My 3DC

[Grant Lamontagne]

I've developed a new 3D printing rule that probably should have been obvious, but I hadn't encountered until recently.

FRIENDS DON'T LET FRIENDS USE CHEAP FILAMENT.

It's easier said than done though, as I wasn't aware I was using lower quality filament until it was done.  I will absolutely be making a note of this brand and ensuring that they never get any money from me again.

These are two identical parts, both printed with PLA filament, which is the only kind my printer will use.  I don't think I need to tell you which one is the crappy one, even if you don't know a thing about 3D printing.  It's pretty obvious that the layer adhesion is severely lacking resulting in gaps, cracks and an overall crappy product.

Using good filament however, produces a beautiful product that you can be proud of!

With some filaments, like the iridescent stuff I used on the Juice sheath, I kind of expect it to be less than ideal because it has other qualities that are of interest.

The bright green filament doesn't even have that going for it.  The color may be nice, but it's nothing special and the super crappy finish means you don't even see the color anyways.

Maybe after some sanding and polishing it would look okay, but with all the gaps it isn't going to function very well.

The olive colored one on the other hand, was done in the same machine, from the same file, with all the same settings and looks absolutely perfect, straight out of the printer.

Def

[Vidar]

That green does look ready for recycling.. I guess it is chance it needed drying or other settings, but no need for the grief and work when you already have other great stuff.

As for 3D scanners I guess it is a matter of needed geometric precision whether the result can be used for the intended purpose - and then the value of that purpose. Over time I expect precision to increase and costs to decrease until it gets interesting for me. (There are certainly very precise scanners available today, so the technology is there already, but the costs are not worth it for my sporadic use).

[Grant Lamontagne]

Yeah, I have done a few models with it and been disappointed each time.  I kept thinking that it was something I'd done wrong, like maybe stored it at an improper humidity or temperature, had the settings wrong in the machine, had too cheap a machine etc.  In the end it seems that the filament, or at least my usage of it, is no good.  I hate to blame my tools (or materials), especially when it's something I am still relatively new to, but I think it's safe to say that this material just isn't much good.

I also have some high gloss black material that seems only good for making spaghetti monsters, but I'm not ready to call that one just yet.  I am getting close though... 

Oh, and a roll of white stuff that seems uninterested in doing what it's supposed to, but again, I'm not ready to call that one just yet either.

But, half the fun of this kind of thing is figuring stuff out, and I've probably got or used a dozen rolls of different colors and types, and so far I've only had a few that didn't work as intended.  Some better than others for sure, but this green is the only actual fail so far. 

But, if I am being honest, it does work well enough in that if I needed to make something out of it, it would probably work out.  It wouldn't be the best quality, it wouldn't be the nicest finish, but I could manage something out of it.

Def

[AzteCypher]

Just for reference, what brand is it?

I always print a temp tower with each new color/brand that I buy to see what temp it prints best at just to be safe.  This has saved me from several headaches.

[Grant Lamontagne]

It was XYZPrinting brand, the same brand as the machine I have.

In fact, now that I have checked, the other colors that I have been having a problem with (white and black mentioned above) are also XYZPrinting, and so I think it's safe to say that you should probably avoid that brand entirely.  That should be pretty easy, as I believe they have gone out of business.

That having been said, I had a number of spools of their filament and they weren't all bad.  None stand out as particularly great, but I had initially bought them as I figured the best choice for this machine would be the same brand- aka the recommended filament.  XYZPrinting even went so far as to put a chip in the rolls of filament to ensure that you use their stuff- the machine won't print without a chipped spool on it.  And, since each spool is chipped, the software also measures how much is used.  When a spool is empty, the chip is no longer valid.

If you want to use aftermarket filament you have to buy their generic spool chip, which I did. 

I also found that many brands of spools won't fit on their chip bracket and spool holder, so I just leave an empty spool with the chip in the hanger and feed the machine from another spool hung behind it.   

It's kind of an annoying and inefficient setup, but it works.

