slicer – Learn 3D Stuff

Posted on May 3, 2021July 27, 2021 by veekay1st — Leave a comment

3D Printed Flexible Phone Case with TPU Material | Free CAD Model and Slicer Profile.

Why pay top dollar for a premium phone case when you can 3d print your own phone case with a custom design of your choice for a fraction of a cost? Here we will look at 3d printing phone case, what material is best for 3d printing phone case and in the end we will share our own CAD model of a Samsung S8+ phone case and a TPU slicer settings profile.

Can I 3D Print Phone Case?

Yes, most definitely. In fact I did just that and the results are astonishing. I printed in both, the most famous PLA filament and the less 3d printer friendly TPU. It is now my favorite custom 3d printed phone case and people love it. It’s a great way to showcase your work and attract people to 3d printing.

3D printing TPU is much more difficult that traditional PLA. The TPU material filament is very soft making it very difficult to push thru bowden tube if that is what your printer is equipped with. Although it is not impossible, I have successfully 3d printed a perfect TPU flexible phone case with a bowden tube.

From my research online it seems like most people critically recommend to have the retraction setting turned off when printing TPU. However when I have experimented this and had my retraction off I did not find it to be the most optimal setting.

Even thou the TPU is soft it still builds up a lot of pressure at the hot end nozzle and when moving from one point to another without dispensing the nozzle will still continue to ooze the filament resulting in very heavy stringing. It is ideal to have the retraction setting on at a very minimal. Just enough to release the build up pressure but not enough to pull the molten elastic material deep in the hot end nozzle and create a clog. My retraction setting is set at 0.5 mm with a bowden tube printer.

How Long Does It Take To 3D Print Phone Case?

3D Printing speed heavily depends on the material being printed and the printer settings. Typically you can expect an average around 3-4 hours to 3d print phone case in PLA and 9-11 hours to 3d print phone case in TPU filament.

3D Printing is a very slow process and majority of the speed setting will depend on the 3d printer and the filament material type. When I 3d printed a phone case in PLA filament with .01mm layer height it only took slightly under 3 hours to complete. Then I printed the same phone case with the same layer height in TPU filament and the print took almost 10 hours to finish. That is because the TPU filament material must be printed much slower than PLA.

How Much Does It Cost To 3D Print A Phone Case?

When 3d printing nearly entire cost is the cost of material. My 3d printed phone case in TPU filament material cost me about $1.08 per phone case. This does not include the cost of 3d printer energy consumption which would be about $0.09 for an average of 10 hours print time.

I used TPU filament from Amazon Basics and it worked out perfect for me on a Creality Ender 3 pro with a bowden tube. The cost breakdown:

1 kg spool of Amazon Basics TPU filament material cost me $30.32. The weight of 1 3d printed case is .035 kg. Take 1 kg and divide by .035 kg weight one case and get 28.57 cases can be made from 1 kg spool. Now the cost of $30.32 divided into 28 cases gives us $1.082 cost per case. So, is it really worth it to 3d print a phone case? yes

1 kg spool of TPU	$30.32
.035 kg = 1 3d printed phone case	$1.08
28 Cases from one spool

3d printed phone case on a weight scale

TPU Case vs. Hard Case

A hard case usually consists of solid plastic or PLA if 3d printed and lack the ability to provide a bumper cushion in an instance of an impact. A rubber-like material intended to cope with impacts or falls are often made of flexible materials such as silicone or thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU). Cases made of TPU are resistant to scratches, shock, and abrasion. Most of the cases that come with the phones are made of TPU.

What is TPU Material Filament?

TPU filament material (Thermoplastic Polyurethane) is a flexible, abrasion resistant thermoplastic. TPU filament is elastic and resistant to abrasion can withstand impacts and is resistant to many chemicals. Its versatile and used in many different industries including 3d printing. TPU filament is a great choice for 3d printing phone cases, tracks and tires for rc toys, and virtually anything that is needed to be done in flexible, soft, but durable and abrasion resistant material.

