What things need to be careful while 3D printing

Understanding the 3D printer’s accuracy and limitations can influence the production and design of 3D printing parts. It will properly guide you along path of producing some of the premium quality items. Just like with any other industry, there are some mandatory points allotted for the 3D printing industry too. Following these steps might maximize the success possibility to a great extent.

3D model can be flat:

At some point, prints may not stick at all, and it is nerve wracking. 3D model with flat bottom should adhere to this point well, mostly if the bed is level and you can adjust the z-gap. However, you can mess up the measures completely if the 3D model’s bottom fails to be flat. It might look flat, but in reality, it is not. When people are in a rush they fail to check the bottom most of the time. During such instances, only smaller part of large flat area prints on the layer is mainly due to the non-flatness. There are times when there can be one small bump on flat surface, and it will be the first layer.

This similar effect might take place if 3D model is not in the same level. The solution is to chop the minor part of bottom of 3D model with a plane cut. For that, you have to use the 3D modelling tool. This will ensure that you have a flat bottom for sticking well.

Changing filament on time:

People have this misconception of removing filament from cold nozzle just like unloading any ink cartridge from printer. However, the method isn’t same. You first have to heat the nozzle up for melting filament, which otherwise formed a plug. You can start this procedure by heating printer to print temperature of the said material. If you are planning to remove PLA, try setting it to around 200C or like that. After the temperature has been set, release tension on filament by just pressing down on lever and pushing down on filament a little bit till it comes out of nozzle.

After removing the filament, insert a new one by ensuring it is feed properly through extruder and into nozzle. If the material is different, then you can set the temperature at the higher point. You can push it through manually or control extruder from menu for feeding filament. Once the new material comes out straight, you are ready to work.

Support the selected strategy:

Every 3D printing model has different geometry and might support structures in some cases to be used. Based on the equipment’s capabilities, you need to have a sense. If you fail to use proper support structures and materials, then the portion of your 3D print might fail, can be droopy and missing in some cases. The only solution in this regard is to examine geometry carefully and decide on degree and orientation of supportive structure. You can generate support in favorite slicing software. However, depending on 3D model’s nature, you can select alternative support structure style, as generated elsewhere. You can try using MeshMixer for not just analyzing overhangs but also for generating other style of support.

Time to use support:

Some models cannot work proficiently without a support system. On the other hand, some models might lose features by incorporating support. So, it is important to identify the model before selecting the support system for the needed one. Remember that just because the mode has overhangs, that does not mean it needs support. The general rule lies in the angle. If it is more than 45 degree, you can add support but not before that.

Be sure to get to the points first carefully before starting to use the 3D printed models. At first, the methods might be a bit tough to follow, but you will get a hang of it once you started using the 3D printing models.