Some myths about PLA vs. ABS

.. but you probably know all of this ...

DIY 3d printer enclosure made from wood with hair dryer heating element

The enclosure developed by repkid is a simple wooden box made from thin MDF sheets and wooden beams structure. It is insulated by double-ply cardboard glued to the inside of the box. To prevent ABS warping it is heated by simple household hair dryer.

Parts printed inside the heated enclosure on the left, and ABS part printed without heated chamber on the right with warping.

The enclosure with printer inside it

Lasercut thermal vents. They can be done with simple hand tools also

Heater made from simple hair dryer

More advanced version of the enclosure with fumes extractor

Heated chambers for 3d printing are patented by some corporation and I'm not sure what implications patent law has on projects like this one ...


Project on RepRap wiki with more details:

http://reprap.org/wiki/Heated_Build_Chamber


See other DIY 3d printer enclosures:

Enclosure made from PIR foam and 3d printable hinges:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2014/03/diy-3d-printer-enclosure-made-from-pir.html

Ultra simple enclosure made from plastic boxes:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2014/03/low-cost-simple-3d-printer-enclosure.html

DIY 3d printer enclosure made from PIR foam and printable hinges

Thingiverse user the_digital_dentist made this insulation enclosure from polyisocyanurate (PIR) foam boards and printable hinges.

Project includes various types of printable hinges that hold cut foam pieces  

All the files and instructions:

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:269586


Here is another DIY thermal enclosure made from plastic boxes:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2014/03/low-cost-simple-3d-printer-enclosure.html

Wooden enclosure heated by hair dryer to prevent warping:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2014/03/diy-3d-printer-enclosure-made-from-wood.html

Low cost simple 3d printer enclosure made from plastic boxes

Cheap, simple and effective 3d printer enclosure made from two plastic boxes by rjacobsson.
He used Ikea boxes, but I think it will work with any plastic container and keep temperature of your print volume constant and elevated from surrounding.
It also reduces the noise and contains the fumes.
Like any enclosure without thermostat it overheat the motors but you should experiment until you discover what works best for you.


Build guide on Instructables:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Enclosure-for-3d-printer-using-Ikea-box/


Here is another low cost solution for enclosure, made from PIR foam but with 3d printed hinges:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2014/03/diy-3d-printer-enclosure-made-from-pir.html

Wooden enclosure heated by hair dryer to prevent warping:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2014/03/diy-3d-printer-enclosure-made-from-wood.html

Wally and 3d printer testing

Wally is the master of corporate subtle and stealth sabotage ...

Previous Dilbert comic:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2012/11/3d-printing-featured-in-dilbert.html


Source: http://dilbert.com/fast/2012-11-05/

AP video report on legal concerns about 3d printing

Current state of intellectual property rights needs urgent reform. Period. This is short video report about some issues. Julie Samuels from EFF and Cyndi Tetro speak about some potential problems.
Personally, I'm going to print whatever I want ...

For more legal related posts, fear mongering and information see:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/search/label/law

Cyndi Tetro

Nomad modular and scalable 3d printable DIY drone

Nomad is project in development of modular 3d printable aircraft measuring one meter in wingspan powered by electric motor. Future versions will be up to 50% larger and able to carry a GoPro camera in their nose. 

Nomad is a project by CaptainObvious   

From project description:

This is the Nomad, a new design I'm working on for a travel UAV/FPV airplane. This version has a wingspan of almost one meter, so it's relatively small. After I've completed and test flown I plan to make a 30/50% larger version to carry a GoPro camera in the nose for aerial photography.
The airplane is meant to be modular, the nose and tail sections are joined to the center section with nylon screws, the wings and stabilizers are detachable and even the wing panels can be kept separate to simplify repairs and testing new design ideas.

• The wing sections are meant to be printed in a "Spiral Vase" mode, the internal spars and/or printing settings should be adjusted so that the printing head makes the spars by moving in from the bottom of the wing until touching the inner surface of the top of the wing, so there is only one seam at the bottom.