How Fast Can You Print TPU? | Speed Settings

TPU filament material is very elastic and soft therefore it is much more difficult to 3d print than the commonly used hard plastic like PLA. When 3d printing TPU on my Creality Ender 3 pro with bowden tube I have my 3d printer speed setting at about 18% of the PLA speed.

Print speed for flexible TPU filament should be in the range of 15 to 20 mm/sec (900 mm/min) for bowden tube 3d printer. Direct drive 3d printers may print at a slightly faster speed. Layer height should be set at 0.1 mm. Extrusion temperature may range from 200-230˚C with the heated bed set around 40-60˚C.

Is TPU Material Good for Phone Case?

Yes, TPU is a best choice of material for a phone case in my opinion. TPU material has a rubber like properties that serves as a bumper that covers your phone’s vulnerable corners in case of a drop. Unlike hard plastic cases which do not effectively absorb shock and are likelier to translate the impact onto the device itself. TPU is resistant to impact and abrasion therefore it will provide a much better protection to your phone and remain scratch free.

Is TPU Filament Material Toxic?

Great features of TPU are it is completely odorless and non-toxic when printing and in fact it is even used in biomedical applications.

TPU Material Properties Table.

Property	Polyester-based TPU	Polyether-based TPU
Abrasion resistance	excellent	excellent
Mechanical properties	excellent	good
Low temperature flexibility	good	excellent
Heat aging	good	poor
Hydrolysis resistance	poor	excellent
Chemical resistance	excellent	acceptable
Microbial resistance	poor	excellent
Adhesion strength	good	poor
Injectability	good	good

TPU material properties table

Is TPU Same As Silicone?

Both TPU and silicone are polymer-based materials and used in multiple industries for their physical qualities and both materials are soft. Silicone and TPU are the best materials that we can use protect our mobile phones from breaking but are they that same material? TPU and Silicone are not the same materials. For example: TPU has the benefit of flexibility like silicone but the non-grip effect of the plastic. If you take into account that silicone lasts for about a month before it starts to stretch and starts falling off your cellphone, the TPU will last for about 2 years before showing signs of wear.

Thermoplastic urethane is usually melted and extruded, TPU has hydrogen, carbon, oxygen and nitrogen in its backbone. silicones are often cast as a thermoset that is cured to form a cross linked polymer. Silicone has carbon, hydrogen silicon and oxygen as it’s composition.

TPU are generally stronger than silicone of similar molecular weight

TPU is any of a class of polyurethane plastics with many properties, including elasticity, transparency, and resistance to oil, grease and abrasion. Technically, they are thermoplastic elastomers consisting of linear segmented block copolymers composed of hard and soft segments.

Silicone, also known as polysiloxanes, are polymers that include any inert, synthetic compound made up of repeating units of siloxane, which is a chain of alternating silicon atoms and oxygen atoms, combined with carbon, hydrogen, and sometimes other elements.

Conclusion

Now that we covered the basics of TPU go ahead and head on over to Downloads tab above and put that TPU slicer profile to use, feel free to download the CAD model of the phone case as well. Be sure to have your TPU filament completely dried out before printing. TPU filament absorbs moisture when sitting out for some time and then the results may not be so pleasant as it will string heavily and produce very rough texture surface.

If you found this post helpful please share with others and subscribe so you don’t miss out on our latest post. Please like, comment and share with us you 3d printing experience.

Happy 3D Printing!

Posted on April 20, 2021June 2, 2021 by veekay1st — Leave a comment

Beginner Guide to 3D Printing | All Questions Answered

What is 3d printing?

3D printing is a way of creating three dimensional (3D) solid objects. 3D printing is done by building up the object layer by layer from a digital file. Usually, 3D printers use plastic, because it is easier to use, cheaper, and faster. More details on this topic can be found on our other post here.

What can be 3d printed?

