3-D Print General - Feeding Printers Filament

  • 🔧 At about Midnight EST I am going to completely fuck up the site trying to fix something.
I think better in programming terms, so I do almost everything in OpenSCAD. But I don't do anything artistic.
 
Well, my folks ended up getting me the Creatily K1C printer/Hyper PLAx2/hot box 2.0 combo (the Hyper PLA helps save some money while I’d use the hot box for its intended purpose and as a means of keeping the filament clean) over the weekend as a birthday gift so that’s one major thing off of my list.

But I do have a couple of questions…
  • Should I be wary of any of the initial stock parts breaking within the year? I read that some people experienced the extruder breaks downs quickly but while it appears to mostly be an issue with the Ender 3 series printers it does make me a bit cautious.
  • Is there anything I should do to my K1C before printing anything? I know there’s more than likely some calibration and initial set-up to consider.
I’m also investigating sites that have 3D printables (mostly figures/items from vidya, there some “obscure” things from some of my favorite games and I want see if it’s possible to print ‘em) and other filaments and variations that I could print with outside of the usual Hyper PLA (especially GITD filaments, stuff made from that shit looks sick as hell).
 
Archeops said:
GITD
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Many 'special' filaments are especially abrasive, I think many glow in the dark are, so you'll want to get at least a hardened steel nozzle or 2 to use for those sorts of things.

Er, I guess the K1C comes with one. Still good to have a spare though.
 
Nick Obre said:
Look into Telegram channels.
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Eww, Telegram channels…

I kid, but I’ll keep that option on the table. I just don’t like the idea of giving those furry fucks my phone number.
davids877 said:
Many 'special' filaments are especially abrasive, I think many glow in the dark are, so you'll want to get at least a hardened steel nozzle or 2 to use for those sorts of things.

Er, I guess the K1C comes with one. Still good to have a spare though.
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That’s what I’m hearing as well, it’s especially true for filaments that have glitter in ‘em. They also say that it‘s best to re-spool any unused filament since it can get brittle and break inside the bowden tubes and even affect the extruder’s internal mechanisms. I guess I’ll pick up a spare nozzle and keep a close eye on the extruder’s guts.
 
Archeops said:
Eww, Telegram channels…

I kid, but I’ll keep that option on the table. I just don’t like the idea of giving those furry fucks my phone number.
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It's the only place you'll reliably find paid models for free.

Just get a prepaid chip, pop it in for a minute as you make an account using its number, and then take it out.
 
Nick Obre said:
It's the only place you'll reliably find paid models for free.

Just get a prepaid chip, pop it in for a minute as you make an account using its number, and then take it out.
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Or you could make a Google voice account and never use it after registering.
 
Well I got my K1C printer from FedEx and set it up yesterday, I did a few print jobs between then and now to test it out and I really like it. The hot box is also surprisingly useful in storing the filament I want to use in a ready-to-print state. My only complaint is that all of my spools of filament are white. I was honestly expecting some variety from a randomized item. I guess I'll have to buy a nice metallic filament off of Amazon.
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  • I initially started with the Shadow Heartless model (and downloaded Creality Print to to slice the model into a usable state) but my retarded ass didn’t realize that models like that need supports and it started to fray once it got to the hands.
  • After canceling and cleaning that failure of a print I decided to print a Benchy model to test it properly. It went off without a hitch.
  • I mucked around with some slicer programs and the same Heartless model to figure out which one I liked and I’m a fan of OrcaSlicer, Cura is workable, and Creality Print is awful.
  • I made a printable of that Heartless model and printed it out, it went amazingly well but I damaged the figure whilst removing the supports (removing the figure from the print bed wasn’t too difficult).
  • Now I’m printing a larger version of the Shadow Heartless. It’s going well.
I've also been doing a ton of research into ways I could make the printing process easier (better print beds, other adhesives that aren't glue sticks, more free models, etc). This is gonna be a fun new hobby for me.
 
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Usually just a PEI sheet and hairspray, if really needed.

If you haven't found it yet, Yeggi is a neat website to search for models. It pulls results from all of the other websites like a search engine.

I did order a PET/PEO build plate for my ender KE to try out from that deal site. For $12 I figured why not.
 
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Well, some of the first things I printed with my new 3D printer (Bambu A1 with AMS Lite multi-spool holder) were accessories for said 3D printer. I printed a "poop catcher" which is just a box that catches waste filament (the printer cleans the nozzle head by throwing out waste filament but has no built-in method to catch it). I also printed a vertical stand for the AMS lite, since the default tilted stand isn't terribly stable, and the vibration from the printer had me worried the AMS lite might fall off the shelf it's on. Plus the arrangement causes more stress on the PTFE feeder tubes than I'm comfortable with. Mounting it vertically on the shelf fixed both of those issues, especially once I drilled some holes in the stand and shelf and anchored it on with some screws. I feel very handy today.
 