• I have carefully modeled the fuselage parts so that most of them will print as a two perimeter shell using a 0.4mm nozzle, except where more thickness is needed.

• The wings need two carbon fiber tubes, 8 and 3 mm diameter, the stabilizer also uses a 3mm carbon fiber tube spar.

• The plane will use one brushless motor mounted on the tail with a 6" propeller.

• Things left to do: flaperons, rib between the straight wing panels and the tapered external panel, optional nose wheel, camera turret and internal brackets and supports for servos and electronics.

All files are available at: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:272478

For more 3d printed drones take a look at:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/search/label/drone

3d printable Dremelfuge and revolution of DIY vaccine creation by Cathal Garvey

Cathal Garvey created well known Dremel / drill low cost centrifuge "Dremelfuge". Here is interview with him where he describes various possibilities of his work. It could help bring more advanced medicine and science to developing world for fraction of the cost of conventional equipment while being open source.
Biohacking is expanding everywhere, workshops are held even in my country of Croatia. 3d printed tools like this could help people everywhere to get economically viable equipment.

If you want to make your Dremelfuge, files can be found here:

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1483


First post about Dremelfuge:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2012/11/dremelfuge.html

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98peQ7kS4-M

Uneducated attempt of 3d printing humor ...

... not so funny, but I'm certain that in future some major player will lock their machine to prevent printing of open source printer parts ... and there will be companies who will go bankrupt from additive manufacturing developments ...

For other, more successful, funny 3d printing stuff:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/search/label/comic 

3d printed tools: dial calipers and tape measure

http://thecornercase.blogspot.com/2014/03/3d-printed-tape-measure.html




http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:187267

http://thecornercase.blogspot.com/2014/03/3d-printed-dial-calipers.html


Tools designed and printed by Brian aka. angry_monk

Project blog:

http://thecornercase.blogspot.com/

Update:

The same guy developed and 3d printed fully working mechanical pencil.

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2014/07/fully-working-3d-printable-mechanical.html

Handheld clay extruder and clay preparation demonstration by Jonathan Keep

Jonathan Keep demonstrates simple clay extruder. He mixes the clay with paper to improve strength during extrusion and drying.

Asiga Pico 3d printer with solid state UV LED light source

Asiga Pico is specialist 3d printer with size of a small kitchen countertop appliance. It is designed with jewelry, dental and medical industry in mind. It produces wax polymer casting for metal parts or uses medical grade biocompatible resin for things like hearing aids. It is priced at USD 6990. It comes with Asiga Composer software.

The Pico is the first 3D printer of its kind to use a solid state UV LED light source. The LED lifetime is up to 50,000 hours and is not classed as a consumable, unlike other systems. The result is consistent curing from layer to layer, day after day, year after year. UV light allows broader materials choices, such as water-clear and pure white materials.

The Pico now has an improved resolution of 39 micron pixel size with a build envelope of 40 x 30mm (X and Y), and a build height of 75mm (Z). With the ability to grow parts in 1 micron increments in Z, the Pico is ideal for high resolution applications such as dental, jewelry and hearing. When building at 50 micron layers, the Pico achieves a build speed of approximately 6mm p/hr.

https://www.asiga.com/products/printers/pico/

Pico PDF brochure:

https://www.asiga.com/media/main/files/Pico%20Brochure_us_en.pdf

mbot3d GRID 2 3d printer

From company page about Grid 2:

The GRID II is a third generation printer from mbot3D. This sturdy metal frame 3d printer has one of the biggest build sizes on the market for desktop 3D Printers, 260x230x200mm. It is available in single head or dual head configuration.

The new printer features an automatic build plate calibration system that guides the user through the setup and then at every print probes the surface and uses the calibrated distance.

The printer also features a glass build plate , and a magnetic build plate holder making it a breeze to remove your build plate to remove your prints, which ensures your build plate calibration is kept in top condition.