Virtually anything you can imagine (toys, mechanical components, gadgets, robotics, prototypes, casting masters.) 3D printing is a really cool technology that has more capabilities than traditional manufacturing processes and it is faster and cheaper when performed on a small scale. This makes 3d printing perfect for testing or displaying prototypes of any sort or just for a side hobby for someone looking to do something with their time.

How do 3d printers work?

There are about 9 different types of 3d printers and we will cover in detail two most popular by process types.

FDM – (Fused Deposition Modeling) is a 3d printing process that uses thermoplastic which is fed from the spool into a moving, computer controlled hot end nozzle. The hot end nozzle melts the thermoplastic known as filament and dispenses it onto a build plate as it is moving, Creating a solid structure layer by layer.

SLA – (Stereolithography or optical fabrication) is a 3d printing process that uses a light beam and resin. As the build plate moves up the light beam creates the chemical reaction in resin causing it to solidify into a solid object layer by layer.

FDM vs. SLA – FDM is a much faster, cheaper and cleaner process than SLA. SLA is usually used to 3d print smaller non functional objects. SLA is more precise than FDM and finished models are usually cleaner and more detailed than those created on FDM printers. SLA is the oldest form of 3d printing and the model is created upside down attaching to the build plate while the FDM builds model upwards and can easily achieve structure overhang of 45 degrees without need of support. FDM requires minimal if no clean up when the model is finished printing while SLA will require intense cleanup of the model and printer with harmful solvents and most resins are toxic and harmful. Must use extra caution when dealing with SLA printing.

Different types of 3d printers by process

FDM – Fused Deposition Modeling
SLA – Stereolithography or optical fabrication
SLS – Selective Laser Sintering
SLM – Selective Laser Melting
DLP – Digital Light Processing
EBM – Electron Beam Melting
LOM – Laminated Object Manufacturing
BJ – Binder Jetting
Wax Casting

3D printing process.

CAD model
Stl
Slice
Gcode
3d print
Product

Every product first starts with a design. There are many CAD software that will allow you to design the product that you wish to 3d print.

Top 3 Free CAD Modeling Software

Sketchup – Intermediate (No download required, Build it online)
3D Builder – Beginner
FreeCAD – Intermediate

Easy youTube search will guide you through any CAD software tutorial to help you get started in 3d modeling. If you wish to skip the CAD modeling maybe because you don’t want to get into it yet or just want to 3d print something quickly there are many online sites where you can download files 3d printer ready.

Top 3 Free CAD Model sites for 3D Printing

All 3 of these websites are platforms where anyone who has a 3d model can share their creation with the world. All files are free on Thingiverse and Cults and these are 3d printing specific sites therefore most of the download files will include instructions for 3d printer type and recommended 3d printer setting to achieve the best results with the minimal amount of effort.

What is 3d Print Slicing?

A 3d slicing is a process by which the slicing software converts the 3d CAD model from .stl file to a .gcode file that 3d printer will recognize and execute. During the slicing process the operator may change the setting of the 3d printing speed, layer height, add supports and more. When applying settings to slicer it is important to remember that different types of materials play a major role in a success of the finished product.

More information on 3d print slicing and prices can be found on our another post Here.

3D Printing Materials

It is quite obvious that required materials would be different for different types of 3d printers but as a beginner you should be aware of different types of materials within a specific type of 3d printer. 3D printing with different materials is probably the most challenging part of the 3d printing adventure.

Different types of 3D Printing materials for FDM Printer | Filaments

There are about 13 different types of filament for FDM printers available today and this number keeps expanding as more new materials are being developed constantly.