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

This particular use of a 3D printer never occurred to me.  I guess I just have different priorities!

Def

[Vidar]

Hm. Wonder if I can print some extrusion forms for pasta? Seeing as I'm not smoking ribs I mean.

SAK cake forms? Should go great with layers... 

[Grant Lamontagne]

As long as you are baking the cakes at less than 150 C you should be okay!   

I also printed a bumper for my new DJI Neo.  I don't believe it needs it, but all the cool kids are putting them on so I figured I might as well do it too.

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6798822

I used the lightest of these ones figuring this is just an extra bumper on top of the existing factory bumpers.  If it gets destroyed I may try a heavier version.

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

Oops, forgot the pic.

Def

[Vidar]

I used the lightest of these ones figuring this is just an extra bumper on top of the existing factory bumpers.  If it gets destroyed I may try a heavier version.

Flexible rubber version? Bend and bounce instead of breaking. Foam or 3D strusses?

[AzteCypher]

 

[Grant Lamontagne]

Flexible rubber version? Bend and bounce instead of breaking. Foam or 3D strusses?

As I said, my printer doesn't support fancy materials for that kind of thing so I have just printed it in regular, hard PLA.

It should protect the camera somewhat, although to be honest I really don't feel like it needs it.  I watched a video where a guy flew it repeatedly into trees, brick walls, concrete seawalls etc at speeds of around 45kph and the drone stood up to it.  And, if the Neo does get damaged, I have the insurance and can replace it for about $20.  I was more interested in seeing how well it printed, and it's got a few flaws.  For example I think there was some of the other green blobbed in the head that came out because there were a few layers that didn't look right.  I must have missed that the last time I cleaned the head?

I printed one for my father's Neo as well, and it came out much better.   

Def

[Vidar]

It should protect the camera somewhat, although to be honest I really don't feel like it needs it.  I watched a video where a guy flew it repeatedly into trees, brick walls, concrete seawalls etc at speeds of around 45kph and the drone stood up to it. 

Sounds like a drone adapted to my skill level! 

[Grant Lamontagne]

This one, oddly enough is well adapted to every skill level as it bypasses the weakest link.  It eliminates the silly component between the remote and the ground.

Def

[Vidar]

There is certainly a lot that needs bypassing or plain ignoring.. I would ask my wife if she agrees, but oddly she pretends not to hear me.

But wait - the drone of that guy who hits all kinds of stuff was suicidal then?

[Grant Lamontagne]

Actually no.

There's more on this in the Drone thread in the Break Room, but in a nutshell, the new Neo is available for $200 USD and comes with several autonomous flight modes.  No controller required.  If you want it to follow you as you hike down the road, you select Follow Mode on the drone and it takes off and automatically follows you.  It has six automatic modes including Follow, Dronie (drone starts on you then backs up revealing where you are), Rocket (same as Dronie but instead of backing away, the drone goes up and over you, looking straight down at you), Circle (it rotates around you at a fixed distance, keeping you center frame), Spotlight (like follow, but the drone remains in the same place, as if it was a camera on a tripod, but rotates to keep you in frame) and Direction Track, where it stays in front of you, flying backwards to keep you in frame as you walk.

Because it doesn't have sensors to avoid things (it will avoid objects in front of the camera as the visual tracking maps objects) it is designed to be quite robust, with enclosed/covered propellor blades so it is resistant to crashing.  Add in that it only weighs 135g, and it doesn't really develop a lot of force on impact.  If there isn't much force on impact, there isn't much force to damage it.

Plus, DJI offers a service called DJI Care which you can activate within 2-3 days of buying the drone.  This cost me about $40 CAD, but if I lose or damage the drone, DJI will replace it for a $20-25 deductible.  That means that even though the drone is cheap enough to begin with, it is even cheaper to replace.  That means that you are more likely to have it with you, use it and get cool shots you probably wouldn't want to risk a $2k drone on.