The mbot3D GRID II also feature single or dual print fans to make sure your PLA prints are perfect every time!

The printer is bundled with a SD card, and an exclusive tool box with the basic tools need for maintenance of the printer.

Technical specifications:

• PHYSICAL DIMENSIONS
• Size: 405 mm x 405 mm x 410 mm
• Shipping Box: 520 mm x 520 mm x 520 mm
• Weight: 18 Kg
• ELECTRICAL
• AC Input: 100-240V, 50-60 Hz
• Power Requirements: 24V DC @ 6.25 amps
• Connectivity: USB, SD card with SDHC support
• MECHANICAL
• Chassis: Steel
• Front Cover: PVC Panel
• XYZ Bearings: IKO Linear Bearings
• Stepper Motors: 1.8° step angle with 1/16 micro stepping
• SOFTWARE
• Firmware: Sailfish OS Firmware
• Printer Host Software: ReplicatorG
• File Types: STL
• Operating Systems: Windows(XP/7/8/8.1), Ubuntu Linux(10.04+), Mac OS X (10.6+)

http://mbot3d.eu/product/mbot3d-grid2/

Lathon multifeatures 3d printer

Lathon is a 3d printer with several high-end features developed by Nohtal Alex Partansky, it supports:

• Enclosed Build Volume
• Air Filtration with carbon filter
• Large High Quality Prints
• Dual Nozzle Printing
• Dissolvable Support
• It can create overmolded prototypes
• Multiple Materials
• Standalone Printing

It should also be made open source after funding and development.

Lathon specifications:

• Layer Resolution: up to 80 micron
• Build Volume: 12"x9"x8" (305x230x200mm)
• Air Filtration: Activated carbon
• Frame Dimension: 25"x16.5"x25" (640x420x640mm)
• Positioning Precision: X/Y/Z 6.25/6.25/<1micron
• Print Speed: 30mm/s - 150mm/s
• Travel Speed: 30mm/s - 200mm/s
• Weight: Approx. 33lbs (15kg)
• Filament Type (3mm): ABS, PLA, TPE, Nylon, HIPS, PVA, Carbon Fiber, Wood
• Connection: Print via USB or without computer using on board control panel
• Electronics: RUMBA board with Marlin Firmware
• Motors: Nema 17 1.8° step with 1/32 microstepping
• Power Supply: 450 Watt with 120VAC or 225VAC switching
• Printbed is made out of Ultem 2300 that does not need any tape or ABS juice to function
• Enclosed print chamber
• Priced at USD 1900

Comparison of  Lathon vs. Replicator 2x vs. CubeX Duo

http://www.lathon.net/

Lathon had a Kickstarter that at this time, 3 days before end, reached 60,000 USD of 80,000 USD goal.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/nohtal/lathon-3d-printer

T.Black DLP 3D printer by Trimaker made in Argentina

South America is also developing more 3d printers. Here is T.Black DLP printer by Trimaker from Argentina.

 

Specifications:

• Build volume: 180 x 235 x 180 mm
• Positioning precision: 250 microns
• Print speed: 20mm ~25mm / hour depending on the dye and the material.
• Materials: rubber, rigid plastics and low viscosity plastic
• Weight: 18kg
• price: 38,720 Pesos ($4,936)

From company page:

PRINTING TECHNOLOGY
The printer is T.Black based stereolithography technology - the selective polymerization of the liquid resin with light. Unlike other inexpensive printers like MakerBot and RepRap, the Trimaker printer does not use a power head for depositing material during the printing process. Instead of using a head, the T.Black constructed by drawing the print object layer by layer with an optical projection - each layer of the object is actually a photo of each cross section. For each layer, the Trimaker projecting a light pattern on liquid resin solidifies and thus the parts constituting the object. The remaining resin can then be used as input for the next printing.