PLA – is the go-to material for most users due to its ease-of-use, dimensional accuracy, and low cost.
ABS – is a low-cost material, great for printing tough and durable parts that can withstand high temperatures.
TPU – is a flexible filament known for their elasticity allowing the material to easily stretch and bend.
PETG – is a filament known for their ease of printability, smooth surface finish, and water resistance.
Nylon – is a tough and semi-flexible material that offers high impact and abrasion resistance. It is an ideal choice for printing durable parts.
Polycarbonate – is known for its strength and durability. It has very high heat and impact resistance making it an ideal choice for tough environments.
Polypropylene – is great for high-cycle, low strength applications due to its fatigue resistance, semi-flexible, and lightweight characteristics.
PVA – is commonly known for its ability to be dissolved in water and is often used as a support material for complex prints.
HIPS – is a lightweight material most commonly used as a dissolvable support structure for ABS models.
ASA – is a common alternative to ABS and is great for outdoor applications due to its high UV, temperature, and impact resistance.
Metal Filled – filaments are made by mixing a fine metal powder into a base material, providing a unique metallic finish and added weight.
Wood Filled – Wood filaments combine a PLA base material with cork, wood dust, or other derivatives, giving the models a real wooden look and feel.
Carbon Fiber Filled – Carbon fiber filaments contain short fibers that are infused into a PLA or ABS base material to help increase strength and stiffness.

Material Type	Price per 1Kg	Nozzle Temp.	Bed Temp.	Heat Bed Required	Print Difficulty 1-10 Hard	Durability 1-10
PLA	$10-$40	190-230°C	45-60°C	NO	1
ABS	$9-$40	220-250°C	95-110°C	YES	3
TPU (Flexible)	$18-$60	225-245°C	45-60°C	NO	5
PETG	$22-$80	230-250°C	75-90°C	YES	2
Nylon	$19-$60	220-270°C	70-90°C	YES	3
Polycarbonate	$18-$60	260-310°C	80-120°C	YES	4
Polypropylene	$19-$60	220-250°C	85-100°C	YES	7
PVA	$40-$110	185-200°C	45-60°C	YES	5
HIPS	$19-$30	230-245°C	100-115°C	YES	4
ASA	$38-$50	235-255°C	90-110°C	YES	2
Metal Filled	$50-$120	190-220°C	45-60°C	NO	3
Wood Filled	$25-$55	190-220°C	45-60°C	NO	2
Carbon Fiber Filled	$30-$80	200-230°C	45-60°C	NO	2
Material Type	Price per 1Kg	Nozzle Temp.	Bed Temp.	Heat Bed Required	Print Difficulty 1-10	Durability 1-10

Different types of 3D Printing materials for SLA Printer | Resins

There are about 6 different types of resins for SLA printers that we will cover in this post.

Standard – is the most commonly available resin type and can be used for non functional or display models at low cost and quality is OK.
Modeling – High detail and very expensive. Great choice to be used to create a model for a casting.
Water Washable – is very similar to the standard resin. Main difference is it does not require a solvent for cleaning up.
ABS Like – is more durable than standard resin, has a little flex to it, and is more difficult to work with. Can be used to print functional prototypes.
Eco / Bio – is less odor than most but still does require solvent to clean up.
Tough / Engineering – is expansive but the best choice if you wish to make functional parts.

If you found this post helpful please share with others and subscribe so you don’t miss out on my latest post. Please like, comment and share with us you 3d printing experience. Be sure to check out our download tab above for models and slicer profiles.

Happy 3d printing!

Posted on April 14, 2021June 2, 2021 by veekay1st — 1 Comment

10 Things To Know Before Starting 3D Printing | Tips for Beginner

Cost of 3D printing
Is 3d printing difficult for beginner
Print on glass… or any good bed
Bed leveling & The perfect first layer
Materials matter
Slicing Matters
Print profiles
Rafts, Brims & Skirts
Understanding support
Keep an eye on things

3D Printing is a rapidly growing industry that attracts many enthusiasts and with 3d printers becoming more affordable today than ever before. More and more people are getting into this new 3d printing adventure but many beginners do not realize what it actually takes to get into and then continue the new hobby.

Unlike the “printing” that we use to print paper, 3d printing is much more involved and requires more than just a click of a “Print” button. I want to share with you my experience of what I wish I knew before I got started in 3D printing.

