Trials and Tribulations with my Da Vinci 1.0 3D Printer

[Saber Concepts]

Have you had any issues with cartridge errors? I have used and changed cartridges many, many times and haven't had any problems until I purchased a blue one. I keep getting a cartridge error on it halts the print job. The other colors are fine, it is just the new blue one I got that I have problems with.

Also, have you had to recalibrate the bed yet? I have noticed that the bed on my printer is not perfectly level anymore.

 

[NerdMeat]

Eventually you will probably go the way we all go, and take what you learn from your first printer in order to build one of your own from scratch

 

[Saber Concepts]

Eventually you will probably go the way we all go, and take what you learn from your first printer in order to build one of your own from scratch

That is my plan. I love learning how to do new things. I am a machinist too and I hope to build my own CNC one day too. That is basically what a 3D printer is, right? A CNC that also has an extruder and temp control.

 

[NerdMeat]

That is my plan. I love learning how to do new things. I am a machinist too and I hope to build my own CNC one day too. That is basically what a 3D printer is, right? A CNC that also has an extruder and temp control.

Pretty much. There are already machines that you can convert back and forth to do either 3d printing or CNC.

 

[Fawbish]

I already have Meshmixer Darksyde, but I had a bit of an issue with the laptop unable to process the support generation very well. I fixed it (it was a bit of a file problem I think) and havent got around to trying out the tree supports yet! I did once start a print with the tree supports but it buggered up.

I havent yet changed to my 2nd cartridge Saber, but I'll let you know if I have any issues. I have read one review on Amazon that said they received a faulty cartridge, and after contacting XYZprinting they agreed to swap it out, and the 2nd one worked without issues.

Nerdmeat, that was actually my original plan - however, when it comes to actually doing some of the work, I tend to be lazy! Which I'm trying to get out of. And I wanted to start printing straight away, so went for this option. I have to be not lazy when it comes to props first, then I'll look at another printer! haha.

 

[Fawbish]

Used the standard xyzware for slicing this, on 0.1mm detail and medium infill (ie it's mostly hollow) - I'm happy with the result out of the box for such a simple shape, but you can see how the final ear has maybe been too long near the extruder - I think this is an issue with probably a lot of printers, though no doubt there are ways around it - perhaps to reduce the temperature for the final 10 layers etc - this is part of third party program stuff however. I also ran the print at a "fast" setting - it still took nearly 2 hours to complete due to the 0.1mm setting - and if I'm honest it doesnt look like 0.1mm detail, so I'm uncertain the printer is as detailed as it makes out. It is however still a good print.

Have you had any issues with cartridge errors? I have used and changed cartridges many, many times and haven't had any problems until I purchased a blue one. I keep getting a cartridge error on it halts the print job. The other colors are fine, it is just the new blue one I got that I have problems with.

Also, have you had to recalibrate the bed yet? I have noticed that the bed on my printer is not perfectly level anymore.

Saber, I level the bed in the sense that I wait for the print to start, and when it does it's starting ring, I make sure it "looks right" when putting down the first layer, which requires light movements of the three springs. I've tried levelling properly for about 45 minutes, which improved the prints a little. I can never leave the bed alone as I clean it often - I use glue as a the base of most prints so I usually need to clean the bed again, which knocks out any fine calibration anyway.

 

[Saber Concepts]

I use glue also and clean the bed after each print. I will try adjusting the bed on my next print and see if it does better. I have also had to clean the wheels inside the extruder, it seems that I only had problems with them getting clogged with the red cartridge. So far I have used white, red, black and most recently blue.

 

[Fawbish]

I use glue also and clean the bed after each print. I will try adjusting the bed on my next print and see if it does better. I have also had to clean the wheels inside the extruder, it seems that I only had problems with them getting clogged with the red cartridge. So far I have used white, red, black and most recently blue.

