Armed Polite Society
Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: Bogie on April 04, 2022, 12:55:23 PM
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Was at Microcenter the other day, and the Ender 3 Pros were priced at $200... Almost impulse purchased one.
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Was at Microcenter the other day, and the Ender 3 Pros were priced at $200... Almost impulse purchased one.
I have one of those Ender 3 Pros. It's a good machine, and quality add-ons to improve its performance are not very expensive.
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I have 4. There can be a steep learning curve (especially on lower priced printers and freeware to run them) but they are handy, and pretty fun to have as a hobby.
I have made a bunch of stuff for the house, some gifts, neat knick-knacks, and several functioning firearms receivers. They are useful impulse purchases.
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I have a couple.
Good for some things. I'm almost excursively creating my own stl's via freeCAD.
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I'm bougie. I paid for Fusion360, but the CAM package is handy for other things I do.
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Got 2 of them. At $200 I would have picked it up. I need to get better at cad.
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Okay - looks like I'll grab one.
What else will I need? What do you folks who I trust (gigglesnort...) recommend?
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The Ender 3 has a HUGE support base.
For starters get a couple rolls of mid-price PLA. You don't need to get $40/roll Protopasta, bud avoid the cheapest chinese filament on Amazon. Bad filament can be very frustrating to print with.
You will need a slicing program to convert your 3d model files to gcode the printer will run. Last I checked Ender's were shipping with "CrealitySlicer" which is a Creality skin on a freeware slicer called Cura. Cura is available here: https://ultimaker.com/software/ultimaker-cura and is better than the shitty skinned version that comes with an ender.
You will want a quality microSD card to transfer gcode from the computer to the printer. The no brand one that comes with the printer is *expletive deleted*it. Back up all the drivers on it and never use it again.
Obviously you need a computer, but until you get into CAD, the requirements are really low. Anything that effectively surfs the web right now can slice. If you want to start designing your own stuff, the computer requirements depend on the CAD package you use. FreeCAD is, IIRC, not that bad on hardware requirements.
Then hit up Thingiverse for some models to print out. https://www.thingiverse.com/ After you've gotten some the basics down and it's printing reliably you can look at mods or changes to fix issues with your particular setup.
If you want to get on some lists, you can hit up DEFCAD, or Ctrl Pew
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Several friends have the resin type for making little scale model tanks and figures for war games. My pastor has one that uses filament; he makes trinkets and kids' small toys and not sure what else.
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Some upgrades I would recommend are a glass bed and better bed leveling springs. You can get the Creality glass bed made for that printer on Amazon for under $19. There are quite a few bed leveling spring kits out there that will work nicely. Amazon has some quality kits for under $10.
Also, get an automatic bed leveling touch sensor. The unit made for the Ender 3 Pro by Creality runs about $40 on Amazon.
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Okay - looks like I'll grab one.
What else will I need? What do you folks who I trust (gigglesnort...) recommend?
What do you want to do with it?
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Some upgrades I would recommend are a glass bed and better bed leveling springs. You can get the Creality glass bed made for that printer on Amazon for under $19. There are quite a few bed leveling spring kits out there that will work nicely. Amazon has some quality kits for under $10.
Also, get an automatic bed leveling touch sensor. The unit made for the Ender 3 Pro by Creality runs about $40 on Amazon.
Those are not bad suggestions, and I have done most of them, but I recommend printing at least a roll of filament in stuff before changing anything so that you get a feel for what changes you need.
Creality is also pretty bad about IP theft and crap knock-offs. If you buy accessories from them, make sure it's a real thing, and not a stolen design. a real deal BL touch sensor isn't much more than the knock-offs.
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I purchased my BL Touch sensor directly from Creality. It's the real deal so far as I can tell.
As far a printing a bunch of stuff before adding upgrades, that is a good suggestion. Getting a feel for what your new printer can do before you make any changes is a good idea.
I also configured a Raspberry Pi 3b+ with Octoprint to oversee my printer. I use it to change printer settings and upload projects to it. I have a camera on the printer that connects through Octoprint. It allows me to monitor the printer remotely if I have to leave the room to do other things.
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Yeah, me too. RasPi with Octoprint on 3 of them, glass beds, auto-leveling, new spool holder on the Q5 and CR6, wire management on the CR-10S Pro, Z-axis sync kit. Hell my Anet-A8 is to a stock A8 what Darth Vader is to Anakin. But with the exception of the A8 (which I went down several rabbit holes on) I always get a feel for the new printer to see what it needs, what I might want, and what is someone else's good idea fairy.