For example....

https://youtu.be/zFIWWM0Iv-U?si=wQzthrAScuxEaFQW

https://youtu.be/YVKhcPm3T5A?si=nfs8eCOBWEDzrwX2

Now these guys were probably well funded for this, but I think even I with our (very) limited budget would give this a shot if it was only going to cost me $25 to get up and running again. 

Def

[Vidar]

That is quite spectacular!

Sounds like an interesting drone. I've been thinking about a light weight one to get some new photo/ video angles and avoid having to go to unwelcoming places myself. (Well, more like deciding before going/ climbing/ crawling if it looks worth it or not).

[Grant Lamontagne]

The Neo might be right for you.  They just released a new package which is $710 CAD that might be of interest.  It comes with the drone, motion controller (like a flight stick), goggles (for first person view or FPV flying), three batteries and a charger.  Honestly, that's probably the package you want if you are thinking of using it for scouting

Or, you could get the Fly More pack, which has a regular dual stick controller, three batteries, charger and drone.

Getting back to the importance of 3D design and printing, I recently came into possession of a Leatherman Fuse with a broken locking tab.  This is a common enough problem and leaves me with a few choices.

1- send it in for warranty repair and probably get a Bolster or something back.

2- send it in for warranty repair, pretend it's sentimental and ask them to fix it rather than replace it.

3- sell it to a modder for parts.

4- try and copy the original design in Fusion and see about printing a new one.  If it fits, see about getting the design printed at a commercial printer, possibly out of something fun like titanium.

Naturally I am considering the most awkward option of designing and printing a new tab.  I have done most of the design so far, I just need to print one and see if it is actually close enough, then modify the design etc until I get it perfect.

If I can manage that, I might look into getting a few replacements made in some fancy metal- I could probably sell them by the dozen and retire off the proceeds, because who wouldn't want to convert their Blast or Fuse to having titanium locks?   

Def

[Vidar]

If you could redesign away the need for those protruding pins, (say by making a hole instead and later putting in pins), that would make that part easier to make with a variety of technologies.

[Grant Lamontagne]

Yeah, that pin is exactly what always breaks on these.  A bar would be a good idea.

I'll have to check and see if there is enough space to make a decently reinforced slot for a bar.

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

I may or may not have been playing around with a certain something yesterday....

Took me two iterations to get the scale right (until I got around to measuring  ) then one more iteration to get the clearances right, but I now have a functional plier head. 

It still needs some work- for example I have already cut back the plier handle attachment points a bit to allow the jaws to open a bit wider, and I think I may change the removable cutter section and replace it with a built in set of anvil cutters.  Either that or I will need to reconfig the head to make more space as the current cutter slot is pretty small.

All in all, not a bad result for a first (fourth) attempt.

It's also the first time I have (successfully) designed and printed a multi-component thing that actually fit together, so I am a bit proud of that.   

Def

[Vidar]

Any particular plan with those? Going metal with them too?

I think the print would be stronger if the infill was connected to the outer skin?

[Grant Lamontagne]

So far just a proof of concept and refining the design to see if I can do it, how it would work etc.

Strength and metal etc can wait till I get it to a point where it's worth the extra strength of extra plastic or metal!   

For now, I am just playing.

Show content

Or am I?   

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

Not my design, but I printed a box for my Neo the other day.

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:6791485

It kind of maxed out my printer and had to be rotated 45 degrees to fit on my print bed, but it got there.  Oh yeah, and I had to print the lid and the box separately because they wouldn't both fit on the bed at the same time. 

In the end it is great- I couldn't be happier with it.  It keeps my Neo safe and sound when rattling around in my backpack.  I didn't print the magnetic version, so I just use a rubber band to hold it closed.

Def

[Vidar]

Handy drone that one - and even more so with travel protection!

[Vidar]

I tried using some Anycubic Craftsman resin that had expired its best before date by over a year. It seemed a bit more runny than usual, and seemingly with more rounded details than a fresh batch would give. (Or that model has less sharp edges than I usually do). But overall it did fairly well I think - one try, all the usual settings, usual washing procedure. One could possibly do better by adjusting some of those to take old resin into consideration.

