Harry50 Posted October 24, 2019 Share Posted October 24, 2019 I've just got a 3D printer and I'm trying to make my scenery more interesting for the kids. So I'm wanting to make a school with a side on hinges, so it open ups like a cupboard to show more of the furniture and people inside.The printer can print intricate designs, so I can get a good level of detailing and paint it before putting it together. Has anyone made anything similar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJ73 Posted October 24, 2019 Share Posted October 24, 2019 Hiya Harry50& welcome to the Forum - I spent 90 weeks building my 3D Printer from a "Part-Works" Mag. called "Build Your Own 3D Printer" where every week a few parts would come with the mag & over the weeks with instruction you would build your own 3D Printer!!! I have Printed out a few things - Goto my YouTube Channel - Jimyjames73 or click on this Link :- & you should see some of the thing that I have 3D printed - also if you take a look at some of thje other vids in the 3D Printer Playlist you will see how I built it over the weeks!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry50 Posted October 28, 2019 Author Share Posted October 28, 2019 Hiya thanks for the recommendation, your videos are great!Do you have any tips on how I can reduce the lines to get a smoother print? I've only made small plain items so far and I've been sanding them down and painting them. Now that I'm wanting to create a building with intricate details, the sanding won't be as easy. Do you know a way that I can improve the printer to make it smoother? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RB51 Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 Hi Harry - 3D printing is a little beyond my pay scale - but there is a chap on here called Jermiah Bunyan who has designed som very intricate models. I think though that he sends them away for printing but will, I am fairly confident, know the answer to your question. You are not allowed to contact him directly but if you send your e-mail details to the forum Admin they can be forwarded for you. There is Shapeways of course but I dont know how open they would be to your asking them about what to do to get more precise printing. Good luck. Let us know how you get on. R- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissaf Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 Printing quality will likely vary with the quality of the printer. The quality of the printer will depend upon brand, model and price paid. I suspect your printer is producing the highest quality prints that it is capable of and cannot be further improved..If you bought a 'budget' printer, then you must expect a 'budget' level of output from it. It is still early days for 3D printing at home. Consider this. In the early days, cheap digital cameras could not hope to match the picture quality of professional digital cameras that cost £ thousands. Not so these days, where even 'budget' digital cameras produce the same quality that those higher priced versions of yesteryear did. Therefore it follows, that in time the cost of 3D printing will go down with a corresponding increase in printing quality..Unless, of course, the quality of the print files you are producing with your drawing software are below par. In other words, your created print files are not making the best use of your printers capabilities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EnGee Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 Not quite sure how anyone who can afford to run a model railway layout can say that 3D printing is beyond their payscale! I would say the opposite. Almost any layout accessory can be printed out and the printer will pay for itself very soon. I would imagine that buying and building a printer over 90 weeks (that's nearly 2 years!!!) is probably not the cheapest way of going about it. I have what is considered a “budget” printer that cost just over £300 and it is brilliant. I have printed out various brackets, scale cars, carriages, station extras, bridge supports, farmyard vehicles and extras, small sheds (to cover point control), a whole fleet of scale dinghies, etc. etc. All of which would have cost more than the printer had I bought them all new. I am still amazed at the quality of prints from quite a cheap printer and the amount of money I am saving every time I use it!!. All of my printing has been done without the aid of any abrasive papers. It is not a mirror finish but you have to look very closely to see the layers. I guess it depends on your definition of perfection but the finish is quite smooth enough for me. As Chrissaf points out, home 3D printing is still in it's infancy and is most definitely not plug and play, so each printer can require quite a lot of individual setup.. There is tons of info on the web and a firm called Rigid Ink has lots of very useful PDF downloads on how to get the 'perfect' finish. However there are a lot of variables (temperatures, speed, filament, etc.) so at the end of the day it's down to a lot of practice and experimentation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RB51 Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 Not quite sure how anyone who can afford to run a model railway layout can say that 3D printing is beyond their payscale! I would say the opposite. My apologies for any confusion EnGee - this is an expression used figuratively to suggest that the user does not have the knowledge to speak authoritatively about something. In this instance nothing to do with income. R- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissaf Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 If anyone was interested I looked up how much each weekly magazine (90 weeks) was for JJs home built printer and it was £6.99 per issue. This equates to £629.10 to complete the printer build. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2e0dtoeric Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 I know little about 3D printing - no interest - but I do know the finished surface depends on how fine a filament you are using, and the step size and precision of the stepper motors that move the nozzles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EnGee Posted October 28, 2019 Share Posted October 28, 2019 Sorry to be pedantic Eric but the finished surface has absolutely nothing to do with the fineness of the filament. The filament is melted and pushed through a nozzle as it prints so you can have any size you want - except it is only made in 2 sizes and all printers I have seen use the same 1.75mm filament. The stepper motors on mine are precise enough to be able to accurately print at .05mm a layer, I'm sure there are more precise and more expensive machines around which will do a better job, but as I said earlier, that is smooth enough for me and at a bargain price too!. But I do agree that your signature is very apt for 3D printers!