3D printers - advice needed

[Puddleduck]

I am now printing some dinosaurs for the kids next door - just free downloads but when you squeeze the tail the jaws open!!!! I'm doing a few to give away and to hang on the tree. I got some free and trial filament from RigidInk so am using that just to see how it performs

I found that the most important thing is to level the print bed before EVERY print. Temperature variations make a huge difference and if it was level when you went to bed it might not be next morning. It's well worth being extra fussy and doing the level through several iterations.

Also if using SketchUp there is a free extension called SolidInspector that saves oddles of time by highlighting problems and it can also fix quite a few automatically.

 

[Puddleduck]

RigidInk PLA is very good. It is more expensive than some of the other PLA filament available but it prints at a lower tempertaure and it appears to go further than the BALCO brand filament that was supplied with the printer. I have joined the monthly club where you get 3 samples a month plus any new filaments they bring out

 

[Ditcha]

My son is into his 3d printing done some good stuff plenty of down loads from the internet, windows 10 comes with free software 3D Builder which is alright here is one of "niffler" he has done he has also done iron man which looks good.

 

[Puddleduck]

My stuff tends to be practical rather than artistic

 

[Puddleduck]

If anyone is a new customer at Rigid Ink I can get codes for discounts if I "introduce". I designed and made a rack for my SD cards:

Actually I made two, mine is the green one, Martin doesn't like green, his is white.

I hope to put the .stl file on thingiverse once they will allow me to do so!

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[Jammel1980]

Loving what you’ve created so far, yep if you have a discount code great have you tried any other filaments or are you still using what came with the printer?

 

[Puddleduck]

Rigid Ink code link:

Get 1000 points for every friend you invite - no limit on invites!
Your friend will get £5.00 off when they join and you will receive your points when your friend makes their first purchase.

Copy and paste this link to share with friends anywhere

https://goo.gl/z8UjDC


I've used the filament that came with the printer plus a few samples from rigid ink. I prefer the rigid ink filament, it's more expensive but you don't use as much and it prints at a lower temperature. The big 1kg reels are huge - and too big to go on the balco spool holder, also too heavy to feed well, but we just rolled some onto the spool that came with the printer.

For less than £10 a month I joined the rigid ink club and get samples every month plus new items to beta test when they are available. The samples are 10m long (nominal but they are a very generous 10m) and it means I get a variety of colours to play with.

We have also made quite a lot of other stuff, dinosaur models for the grandson and the children next door (big hit as they move their jaws when you squeeze the tails) bits for Martin's model railway, various guides and brackets, a cover for the shed lock as the birds roost above it and leave evidence all over the lock ...... I have also made some tools for my sewing and some beads which I will string at some point and make a necklace.

I have a reel of wood filament that I haven't opened yet.

 

[hilldweller]

I stumbled across more on 3D printers on YouTube, they really are amazing things...

 

[peterc10]

I stumbled across more on 3D printers on YouTube, they really are amazing things...

Was there a printer in that video? I didn't notice it for some reason.

 

[hilldweller]

Was there a printer in that video? I didn't notice it for some reason.

Yes indeed, a rare pneumatically operated 3D printer.

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