So there is hope for old resins too it seems.   

[Grant Lamontagne]

All of that post processing/UV stuff is kind of off putting (for me at least) with resin printing, however those parts look absolutely amazing.  The detail and perfection is far beyond the filament printing I am doing, so maybe I will have to get over my paranoia!

Which machine are you using, and would you recommend it or suggest something else?

Did I say those parts look amazing?  Because they absolutely do!

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

Handy drone that one - and even more so with travel protection!

I am seriously impressed by this little drone, and I haven't even used it to it's full potential.  I have maybe used it to about a third of what it is capable of, and it has been blowing me away with what it is and what it can do.

I am also very careful with most of my drones, usually opting for hard cases or, at the very least, a proper camera bag for the drone and all of it's associated equipment.

I haven't been doing that with the Neo- I have literally just been throwing it in my work bag and taking it with me, much less concerned about damage since it is very inexpensive and it is also very robust.

Still, having some protection for it will get rid of any lingering concerns I have about it's safety getting banged around in my work bag, so I am thrilled with this little case.  It feels quite remarkably solid, and I don't worry about the Neo's safety in the least.  I think I need to print one for my father's Neo now.

Def

[Vidar]

All of that post processing/UV stuff is kind of off putting (for me at least) with resin printing, however those parts look absolutely amazing.  The detail and perfection is far beyond the filament printing I am doing, so maybe I will have to get over my paranoia!

Which machine are you using, and would you recommend it or suggest something else?

Yes, I switched to resin printing from filament for more detailed parts in general - and specifically much better printing with castable wax than castable filament. Those parts are a bit soft on the edges which I think must be due to the expired resin. After reading a bit more about expired resin it seems heavy shaking up front might mitigate some of the aging issue.

I'm using an Anycubic Photon D2. As far as I know it is one of two reasonably priced resin DLP printers - there is also a version of Elegoo Mars 4 which is DLP based. They have the same technical foundation and DLP unit so performance is similar I suppose. The resolution is much lower than other resin printers these days, but the thing is that the resolution hits hard and sharp so it really counts with well defined edges between what is supposed to be printed and what not. It doesn't not do big print sizes, but if your work happen to be within the limits then it is great.

I have a "normal" resin printer too. The resolution is higher but the applied light is more blurry. My issue with that was the parts can have deformed effects overall at times (non-flat flat areas, circles not perfectly round and so on). I think that happens after the actual printing but due to the parts being softer while handling and cleaning afterwards. Which you can't avoid, so it makes it difficult to do work with - you end up having to try to adjust the part geometry so that it will deform and then end up like what you actually want.. (Same issue exist with some metal 3D printing). Much easier with one that just makes it right in the first place. For miniatures and organic shapes that will be less of an issue - but for fitting tight mechanical parts together it is very noticeable.

Another thing with resin printers is that some resin really like to be kept within a temperature range (around 25-30C) for best results. Some new resin printers come with temperature control for that reason. I just stick them in a little room adjusted to 25 when I use them.

There are resin made for water cleaning and indoors use and they should be friendlier to work with.  I haven't tried them myself though. If you get a resin printer just get one of those cleaner/ UV units as well - it makes for more predictable results and easier process.) Overall I prefer resin to filament not just for quality but also for easier use - there are far less variables that needs adjusting, and first print is usually good without any hassle. Then there is the cleaning... (The UV part is fine).

[Vidar]

I am seriously impressed by this little drone, and I haven't even used it to it's full potential.  I have maybe used it to about a third of what it is capable of, and it has been blowing me away with what it is and what it can do.

Yes, I've been looking at that. It seems a good controller with screen still costs money though? I looked at a package of a Mini 4 Pro (?) which seemed quite light and capable, but in a different price range. I assume that controller would work with a Neo too, so maybe the controller should be the key focus for the initial purchase?