Advantage
More reliable technology.  T.Black technology is much more reliable because the control of complex mechanical movements is the part that usually fails. · High Resolution. Whether using light to build the object layer by layer allows a degree of much finer and more precise control. The resolution of your printer is more than 10 times higher than other inexpensive printers based on the technologies FDM (fused deposition modeling). The print resolution is one of the most important features that makes the difference between something with the quality of the prototype and the quality of the finished product and this is the main advantage of stereolithography technology. · Control of Color. use of liquid chemicals allows very flexible control of color printing. The user can change color very accurately by adding the proportion of dye which gives exactly the desired color. · Control of Multiple Properties. stereolithography process works with a variety of inputs. The designer can choose from a variety of materials with different degrees of hardness, density, transparency and other properties.

MADE IN ARGENTINA
The fact that both the hardware, software and materials develop in the country, are a great advantage for our clients when thinking about the after sales service, spare parts, supplies and personalized attention. Delivery times, technical support and input supply is greatly reduced on options imported printers today are available in our market. Finally, being a company Argentina, we will make all our releases, product testing, lectures and trainings, first in this market.

I'm not sure what technology tehy are describing in "control of color" part ... probably just a single tone of color in the resin ..


http://www.trimaker.com/t%C2%B7black/#.Uy2tXvl5N8E

Mostfun Sail 3d printer from China

More 3d printers from China which were crowdfounded. Mostfun Sail was funded trough DemoHour portal. Pro version comes with WiFi and bigger build volume.

Technical Specifications:

• Build size: 13 x 13 x 12 cm
• Layer thickness: 100 micron
• Filament diameter: 1.75 mm
• Nozzle diameter: 0.4 mm
• Print material : PLA
• Print Size: 26 x 26 x 30 cm
• Printer weight: 8 kg
• Price: 417 euros (3580 RMB). The prices for the Pro model are 500 Euros (4299 RMB) or 557 € (4780 RMB).

http://www.mostfun.cc/

http://www.demohour.com/projects/330679

AOD Artist Android powered 3d printer from China

This printer from Chine is one of those machines where there is only a few CG images and few specifications. In some articles it is mentioned that the company successfully crowd-founded it on some Asian sites.
Its main distinguishing features are Android powered  touch screen control unit and ability to store files in "AOD Smartcloud". Now, it would be interesting to see who would trust this cloud service to store some industrial prototypes ... future will tell if this machine will have success ...

Technical Specifications:

• Build size: 20 x 20 x 20 cm
• Print Size: 600 x 500 x 470 cm
• Layer thickness: 0.1 mm
• Filament diameter: 0.3, 0.4 and 0.5 mm
• Print material : ABS and PLA filament
• Priced at 28,800 RMB (3,341 Euro) in Chinese online shop

http://www.aod3d.com/p_l.aspx?id=125

EVOlizer prosumer 3d printer by Evo Tech from Austria and their fire resistant filament

EVOlizer 3d printer from Austria is aimed at more professional market of architectural and product design. Only limited information is available ...

Tech specs:

• Print Size (W x D x H): 270 x 210 x 210 mm
• Minimum film thickness: 0.20 mm
• Position accuracy: 0.05 mm
• Model Material: ABS, PLA (recommended)
• 15 Material Colors: white, black, blue, green, gray, orange, pink, red, sky blue, yellow, green yasmin, glow in dark, golden, silver, natural
• Software: automatic alignment model, automatic creation of the Support Structure, automatic creation of the print file (slicing)
• File formats: STL
• System Compatibility: Windows / MacOS / Linux
• Data Transfer: USB
• Printer Dimensions (W x D x H): 540 x 720 x 710 mm
• Weight: 59 kg
• Average power consumption: 200 watts
• Connection data: 230 VAC, 50/60 Hz, 4A
• Warranty: 2 years warranty except wear parts

Company homepage:

http://www.evo-tech.eu/

Here is the video of printer in action (German language):




EvoTech now offers fire and flame resistant filament named FR-filament:


Currently there are no third party reviews or tests.