Octoprint and a camera are pretty great, especially since it lets me quit moving SD cards around, just drag, drop, print. But you can get started and get a feel for the printer before you go there. On the bright side, once you have the printer dialed in you can print your own Pi cases and camera mounts.
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You will need a slicing program to convert your 3d model files to gcode the printer will run. Last I checked Ender's were shipping with "CrealitySlicer" which is a Creality skin on a freeware slicer called Cura. Cura is available here: https://ultimaker.com/software/ultimaker-cura and is better than the shitty skinned version that comes with an ender.
Another one worth checking out is ideamaker: https://www.ideamaker.io/download.html
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I have an artillery X1. It's fine. They are all about the same. I use it often.
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Octoprint and a camera are pretty great, especially since it lets me quit moving SD cards around, just drag, drop, print. But you can get started and get a feel for the printer before you go there. On the bright side, once you have the printer dialed in you can print your own Pi cases and camera mounts.
All of this, for sure. I just wish I had more time to work with my printer.
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Well, I'd like to be able to crank out a few car parts...
"I need a radio knob for my 1974 Buick - what do you mean they aren't available?"
And a few Glock mags, and a lower or three...
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My printer is actually 4D...
It has height, width, and depth, and it takes time to print something out.
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Time is just a construct of the white, cismale patriarchy, you misogynist bigot.
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Since there seems to be a strength limit to the polymers currently offered for home-type 3D printers, it seems that there's an opportunity for someone to put out parts kits for .22 or .380 Glocks, along with matching CAD files. Maybe the printed frames would hold up when used with cartridges having lower recoil than 9mm.
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They hold up pretty well with 9mm and .45.
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Well, I'd like to be able to crank out a few car parts...
"I need a radio knob for my 1974 Buick - what do you mean they aren't available?"
And a few Glock mags, and a lower or three...
Ender 3 pro owner here. My personal upgrade/favorite is to use a glass build plate and generic hair spray on it for trouble-free adhesion, without too much adhesion. The hair spray works great as both an adhesive, and a release.
I did try printing PETG on bare clean glass, and that stuck so damn hard it tore chunks out of the glass.
You will want an enclosure around your printer if you want to print ABS etc. air currents, drafts etc. will cause layer separations and warpage if the printer isn't kept cozy, about 90-100F. I just bought the Creality "tent" enclosure for $80, rather than try to fab something on my own. But even a big cardboard box will work. Keeping the printer warm has other benefits, the build plate heater, and the nozzle/hotend don't have to work as hard, and won't cycle as often.
PLA will do fine in the open air.
Light use car parts should be no problem. Stuff like knobs etc. 3D printing is perfect. And of course you can use 3D prints as mold positives to cast more durable things in aluminum. Just make the 3D printed positive a few percent bigger for metal shrinkage. (I think you've got machine tools so could even clean up a casting?) You can even do thin mold positives with light minimal infill in PLA, and just let the molten metal burn it out directly when you pour.
Menendez/Extendez Glock mags work pretty well. I've printed several. Getting springs for them from the Glock store or Wolff is hit or miss because of everything being crazy, but you can always wind your own out of music wire. Some of mine are going strong after hundreds of rounds, some, the feed lips blew off just sitting on my work bench unloaded. I just printed a new one and reused the spring, baseplate and follower.
https://youtu.be/HLw6Yb9d1fA
I mainly use them in my "Mac Daddy" build that uses a MAC upper and bolt, AR FCG, where the lower is 3D printed and uses Glock mags.
https://imgur.com/r/firearms/ReK8Rus
Most of the AR lower files floating around are pretty good. The main weakness is the buffer tube tower and threads, and various designs address it in different ways. You might want anti-roll pins for the FCG, but hell, like everything else, if they egg out on you, just print another.
I've printed and done AR builds on a "U-Bolt Vanguard" that uses a 1" U-bolt from the hardware store to reinforce the buffer tube tower, and there's newer designs out there with other reinforcements for the buffer tower.
I've also 3D printed a .32ACP VZ61 Scorpion lower receiver that uses a parts kit upper and bolt, Scorpion mags, and an AR FCG. It runs well.
https://youtube.com/shorts/Uvbuo24BWEg
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Huh.
We've printed pretty much the same guns.
I ran my first MacDaddy to destruction, but it took a while. Second is still going. I need to print the receiver I have the file for that uses a Mac upper and has a vertical rail for a folding brace.
