Setting up my Resin 3d Printer
I decided to finally take the plunge and buy myself a new toy, but I’ve found that all the resin printer knowledge is currently locked in Discords and while I appericate all the wonderful people in the One Page Rules Discord and that, I think that a proper website is better. Almost all of the knowledge here was taken from the #3d-print-support channel on the OPA Discord.
In order to 3d print using resin, you need the following:
- IPA to wash the models with
- UV printer resin
- A curing station
- Natile gloves (NOT latex)
- A 3d printer (I am using the Elegoo Mars 3)
- A way to get resin fumes out
- A way to keep the temperature stable for the printer
- A mask to protect against vapors
The resin produces fumes that smell bad and are mildly toxic so you want rid of them and you also need to keep the printer at a stable temperature (around 20-25c) and you want to keep the light out. Luckly, the perfect solution for this already exists. Spliff farmers need grow tents to keep heat and UV light in and to vent smelly fumes out and these tents are also perfect for our uses. Therefore, my plan is to set up a grow tent and then place the Elegoo Mars 3 inside. When the printer is going, the extractor fan is running, sending all the nasty fumes outside. The tent can also have a small space heater in it which will keep the temperature in the stable at a nice 20-25c (instead of the 14-16c it is in the attic itself).
In order to make sure that your prints work well, you also need the right settings. You put the settings into your slicer along with the STL file you want to print and the slicer produces a CTB file. These are the settings I used for my calibration prints, taken from the OPA Discord Server.
Once that’s done, it’s time to download the calibration STL and then print it! The calibration part that everyone seems to recommend is The Ameralabs Town Calibration Part. I was lucky and my town came out fine on the first print so I’m now ready to go to the races!
Shopping list:
- Elegoo Mars 3 Pro 3D Printer
- Elegoo Mercury Plus 2.0 Wash and Curing Machine
- Anycubic Upgraded ABS-Like 3D Printer Resin
- Grow Tent For Use As Printer Encloser
- Small Electric Space Heater
- Extractor Fan
- Air Hose
- Nitrile Gloves
- Shop Towels
- 3M Active Filter Cartridges
A massive thanks to all of the One Page Rules #3d-print-support channel for making this such a smooth process for me!