Introduction/help with 3D printing

[Gilly116]

Hello guys and gals,
I have been a model kit builder for 50 years and a Star Wars fan since 1977 when i went to the movies to watch the original SW. I have recently retired from the military so i now have time to pursue some passions of mine.
I want to get together a collection of Star Wars prop weapons as i think they are stunning pieces of art. I would also like to learn about 3D printing and the associated computer programs. If anyone knows of a good book that covers 3D printing, please let me know.
Cheers, Gilly

 

[masterjedi322]

3D printing is evolving so quickly that most books are obsolete the minute they’re printed…

That being said, I was gifted the book Functional Design for 3D Printing by Clifford Smyth.

It’s mostly focused on FDM printing but goes over the general concepts.

Best resource I’ve found for learning about 3D printing is The YouTube.

Good luck and have fun!

Sean

 

[edge10]

Hi Gilly,

Welcome to the RPF.

Not exactly what you asked for, but here is a thread on printing:

Sci-Fi modeling on Elegoo Mars -- Community support/tips

Since several RPFers are buying Elegoo Mars 3D resin printers (mine comes at the end of the month), and we begin printing replacement parts, detail pieces, and even small sci-fi kits, it may be time for a community support and tip thread. As I've recently mentioned in the Bandai discussion...

www.therpf.com

 

[JNordgren42]

As others have said, books are going to be obsolete almost before there written.

However one big question to better help you, are you planning on printing FDM (filament) or SLA (resin)? Or both? Because that makes a huge difference on what resources you should look at. 3D modeling will be applicable to both, but there is a huge range of applications available at any price point from free to ridiculously expensive. Fusion 360 is a popular choice and I think there is still a free hobbyist version available if you dig deep enough into the bowels of the Autodesk website. It has a relatively steep learning curve but there is a lot of learning content available for it online. Blender is another popular option and it's completely free. But they have very different paradigms in how they operate.

 

[Gilly116]

3D printing is evolving so quickly that most books are obsolete the minute they’re printed…

That being said, I was gifted the book Functional Design for 3D Printing by Clifford Smyth.

It’s mostly focused on FDM printing but goes over the general concepts.

Best resource I’ve found for learning about 3D printing is The YouTube.

Good luck and have fun!

Sean

Thanks Sean. Great advice so I guess I will start digging around YT.

 

[Gilly116]

Hi Gilly,

Welcome to the RPF.

Not exactly what you asked for, but here is a thread on printing:

Sci-Fi modeling on Elegoo Mars -- Community support/tips

Since several RPFers are buying Elegoo Mars 3D resin printers (mine comes at the end of the month), and we begin printing replacement parts, detail pieces, and even small sci-fi kits, it may be time for a community support and tip thread. As I've recently mentioned in the Bandai discussion...

www.therpf.com

Thanks edge10. At this point, all resources are on the table.
Cheers.

 

[Gilly116]

As others have said, books are going to be obsolete almost before there written.

However one big question to better help you, are you planning on printing FDM (filament) or SLA (resin)? Or both? Because that makes a huge difference on what resources you should look at. 3D modeling will be applicable to both, but there is a huge range of applications available at any price point from free to ridiculously expensive. Fusion 360 is a popular choice and I think there is still a free hobbyist version available if you dig deep enough into the bowels of the Autodesk website. It has a relatively steep learning curve but there is a lot of learning content available for it online. Blender is another popular option and it's completely free. But they have very different paradigms in how they operate.

Thanks for the info JNordgren42. I am planing oh using both platforms. PLA for large pieces and Resin for detailed parts. I will check your suggestions out as far as programs out. Cheers. Dave.

 

[janglesworthy]

I would just watch some videos on how to support a model regardless if it fdm or sla. Lychee Slicer has some good live streams. Watching someone explain what they do and why always helps me start to wrap my brain around it. You can't print anything if you don't understand how to support it.

Lychee

Learn more about Lychee Slicer

www.youtube.com

 

[SergioWebster]

As far as I know, you must have a complete 3d model in order to print it on a printer, but if your model is physical, then I think you can scan it somehow.