonna want something that just runs, time likely wont be your limit so ender3 should be fine.

If your looking to print other than PLA might have issues.

[Amberdrake]

So I found most of the photos.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/pd5nKix5mPWMLin47

Hope the link works, It starts with unboxing and first print(this included a filament swap with stock machine.

Ends off with newest upgrade a tapped pneumatic insert to hold some guide PTFE tube for into the extruder.

Its not all of the pictures but most.