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That new creality combo that has a multimaterial system, is that worth it compared to the comparable bambu labs printer? They're both about 1400 bucks.
 
Chimplord1997 said:
That new creality combo that has a multimaterial system, is that worth it compared to the comparable bambu labs printer? They're both about 1400 bucks.
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Won't know until the K2 comes out. I have the preorder for 40% off and wont have it until probably early october.

It's worth noting that it has over 2.5x the print volume though, something people seem to forget about in their "just get a P1s" comments.

Bambu might finally make a 300+mm printer, but it's gonna cost.
 
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Just Some Other Guy said:
Won't know until the K2 comes out. I have the preorder for 40% off and wont have it until probably early october.

It's worth noting that it has over 2.5x the print volume though, something people seem to forget about in their "just get a P1s" comments.

Bambu might finally make a 300+mm printer, but it's gonna cost.
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Oh shit, if the build volume is that big, I might actually pull the trigger. The 1400$ bambu already has a pretty big build volume as it is
 
Archeops said:
I've also been doing a ton of research into ways I could make the printing process easier (better print beds, other adhesives that aren't glue sticks, more free models, etc). This is gonna be a fun new hobby for me.
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Workflow is everything in 3d Printing. you can refine it to make things easier, you can refine it to make things faster, and you can refine it to make your output of a higher quality. Rarely, you can do all three.
What are you going to do first?
 
Well after printing a couple of larger Shadow Heartless I think I'm gonna take a break from printing 'em, I think I still need to find the right position, support tree structure to make them come out looking good.

I'm mostly not a fan of whatever is going on here on its back (this has happened both but it's more noticeable on larger prints). it looks gaudy and in need of a bit of sanding. I have a feeling this is due to me orienting the model to lay on its back but I'll figure this out eventually.
IMG_0035.jpeg
While I'm figuring that out I decided that my next big project was going to be this Omniwrench 8000 print.
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One thing that kind of spooked me was this weird clicking noise that was present at certain points during the printing of the "blade" part of the Omniwrench 8000. I was able to pinpoint it to it being somewhere in the upper area of the printer and it not being related to part of the x belt and and the gear driving it (the clicking was asynchronous throughout the print job and said print job went well). I did some more research and it turns out it's related to the filament wire, it apparently occurs when there's too much tension on it between the spool and the extruder.

If it has something else to do with that part of the printer I'm not afraid to take it apart and fix it myself.

There was also some minor fraying on the handle portions, mostly on the angled portion, but it's nothing a little sanding wouldn't fix.
Just Some Other Guy said:
Usually just a PEI sheet and hairspray, if really needed.
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I'm definitely going to invest in a better PEI sheet, I've read from other Creality users that the print sheet you get with the printer isn't particularly good and I've noticed this odd "ghosting" effect on the original board where I can see the layout of past prints. It doesn't affect the printing process but it does make me a bit worried.

As far as hairspray is concerned I've heard horror stories about it gunking up a printer's inner workings and being a fire hazard but apparently the former is from people being retarded and spraying the print sheet while it's in the printer while the latter is only due to the propellants and if it's not given time to dry.

I ended up buying a smooth PEI magnetic sheet (despite the listing saying it wasn't) off of Amazon and some hairspray and isopropyl alcohol at my local supermarket. I also ordered two spools of PLA Silk in a color other than white over the weekend, it's just a matter of figuring out what to do with those spools.
Just Some Other Guy said:
If you haven't found it yet, Yeggi is a neat website to search for models. It pulls results from all of the other websites like a search engine.
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Thanks for the suggestion, I'll keep a close eye on it just in case anything catches my eye.
Sperg_rancher said:
Workflow is everything in 3d Printing. you can refine it to make things easier, you can refine it to make things faster, and you can refine it to make your output of a higher quality. Rarely, you can do all three.
What are you going to do first?
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I'm just mucking with each settings right now, they seem to work well enough despite the issues I've had with the Shadow Heartless print.
 
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Chimplord1997 said:
Oh shit, if the build volume is that big, I might actually pull the trigger. The 1400$ bambu already has a pretty big build volume as it is
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Yeah I had to double check at first, but going from 252^3 to 350^3mm is a huge increase. You simply cannot find printers that big for around this price that are out of the box, enclosed, actively heated, etc.
 
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