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJ73 Posted October 29, 2019 Share Posted October 29, 2019 @ Chrissaf :- Yeah that sounds about right - Did you go & have a look at my Issue 1 - stage 1 of the build - cos I said in the text below the video the following :- It say it come in 90 parts This Issue (Issue 1) is £1.99 Also it says that there are 2 Premium items in the collection priced @ £14.99 - regular price is £6.99 so that means that all other 87 issues are £6.99 - so 87 issues @ £6.99= £608.13 + 2 premium issues @ £14.99=£29.98 + this issue £1.99 = 640.10 but yet if you go to there web site ( www.3dprinting-collection.com ) you can order the completed printer in 1 unit was £799 but with there special offer you can get £100 off to you can get it @ £699 until 31 January 2015 - so if I have work the above correct then it is cheaper to build it your self through the magazine!!! @ Harry50 :- Thank you for checking out my vids 😀 In 1 of the later issures of the Magazine - it told you about a programme which you used to 3D Print with called "3D Create & Print" - then in the top left can corner of the Drop down Menu there is a thing called "Config" then click on "Slicing Setting" then a box open where you can alter different things about how the 3D Printer prints!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2e0dtoeric Posted October 29, 2019 Share Posted October 29, 2019 @EnGee - I suppose it depends on which side of the nozzle you are measuring the filament. I meant the extruded side, not the input off the reel. Even I know they are a fixed size.And I don't understand your closing comment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrissaf Posted October 29, 2019 Share Posted October 29, 2019 Eric, with regard.....But I do agree that your signature is very apt for 3D printers!!!.Your signature is:"if it works first time, you did something wrong!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EnGee Posted October 29, 2019 Share Posted October 29, 2019 @EnGee - And I don't understand your closing comment.Your signature says "...if it works first time, you did something wrong!"This is very true for 3D printing!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry50 Posted October 29, 2019 Author Share Posted October 29, 2019 It must be rewarding to be able to say that you built your 3D printer. I think most 3D printers use the same motor, but I've read a few things online that suggest switching the leadscrew for a high accuracy version might make a difference. I agree that the price of 3D printers will eventually come down, but I don't think it will be anytime soon because they are getting more technical by the day. They can 3D print vital body organs for organ transplants and pies, although I think you still have to put the pie in the oven after it has printed. I went to the 3D printer show 'TCT 3Sixty' last month and peek plastic could change the way that things are manufactured, possibly replacing lathes in factories in the far future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96RAF Posted October 29, 2019 Share Posted October 29, 2019 RM Web forum has a separate section for 3-D printing discussion. Some good stuff on there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry50 Posted October 29, 2019 Author Share Posted October 29, 2019 RM Web forum has a separate section for 3-D printing discussion. Some good stuff on there.Thank you I will check it out Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2e0dtoeric Posted October 29, 2019 Share Posted October 29, 2019 Oh, THAT one! I was trying to make something of my user-name that related! 😳 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
81F Posted November 2, 2019 Share Posted November 2, 2019 /media/tinymce_upload/7832e097d753f075e6aaab46d448eefa.jpg As posted elsewhere on yhis forum, this si my station building that was printed for me by Shapeways. I have also done a signal box and goods shed. The main limitations I found was the size the 3d package I used could cope with which was down to the number of individual stone blocks so I has to split this up into eight major parts (only seven shown here and not imcluding the white window frames and doors). Unfortunately I got the roof dimensions wrong (note gaps next to the dormas) so had to reprint at around £30 so mistakes are expensive!I find the accuracy depends on the material. If you are using the cheapest white material I tend to allow 0.25mm between the flanges used to locate the top floor onto the ground floor. I also put the joint roughly at canopy roof level so when the canopy sis stick in place and rooved (with plasticard) it will be hidden. By contrast there was no gap left betwwn the chimeys and the roof but that did not seem a problem over such a small distance I also try to split parts along painting line to resuce the need for masking, In this case the roof is separate as is the canopy and toilet roof - the triangular structure in cream at the far right of the photo) This alos allows for some parts to be printed in higher quality materials where intricate detail is needed. This "composit" approach also keeps the cost down by limiting the amount of the fine detailed plastic used. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
81F Posted November 2, 2019 Share Posted November 2, 2019 /media/tinymce_upload/b469c43f7f49ff469f366a1f75ae54a4.jpg Above is my signal box The "woodwork" was all printed in fine detailed plastic with the bric and slates being printed in the cheaper veritile plastic which has a slightly rough texture which I think is good for brick and stone. I also broke the model down into parts that coincided with the different colours so I just had to spray components in one colour/ The exception being the doors where I had to paint the panels a different colour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJ73 Posted November 3, 2019 Share Posted November 3, 2019 @ Harry50 :- Yes it is to say :- rewarding to be able to say that you built your 3D printer. Folks are impressed but at the same time some said that it is cheaper to just buy a 3D Printer, but I replyed but any one can walk into a shop & buy a 3D Printer but not any 1 can build a 3D printer - much more fun & if some thing goes wrong than at least I can have ago @ fixing it myself!!! Yes my Printer has 3 the same motors that is uses!!! (Not sure about the other makes / brands of 3D Printers though) Here are a couple of grainy photos (sorry about the quality) of the motor :- /media/tinymce_upload/e08fa89278f89bd9d44dcbef0ea644ea.jpg /media/tinymce_upload/044725c4843a229d1ee992cc05d8e4fd.jpg Both taken from issue 23 of my build!!! (I've used Debut by NCH Software to take photos with!!!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry50 Posted November 8, 2019 Author Share Posted November 8, 2019 I also try to split parts along painting line to resuce the need for masking, In this case the roof is separate as is the canopy and toilet roof - the triangular structure in cream at the far right of the photo)And thanks for the tip about splitting parts along the painting line! I didn't think about that before. It looks incredible, good job! I'm wanting to create a building that opens up on one side, like a cupboard, have you got any tips on how I can make it flush so that when it is closed, you can barely see where it opens? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
81F Posted November 8, 2019 Share Posted November 8, 2019 I've not tried hinging anything but where I need construction joints between two parts I try to use a natural break in the structure. (like where the canopy will meed ty station building or a change in material. Failing that, for virtical joints you could run a drain pipe so that it casts a shadow over the joint. Also avoid light colours unless your joint is likely to be in shadow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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