Fair play. I haven't had to do any cleaning of the wheels, did you have to remove the head entirely? It looks at a glance like it could be quite fiddly?

So I've just completed my largest (not saying much to be fair) clean print today, and have set up a little painting booth out of an old cardboard box so I can spray things. Still going to be practising some acetone vapour polishing again soon, as I really want to minimise the amount of sanding.

Again, I used XYZware for this print, as the parts were relatively simple, and I printed it at 0.3 mm to try to save a little plastic - it turned out IMO brilliant, and I'm just starting to clean it up now. For those who may be into the Batman: Arkham series of games, you may recognise the cryptographic sequencer.

 

[Fawbish]

Using my fancy new little painting booth (haha) I've just had a crack with some acrylic aerosol and a kyptonian command key. It doesn't look amazing, but I think I'll be concentrating on more sanding/vapour treatment before the next painting effort.



One hopes you're all enjoying this journey as much as I am!

 

[Saber Concepts]

I have printed about 10 different saber chassis and I have found that I have to print them with 90 to 100% density or else the speaker will vibrate the plastic and cause the swing sensor to give false values. Even at 80% it was giving false values.

 

[Fawbish]

I hadn't considered the effects of solidity in that manner. Useful info.

 

[Saber Concepts]

I didn't consider it either, that is why I printed 8 of them before I realized how the speaker would affect it. LOL At least now I have some for my sabers with out sound.

 

[Fawbish]

So I had forgotten, but over the weekend I decided to start writing journal/memoir entries - pretty certain my memory is failing the older I get, so I wanted to preserve anything and everything I can still remember/whatever I get upto. I'm using a nice classy leather-ish bound blank book, and decided to print out a clip/pen holder. The pen part is too thin, and I havent yet got my drill sorted out to widen the hole - but for now its partially functional.

 

[Fawbish]

As per another thread, I am starting to have a crack at some original modeling of the Arkham Knight stuff, using reference material. Don't know how I'll get on but no doubt I'll be printing it all out when I can!




and...

 

[Saber Concepts]

What software are you using to design with? I am in the process of trying to get SolidWorks (Very Expensive) but for now I have been using the free online software at www.tinkercad.com Have you tried that one? You don't have a whole lot of options but it's free and pretty user friendly.

 

[Nixon]

Looks like he's using Sketchup. Autodesk 123D Design is a another good choice of free CAD software too.

 

[Saber Concepts]

Blender is free too but man does it have a learning curve! I will have to try Autodesk 123D until I get SolidWorks. Veterens can get SolidWorks at the student/educator price of $150.

 

[DrewSmith007]

... but you can see how the final ear has maybe been too long near the extruder...

My RepRap does this at the end of prints that have layers that are small area. Basically, the plastic doesn't have time to adequately cool before the next layer is plopped on top. Some software has a "minimum layer time" option that will cause it to move off-print for some amount of time before beginning the next layer. I also think others use fans to cool the plastic, but I havn't tried that. Sometimes, depending on the part, I'll print 2 or 3 of them at a time just to give the layers time to cool.

 

[Fawbish]

Saber, as Nixon said, at the moment I'm getting to grips with Sketchup. It's a little fiddly and not as exacting as I'd like (I'm an engineer, so have used Solidworks in the past, which I remember being more exact etc) but it's getting better as I use it more and build up the extensions library for little tasks. I'm going to stick with Sketchup until I really run into any stumbling blocks. I've also done a little bit on OpenSCAD which is nice for basic shapes so far, and is code based, meaning when you take the time to design things you can get get things very exact.

Drew, I hadn't thought of printing multiples of the same type - unfortunately usually it's only a single item I want. I'll see if Slic3r has any options for keeping the head away for each layer - unfortunately it doesn't always seem to do everything I ask - for instance I've asked it in the past to do one item at a time - it still completed the items as one layer.

 

[Fawbish]

A quick update of where I'm at with the design process of the Arkham Knight stuff.