#1. Cost of 3D Printing

As for everyone about everything, cost plays a great role when making decisions to make a new purchase and with 3D printers buying more expensive 3d printer does not necessarily mean buying a better 3d printer. We talk more about this in another post that you can check out HERE.

How much does a 3d printer cost?

3d printers’ typical price range for a beginner is starting at under $200 – $1000 for an average desktop 3d printer that is very much capable. Most beginners start out with a budget friendly Creality brand at around $200. 3D printers price can run up to over several thousand or even tens of thousands of dollars for more industrial 3d printers.

Different Types of 3D Printers

There are different types of 3d printers that need to be taken into consideration. The most popular among beginners of 3d printing is the FDM plastic printers. Then there are also resin SLA printers and metal 3d printers are starting to show on market. More details on different types of 3d printers can be found HERE.

After you have found the 3d printer of your choice and made a decision on the purchase. Keep in mind that the cost of the printer is not the only expense you are gonna make to keep on printing. You may have spent around $200 on a budget 3d printer but after setting it up you will be ready to start printing and for that you will need printing material.

Cost of Filament for FDM 3D Printers

Filament is a hidden cost of 3d printing that many beginners are unaware of. There are many filament material types as well as brands and each one carries its own price tag. Price on filament varies from cheap PLA 1 Kg from under $10 to more expensive PETG of over $100. The Vast majority of filament fall right around $25 a spool of 1Kg.

3D Printer Upgrades

After setting up and tinkering with a new 3d printer you will get more comfortable using it and have a better understanding of how things work. You would want to put more life and personality to your 3d printer leading a way for 3d printer upgrades.

Opportunities are endless when looking to upgrade and personalize your 3d printer. It can go anywhere from downloading from online sources and 3d printing fixtures for your printer to upgrading internal electronic components and software and it all comes at cost. More often than not the cost associated with these upgrades are overlooked.

#2. Is 3D Printing Difficult for Beginner

Short answer is YES. While most 3d printers come ready to print within minutes of setting up with no experience in 3d printing needed. 3D printing can be difficult even if you are not a beginner. But don’t let it stop you from getting into an exciting journey of 3d printing. Thankfully, we have internet and with the popularity of 3d printers there are many groups and communities with many talented like minded people who are willing to help you along the way.

Things to consider before getting started with 3d printing.

Be aware of different software
- CAD Modeling software if you want to make your own models or manipulate models that can be downloaded from free online sites like most popular Thingiverse, GrabCAD, Thangs and many more.
Different types of slicing software
- 3D printer Slicer software is what converts the 3d model into a gcode that 3d printers can recognize and execute by following commands of that gcode.
- There are both free and paid versions of slicer software you can download. With Cura being the most popular and free slicer among 3d printer users.
Different types of filament behave differently when printed
- This will require adjusting settings in slicer which can later be saved as a profile under a specific name for future use. This file type is known as fff and while the profiles are slicer specific the setting on many of them are the same. Check out our library tab above for free profiles and 3d models.
Not every 3d print will turn out perfect. Some tuning may need to be done along the way.
Be aware that 3d printing is a slow process and takes a lot of time but as technology evolves 3d printers are becoming much better in quality, more user friendly, and of course faster.

#3. 3D Printing Surface Matters

Every 3d printer comes with a printing surface but not all 3d printing surfaces are the same and the quality of 3d printed models can be drastically improved by having the right type of 3d printing surface.

There are many 3d printing surfaces available but here we will cover only a few.

Magnetic flexible 3d printing surface
Glass or mirror

Most 3d printers today come with either one of the above described printing surfaces and there are benefits in each.

Magnetic flexible 3d printing surface is great as it is fairly cheap and is easy to remove part from when they are done printing. Also, there are no worries about securing the printing surface to the build plate as it is magnetic. To remove models simply remove the magnetic flexible surface with a 3d printed model still on it. Then bend the printing surface and peel off the model. The downside however is that the 3d printed models come off too easy and sometimes do not stick to the surface and corners lift up or model warps. More information on that can be found on our other post Here.