ASTERID 1100 3d printer by Plastic Scribbler

From company page:

The Asterid 1100 takes our base model and adds a Smart controller LCD graphics display with SD card reader, it replaces the power resistor in the hot end with a heater cartridge and it adds a PCB heated bed. The Smart controller LCD display allows the user to control and print from the 3D printer without the need of a computer tethered to the printer (a computer is still needed to slice models into G-code). The heater cartridge heats up faster than the power resistor and in turn will regain heat lost more quickly. A heated bed helps reduce ABS warpage by keeping the model at or above the heat deflection temperature. A heated bed also assists in adhering the part to the build surface. In addition to the Smart controller, the heater cartridge and heated bed the Asterid 1100 also upgrades the print surface to borosilicate glass which provides a ultra flat build surface that has a very low thermal expansion coefficient. A flat print surface helps achieve world class results from a 3D printer due to the fact that the first layer is completely uniform. With three resolution settings (extra fine, fine and course) and a whopping 512 cubic inch build volume, our Asterid 1100 desktop 3D printer is the simplest, fastest and most cost effective tool available for making quality 3D models.

Standard Features:
• Build volume 8" x 8" x 8"
• LCD Smart Controller with SD card reader for computer-free 3D printer control
• Heater Cartridge hot end heating element
• Uses 1.75mm plastic filament (ABS or PLA recommended)
• Strong extruded aluminum and wood frame with built-in filament spool holder
• Fully assembled & tested
• Heated Borosilicate glass build surface
• 240W power supply
• Open design (no outer cover or door provided)
• Z-axis ACME lead screws standard
• X and Y-axis utilize GT2 timing belts for high efficiency and low backlash

Software:
• Open-source software supplied on CD and downloadable from our website, please see our how-to guides
All printers will ship with a software CD, but the software is also available to download via your internet connection.
• Fully configured Pronterface and Slic3r software which uses stereolithography (.STL) files as input
• We supply software for Windows computers, but open source software for the Mac & Linux is available

What's in the box?
• Plastic Scribbler Asterid Desktop 3D Printer, fully assembled & tested
• Software CD
• USB Cable
Tech Specs:
• Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF)
• Ramps v1.4 Motherboard
• Physical dimensions: 18.625" x 18.625" x 18.625" (L x W x H)
• Extruder moves in the vertical plane (Z-X), build platform moves in the horizonal plane (X-Y)
• Spring loaded geared extruder with .4mm nozzle
• ABS filament recommended, but extruding PLA or other thermoplastics is possible.
• Power supply works on both US voltage (115VAC) or European voltage (230VAC).
• .4mm nozzle diameter (replaceable nozzle)
• All metal hot-end
• Epocs NTC 100k 1% thermistor used on both hotend and HBP
Layer Height:
• 3 layer height settings: .3mm, .2mm, .1mm (other layer heights possible)
Warranty:
• Full 30 day money back guarantee. If you're unhappy with the purchase of your 3D printer for whatever reason, just return it for a full refund. All you pay is return shipping.

It is priced at USD 689


http://www.plasticscribbler.com/products/item/97-asterid-1100

Bioprinting presentation at MRRF 2014

Jordan Miller, Andy Ta, and Steve Kelly talk 3D bioprinting at the 2014 Midwest RepRap Festival.

Take a look at other stories about bioprinting:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/search/label/bioprinter

Source: Hackaday

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UTAre6tvgE

3d sculpting and printer control with Meta virtual reality glasses

Virtual reality technology is advancing. There are many glasses with augmented / virtual reality  interfaces. here is demonstration of Meta glasses that enables user to sculpt 3d model with hand gestures and then control 3d printer via virtual interface.