I have one of the various G19 frames printed as well, and they work well. Rails are easy to make.
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Huh.
We've printed pretty much the same guns.
I ran my first MacDaddy to destruction, but it took a while. Second is still going. I need to print the receiver I have the file for that uses a Mac upper and has a vertical rail for a folding brace.
Did it fail at the front trunnion pin just under the chamber/barrel? That's where mine always crack. I've got limited CAD ability so I've been waiting on someone to drop a file where it's reinforced or thickened there.
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Nah, it failed at the back where the bolt bottoms out, but it was a progressive failure.
First the brace and brace tube broke (in transport, not shooting) and I decided to see how long it would last. it took like another couple mags of that blowback bolt hitting the back of the receiver with no support to break that at the layer lines, and crack the receiver from the top down to the hole for the safety.
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How hard would it be to print something to take aluminum or steel reinforcements for some areas? Seems like that's why the good lord made Superglue...
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How hard would it be to print something to take aluminum or steel reinforcements for some areas? Seems like that's why the good lord made Superglue...
If you're good with CAD, not hard at all.
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Hmmm... Time to fire up the Bridgeport, I guess, and make some inserts, while I'm musing on the plastics... Hell, even 6061 or 1018 would provide greater life...
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Anyone tried the carbon fiber infused filament?
My son has a 3d printer and I'm trying to get him to ramp up his setup. I've even offered to help fund the upgrades or even a higher end printer.
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Was reading some of the rabbithole, and it seems that the carbon fiber might be more trouble than it is worth...
What could be interesting would be to see if you can print into/onto a matrix of reinforcing material? Take a plate of cast 6061, and then drill it like a badword for lightening, then do your print into/around the holes...
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Another E3Pro owner here. Upgrade the extruder arm assembly to an all metal one: https://www.amazon.com/Official-Creality-3D-Extruder-Aluminum/dp/B07J44QW8B/
The plastic one is notorious for cracking under the constant spring pressure.
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Another E3Pro owner here. Upgrade the extruder arm assembly to an all metal one: https://www.amazon.com/Official-Creality-3D-Extruder-Aluminum/dp/B07J44QW8B/
The plastic one is notorious for cracking under the constant spring pressure.
That was my first upgrade. Well worth it. Easy, too.
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I was about to start a new thread like this one; decided to revive this one instead. (if any of the admins don't like that, we can move it)
Who here has a *resin* 3d printer? I'm getting pretty close to pulling the trigger on an Elegoo Mars 3 printer, mostly for making models for wargaming. I'm having trouble finding much info for beginners about how to get started. How do you set up and level the machine. What resins to avoid. How to mitigate fumes. Operating temperature. Etc.
There are tons of YT videos but they all seem to assume a certain amount of prior knowledge.
I have found a few free STL files and have been playing with them in Lychee slicer software, just using all default settings and seeing what it does.
The main thing slowing me down is clearing a workspace to set it up. ;/
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My son has a resin printer. I'll ask him what he uses.
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I just ordered over $400 of crap from Amazon; paid for most of it using CC rewards points. It should get here Sunday. I'm also making plans for building a ghetto fume hood (probably from a cardboard box) that I can vent outside thru a casement window. But let's see how it works w/o a vent just using the charcoal filter.
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B09V17RKFV/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B086274P54/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B007Q2M17K/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VBM4Z7Q/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I'm hoping I can clean the parts in the ultrasonic by putting a 600ml beaker of 70% isopropyl alcohol in the tank which is full of degassed water, so I don't have get nasty resin in the unit itself. Some people use plastic bags for that, but I think glass will transmit soundwave just fine. (I wonder if the sound will bother the dogs?)
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My son just uses what he calls "standard resin". He has the Elegoo Saturn S
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The printer, Elegoo Mars 3 Pro, just got here. The resin and other stuff are in a separate box and were supposed to get here today too but it's pretty obvious they won't be delivered until tomorrow. The printer is much heavier than I expected (that's good.) The shipping box is large enough if I tape the flaps open, I might can use it for a temporary cover with a power vent to exhaust the fumes out a nearby casement window until I can build something better.
I bought a quart of acetone yesterday; it's less toxic that isopropyl alcohol, is a better cleaner, but it is more flammable. Perhaps I can use it diluted with water. I also want to try E85 flex-fuel for a prewash (1/10 the cost of acetone or denatured alcohol or IPA) but the 15% to 20% gasoline might cause problems.