Another thing to watch out for is the flexible magnetic sheet is not very durable and can get damaged by the hot end nozzle if the height is not adjusted properly and if the 3d printed model stick to surface too well it can be challenging to remove it from sheet resulting is a torn surface that will make printing future models difficult.

Glass or Mirror is a perfect printing surface as it heats up evenly and retains heat better than the thin magnetic removable sheet and the surface finish of the 3d printed object coming off is very smooth and glossy almost like glass. The downside is that it could be more difficult sometimes to remove the parts from the glass surface as it is not flexible and material sticks better to it.

#4. Bed Leveling and Perfect First Layer

With that said, it brings us to the most important part of 3d printing, bed leveling and perfect first layer. The success of any 3d printed model depends on the perfect first layer as it is the foundation of the entire 3d printed model structure.

What is bed leveling on a 3d printer?

Bed leveling is a distance of the hot end nozzle away from the bed on any portion of the bed. On a perfectly leveled bed the distance between the hot end nozzle and the bed would be equal in the center of the bed and all four corners of the bed.

All 3d printers have some sort of bed leveling feature. Some have automatic bed leveling features and for some you can install an upgrade to have an automatic leveling sensor. Regardless of the type of leveling feature your 3d printed may have automatic or manual it is absolutely crucial to have the bed perfectly leveled before starting the printing process.

How do you level the bed on a 3d printer?

First you want to bring the nozzle down in the middle of a bed for a starting point.
Get a piece of paper and slide it between the bed and the nozzle.
Adjust your bed up while moving the piece of paper back and forth until you feel slight resistance on the paper. Be careful not to crash the nozzle into the bed.
Then, repeat this process around all four corners of the bed.

Here is a helpful video that I have found.

Credit to Hobby Hoarder

After the bed is perfectly leveled you are now ready to start printing but the first layer still may not be the most desirable results.

How to get a perfect first layer 3d printing?

The printing surface may be perfectly leveled to the hot end and still be too close or too far from the hot end. This little detail may ruin your 3d print right from the start. So how do you know the difference? I found this video that does a great job explaining the distance between hot end to the bed and how to identify the difference.

Credit to NWA3D Training and Support

#5. 3D Printing Material Matters

When I first started 3d printing I went through a lot of filament pretty quickly trying to learn the ropes and figure things out. One major thing that I wish I knew before I started 3d printing is that not all material is the same.

While this may seem obvious, printing a typical PLA is a whole lot different than printing ABS or PETG or TPU. This was something that I was expecting. What I did not expect was when printing the same type of material for example PLA but switching brands makes a difference as well. So, a tip for a beginner is find a brand and stick to it and if you wish to change brand be prepared to make some adjustments to your printing profile. More on that later.

#6. Slicing Matters

What is slicing in 3d printing?

When the term “slicing” your 3D model is used it means taking your 3d model design and slicing it into many individual horizontal layers. The slicing software then generates the tool path usually referred to as (. gcode) that the 3d printer will use for printing. Most slicing software will have a print preview of the toolpath to help you prevent print failures.

Slicing Software and pricing:

We will start with the most popular choice Cura and it is available for free or if you want the enterprise version its $300 per year subscription.
Then we have a Simplify3d at $150 one time charge. This is our preferred choice of slice.
And we also have a list of free slicers

Every 3d printer and every slicer software is different and it all comes into play of the quality results of the finished product. Every slicer generates its own gcode that determines how the printer is going to print it and not every slicer will be a perfect match to your particular 3d printer. We suggest you start off with the free versions and try those out first before spending money on something that may not suit you well.

We have had great success using Simplify3d on ender 3 pro and it is very beginner friendly.

#7. 3D Print Slicing Profile

What is a slicing profile?

