I am a computer man.Have a BS in computer science. I don't know a dam thing about 3D print. What is the best building compound to use for casting? I don't have much money, what is the best unit for the buck? Where is the best place to go to find out info on how and what to use in 3D printing? Thank you. P.S. If anyone have some 3d printing equipment for sale let me know.
I am not a computer man, although my understanding of computers, in a different sense is definitely BS. That aside, I do believe the originals for the waxes I see for sale online must have been printed. The time, scale and detail involved to do by hand would never pay for itself by selling waxes. There are some great looking waxes being sold for casting.
flask_copper_man: Not having much money, AND having a 3D printing Jones is not a good combination. But welcome to the insanity. This is an addictive hobby, I've got 3 filament printers and am looking for a good resin printer. If you're thinking about printing patterns for casting you'll probably want to be looking for a resin printer instead of a filament printer. The resin printers offer magnitudes better quality and detail than a filament printer. The print volume and speed are what you need to be aware of. Both Anycubic and Elegoo have good sized resin printers for a reasonable cost, $300-$500. I believe that they both have 3D printer forums, which might be a good place to start getting information. I'd Google "3D resin printing forums" and spend some time there. As far as the best building compound, you're going to be looking at a printable wax. This stuff AIN"T cheap, Google "3D wax resin" and you'll see what I mean. Also be aware that resin printers, depending on the resin you use, can smell REALLY bad. I've heard that the plant based resins aren't so bad, but some of the styrene and ABS based resins are particularly smelly. Don
For myself, the volume and speed problem would be overcome by first printing the original. After casting and cleaning, then making an injectable mold for wax. Having that mold waxes can be produced every 4-5 minutes. The time involved is waiting for the wax to cool. Fredo
Fredo: Making patterns from injectable wax using a silicon mold would certainly solve the speed problem, and it would mean that you wouldn't need to use an expensive castable wax resin to print your initial mold pattern - you could use one of the "cheaper" resins. Since he's going to be a newbie to 3D printing there's going to be print failures in the beginning - a LOT of failures. A cheaper resin would be good to start out with, and save the expensive stuff for when the failure rate isn't quite so high. For some reason I didn't catch the part of the thread title that said he wanted to cast rings and pendants. Unless the pendant is REALLY big, even the smallest resin printer should have the build volume for what he wants. Don
While filament printers are cheaper than resin printers, the resin printer will give you magnitudes better resolution. The thinnest layer that MOST filament printers can print is about 0.1mm. As I type this I'm looking at a 3D printed R2D2, that was printed wit 0.1mm layers. The detail is amazing, for a filament printer, but I can still see and feel the layer lines. Here's a link to a VERY talented person's build of a 3D printed radio control 1/10 scale Oshkosh M1070 tractor and trailer. https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/sho...10-Oshkosh-M1070-A0-(3D-Printed-Scratchbuilt) He is able to include an amazing amount of detail and it doesn't really look like it was printed with a filament printer. That's because eadedubo takes hours to minimize/eliminate the layer lines and imperfections. A resin printer will print a layer that is microns thick, at least one order of magnitude thinner than a filament printer's 0.1mm and maybe even 2 orders of magnitude. The minimum size object a filament printer can print is limited by the nozzle size, 0.1mm-2.0mm. A resin printer's minimum size is theoretically only limited be the size of the individual pixel in that printer. This is why they can print such amazing detail. Filament printers shine for printing larger objects where detail isn't that critical. On the other hand resin printers really shine when printing smaller objects with absurd amounts of detail. Don
I've spent a fair amount of time with 3D printers. Today, I'd buy an Artillery Sidewinder X2. You can buy them new from $300-$450. The first one was $450. The second one was $400, but I've noticed them for less (I think $325). Print ZYLTech PLA (not PLA silk)
I own both an expensive FDM printer and a cheap $300 resin printer. For ring scale objects or mini figs. The resin is hands down the winner. If I was going to make money with it (jewelry and the like) I would get a resin printer with 6k or 12k resolution. These things are that cheap ($300 us). Do some searches there's casting resins in the $150us/l that burn out nice. (VOGman on youtube has good videos and testing). FDM is great for larger items, engineering items and speed. but for small intricate detailed Items Resin is the way to go. Note: Resin is a messy smelly substance that I wouldn't use in my house ever again. It lives in the shop because it stinks! and it's not good for you to breath, or get on bare skin. Their are newer versions that are not as noxious but I treat them all the same after the first experience.
crazybillybob: Have you tried any of the plant based resins? Or the water wash resins? I'd like to get a resin printer but the smell is the primary thing holding me back. I saw yesterday that somebody has an activated charcoal filter for their printer to reduce the smell, can't remember if it was Anycubic or Elegoo. Don
I think there's an Elegoo with a carbon filter. I haven't tried the newer water based resins. It's been a couple years since I used the resin printer much. It's a great tool to have I just have had other distractions (Got married, Moved, built a new workshop, and have 3 kids in sports....I'm not sure where my free time goes ) I'm hoping that the winter I can get the now shop organized to the point I can start a few casting projects. I will be trying out some of the castable resin then. Now I have heard from multiple review sites and a few folks I've talked to at 3d printing events that the water based resins are way less nasty, but i still don't have firsthand experience yet.
That's what I've heard by lurking on various sites, just hoping to find somebody with, as you say, first hand experience. I don't want to commit to this before I get a little more info. I may start a separate thread to ask around about the water wash resins.
Really depends on what your needs are. Resin are better quality but slower and smaller. You can get a fairly decent print from filament but you will have print lines no matter how small you print. They can be easily covered with filler primer if they are small enough. I went with filament for speed, size, ease of use and safety. I recently got a roller belt printer for printing large sprues. I used to print them on flatbed printer standing up vertically so print lines would be in line with the drawing of the mold. The issue with doing that was the wobble you get when the sprue is 21 inches long and super thin. You would have to slow down the print speed too much in order to get the wobble out or could lose a piece after 8 hours printing. The belt puts it on a 45 degree print line. We have to light sand them to make sure they draw out of the sand but after one production run they are usually gone. If we need a really good print for a logo or artwork we will use our tool makers resin printer.