This is how Elon Musk is doing it:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2013/09/elon-musk-is-iron-man.html

Company page:

https://www.spaceglasses.com/

ZeroUI 3d sculpting software:

http://www.zeroui.com/

Update (26.5.2014.):

Here is another similar project but with less interaction based on CastAR optics:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2014/05/virtual-reality-interface-for-3d.html

Delta Twister ultra low cost DIY 3d printer with no CNC or printed parts

Even more low cost wood frame Deltas on Instructables. This one is from user Braden Petno and can me made for less the 400 dollars. There are no 3d printed or CNC produced parts, so it is an advantage if you don't have access to them.





Detailed build instructions:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Deltatwister-The-Diy-Sub-400-3d-Printer-made-with-/?ALLSTEPS

Here is QuadStrap, another low cost 3d printer with no printed plastic parts which also has extensive construction manual:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/2014/04/quadstrap-low-cost-3d-printer-with.html

Kiwi Remix Delta 3d printer

Another day, another printer. Kiwi Remix even has a wooden frame ... I like it!

From Thingiverse description

3d Reprap Delta printer with a wooden frame, the frame can be produced on a CNC machine or laser cutter.
Technical specifications:

• Uses 3mm threaded rod cut to size for the platform bolts, carriage bots and connector rods. 

• 8mm smooth rod and LM8UU bearings, 3 per carriage for added stability. 

• Z min probe for auto bed leveling 

• Z min probe is activated by a servo mounted on the frame 

• LCD control panel 

• Tidy and compact 

• Small foot print 

• Heated bed to enable both ABS and PLA 

• 170 x 170 x 170 (mm) print volume 

• 3mm filament 

• Handy reel holder

http://3dprinter.kiwi.nz/

All the files can be found at:

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:274408 

RepRap Magazine 3 is out! Go and read it! It's free!

This edition is the best one. I enjoyed it very much. There are many great articles and tutorials for beginners.

Homepage:

http://reprapmagazine.com/issues/3/

PDF download link:

https://s3-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/reprapmagazine/RepRapMagazine_Issue_3_lowres.pdf

RepStrap CoreXZ vertical h-bot prototype 3d printer by Nicholas Seward

Here is vertical H-bot proof of concept 3d printer by Nicholas Seward. He will release the files so you will be able to build your own.

Here are some other H-Bot movement 3d printers:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/search/label/h-bot

Update:

Here is CoreXZ walk-around:

Cura 14.03 with new Ultimaker 2 firmware released!

Ultimaker software just released Cura 14.03. Here is overview from Ultimaker blog:

Setting storage
One of the major changes is that the settings are now stored per machine instead of global for all machines. This means that if you have multiple printers you can keep the optimal settings for each printer with that printer.

TweakAtZ plugin
The “TweakAtZ” plugin has been added by default. This plugin has been made by Steve Morlock, Ricardo Gomez and Stefan Heule. Big thank you to them! Thanks to their community effort you can now change various settings like temperature and speed at certain heights. Giving more control on how your print is made.

New Ultimaker 2 firmware
For the Ultimaker2 a new firmware is supplied with Cura 14.03. This firmware adds a pause option in the tune menu. So you can pause a print on the Ultimaker2. It also contains fixes for a few small bugs that where reported.

Additional changes in Cura

• Improved the LayerView rendering speed
• LayerView now updates during slicing, so you can see the result before it is ready to print spotting problems early on
• Selectable USB printing dialogs, from plugins, with default Basic and PronterfaceUI
• Selection between new grid or line based support material
• Added optional separate speeds for outer and inner shells
• Added Z-Hop feature in the expert settings
• Added setting to configure support material angle from the expert settings, giving better control on where support material is generated
• Various small bugfixes improving print quality

Full features Ultimaker 2 firmware update

• Added pause function during printing
• Added material selection when changing material
• Fixed the move material maintenance function
• Fixed the led brightness on startup
• Retraction settings are saved and restored on reset

https://www.ultimaker.com/blogs/news/2014/03/18/cura-14-03