A 3d print slicing profile is a file (.fff) that stores a group of settings that are used to determine the (.gcode) such as speed and temperatures. Profiles can be modified and saved as with another name for different filament materials types. Slicing softwares like Simplify3d allows you to store up to 100 profiles. Free Simplify3d profiles available at our library tab.

The benefit of using slicer profiles is that you don’t have to go back and adjust all the settings every time you print or change to different material. Just select a new profile and print. Another benefit is that you can make a backup of a settings in a profile for something that works but you want to make some adjustments and not lose the setting you had that work ok.

#8. Rafts, Brims & Skirts-

What is Raft?

A Raft in 3d printing is a several layers of material that is printed underneath a 3d printed model that forms a detachable base. A 3D printed model will be printed on top of this raft, instead of directly on the build plate. Rafts are often used to prevent part warping and corners peeling as it usually has a better adhesion to build plate.

What is Brim?

A 3D printing brim is a layer of material that extends along the print bed from the edges of a 3D printed model. Brims help to improve bed adhesion and to prevent warping. Brim is extremely helpful when printing a tall and skinny model brim will help to stabilize it on the build plate to prevent it from collapsing. It is easy to remove, wastes less material than raft and doesn’t affect the bottom layer finish of the print.

What is Skirt?

A skirt in 3d printing is a number of lines that outline your to be printed 3d model but does not touch the model. The skirt is extruded on the print bed before starting to print your model. Skirts serve a useful purpose because they help prime your extruder and establish a smooth flow of filament. It also allows you to identify if the build plate is properly leveled which may prevent failure of 3d print.

All of these settings can be turned on and off or modified in a slicer settings normally in the “additional” tab.

#9. Understanding Supports

What are 3d printing supports?

A support material in 3d printing is a break away or dissolvable extra material that is printed on or by the 3d printed model that supports the model. For example if the model is a T shape then the overhang portion of the T will not be able to print successfully therefore it will require a support material. It is ideal to design 3d printed parts in a way to avoid using supports if at all possible.

Do you need to use supports in your 3d prints?

Supports are not always needed to be used and should be avoided when possible as it is extra material used that is disposed of when the product is finished printing. It makes printing time longer and waste more printing material. Support materials do not always break away from the model easily and sometimes may require some cleaning up or sanding after to achieve desired results.

Most slicer softwares will allow you to disable all supports in general and let you add a specified area of where you may want to add support material. This may save on print time and filament use if executed correctly. This video that I found does a great job explaining this.

Credit to makers muse

Can supports be avoided?

Yes, for the most part the support materials can and should be avoided. When designing a model for 3d printing it’s important to keep in mind that a 3d printer has its limitations and design model in a way to avoid a need for support. You can download a guide from thingiverse that you can print and it will show you capabilities of your 3d printer which will guide you with your model design. For example use chamfers and gussets to avoid overhang.

#10. Keep an eye on things

When you are first getting started with a new 3d printer I believe it is important to keep an eye on things. Do not leave your 3d printer printing for a long period of time unattended. I know this is impossible as I myself have done print that was over 30 hrs long. Things can get out of hand very quickly resulting in a failed print and a lot of wasted material to be cleaned up.

Most 3d printers now have a pause feature that you can use if you must leave the machine for a long period of time and do not wish to have your model destroyed. I would highly recommend that you utilize this feature at least until you find out the capabilities of your machine to feel compatible leaving it running unattended. Most of my print I do now I set the printer to run overnight.

Hobby,

Whatever your intentions are with 3d printing just remember to treat it as a hobby at least in the beginning stages of it. It is very much fun and exciting but can be frustrating sometimes. Nevertheless there are many communities that will help you along the way. Facebook groups, forums, and our blog is always there for you.

If you found this content helpful please share with others and subscribe so you don’t miss out on our latest post. Please like, comment and share with us your 3d printing experience. Be sure to check out our download tab above for models and slicer profiles.

Happy 3d printing!