Who has a 3D printer? Useful for

Forums › Gadgets, robotics, home automation, electronics (including wearables) › Who has a 3D printer? Useful for

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mdf

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#2791256 7-Oct-2021 14:29

I've spent a bit of time the last few months trying assorted face mask powerups. These are my pick so far:

Ear saver: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4267885. Two part design that is adjustable. I've had a couple break, but very quick to print.

Nose clip / anti classes fog: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4635429. Not as good as a mask with a decent metal nose bridge, but great for the disposable masks that don't have anything/a paperclip bit of wire.

SepticSceptic

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#2791537 7-Oct-2021 22:47

mdf:
I've spent a bit of time the last few months trying assorted face mask powerups. These are my pick so far
Nose clip / anti classes fog: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4635429. Not as good as a mask with a decent metal nose bridge, but great for the disposable masks that don't have anything/a paperclip bit of wire.

I've made a few of those nose clippy things. Not quite 100% effective but heck of a lot better than without.
Fits my nose bridge ok but my wife's nose bridge is a bit narrower. Might need to scale down 10% or so.

Using a CubePro ex duo. Has a failed extruder.

michaelmurfy

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#2796310 16-Oct-2021 20:55

Not exactly a useful print, more fun.

I found some Wooden PLA at a local shop and had to print Baby Groot. My partner then painted him:

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geoffwnz

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#2796927 18-Oct-2021 09:59

I've had an Ender 3 with a glass bed for a couple of years now. Mostly got it for printing D&D table top terrain and minis which I have a lot of now.
But echoing the earlier posts, the initial use tends to be printing parts for itself. Definitely enjoying the tinkering aspect of this hobby and have more recently started designing parts using FreeCAD and seeing something I designed appear in 3D some time later is pretty cool. :-)

Until recently have been purely using PLA as I don't need much in the way of structural strength for most parts (though PLA prints can be quite strong with the right orientation of stress vs print), but have in the last month started learning to print with ASA which is much like ABS but less UV sensitive. That has led to discovering that I need an enclosure to stop layer separation and warping. So having sourced some acrylic sheets from Mitre10, I'm now designing and printing corner brackets to fit it all together.

Have steadily upgraded the printer itself over time. Now running a direct drive head and all metal hot end. 32bit main board which is the second upgrade, having gone from the original board to the "silent" board, then to the 32bit one. Running OctoPrint to control the beast and most of the fans have been upgraded to Noctua quiet fans.

Probably the most frustrating thing is that you'll have it dialled in "perfectly" and running happily for a while, then it'll just start having issues for no apparent reason. After some effort, you'll find that something has happened, like a blocked nozzle or the filament has gone off (absorbed too much moisture, or conversely, too dry and brittle) or something, you'll fix that and continue merrily on again.

I also have a 50 litre bin of PLA waste (failed prints, support structure etc) that I have grand intentions of using to make my own filament but that's a whole other journey that I have yet to embark on.

MotorDrive Rallying

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#2802642 28-Oct-2021 11:01

Pleased with this one - a custom gate latch to mount on the wall and hold our spring loaded gate open when needed.

Printed at 100% infill with PolyCarbonate blend. It is tough as hell - can't bend it at all.

Designed in Autodesk Fusion and printed on my Prusa Mk3s+

Reanalyse

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#2804492 30-Oct-2021 20:05

I've made a few of those nose clippy things. Not quite 100% effective but heck of a lot better than without.
Fits my nose bridge ok but my wife's nose bridge is a bit narrower. Might need to scale down 10% or so.

Using a CubePro ex duo. Has a failed extruder.

If printing in PLA, the clips can be softened in "near boiling water", and molded to fit nose bridges

Technofreak

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#2804503 30-Oct-2021 21:00

I just been reading through this thread. Very interesting. There needs to be a few more photos of everyone's projects. I think I could make quite a bit of use of a 3D printer after reading about what people on here have made.

I have a small project which I would use one for right now. However in the interim, I'd be happy to pay for someone local to make it for me, if there is someone in the Hamilton area who would be happy to do that. It's a U shaped clip about 35mm by 25mm by 5mm thick. I have a sample to model it off and can provide a photo.

If anyone can help send me a PM. Thanks.

What size objects can be printed with the printers mentioned on here? I need to make up a mounting that forms around and object to support it. I was working on an other idea but now wonder about the practicality of using a 3D printed shape.

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SepticSceptic

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#2804514 30-Oct-2021 22:37

Reanalyse:

I've made a few of those nose clippy things. Not quite 100% effective but heck of a lot better than without.
Fits my nose bridge ok but my wife's nose bridge is a bit narrower. Might need to scale down 10% or so.

Using a CubePro ex duo. Has a failed extruder.

If printing in PLA, the clips can be softened in "near boiling water", and molded to fit nose bridges

Ahh. Good thinking!!!.
I do find they need a bit of finishing work. A quick run around with a sharp xacto blade and a dremel drum sander.
I have used acetone to soften and smooth out smaller prints. Sometimes a dip in the acetone, wait 5 seconds. Dunk in water.
Though there is the chance of acetone blush (white blemishes) but not a major if painting afterwards.

Dingbatt

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#2804538 31-Oct-2021 08:54

Acetone is for ABS isn’t it?

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MikeAqua

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#2809869 9-Nov-2021 13:53

I don't have one, but a mate with one helped me design and print a little mould for a carbon fibre custom switch panel/enclosure for the boat. I printed the male mould in two pieces which joined together. I faired the joint line and after a bit of light sanding and waxing it was good to go.

The cool thing for me was that we were able to design in: -

Fillets and radiused corners (usually achieved with fillets of plasticine and sanding)
Solid areas to screw the shape onto a sheet of melamine
A tapered transition onto the melamine

The time we spent on design I saved three times over on mould making and got a much better result. I could easily take that design and scale it up or down.

Probably none of this is news to people experienced in 3Dprinting, but it an eye-opening experience for me.

Now I want my own 3D printer.

Mike

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