Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Hey guys. so I've never really thought about 3d printers. I always thought they were super expensive and that I'd find them difficult to program or use. However, I've been reading up on them today and found out that they aren't that expensive now.

So I need some advice from regular printing folk. Are they easy enough to use? What else do I need other than the printer? Are they useful for making conversion or kitbash parts? That's what I'd mainly be using it for.


I've been looking specifically at the anycubic photon s, which fauxhammer lists as the best quality of print for miniatures and modelling.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

The Photon S has just been superseded by the new Photon Mono. I got one in the launch sale and it is absolutely brilliant. I had used an FDM (plastic filament) before but no prior experience of resin pri ting and I was getting great results straight off.

As well.as the printer you need a PC that can run the model setup software. You can get the 3d "STL" files for.free from thingiverse or some other outlets, or.you can buy them from patrons or kickstarter or other online merchants

The resin is toxic so gloves and a mask is needed. The original.resin types used also requires pure ethanol or isopropyl Alcohol to rinse the models in after printing to get excess resin off and to enable the models to be fully cured and hardened. I find the fumes form the IPA to be much worse than the resin and I'm just getting some proper VOC rated filters for my respirator. However there are now a range of water washable resins coming through that dont need such nasty stuff. If you do some online searches there are plenty of videos.and recommendations for extra bits and pieces that are useful.

Here is my setup





If you search thingiverse for keywords relating to.40k you will find hundreds of weapon and bit options.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Here is a thingiverse collection I started for 40k useful weapons. I have a few more collections that are relevant as well

https://www.thingiverse.com/gflinty/collections/weapons

https://www.thingiverse.com/gflinty/collections


Automatically Appended Next Post:
In the interest of fairness I should also state that next gen machines have also been released by Elegoo and Epax at least, and possibly a couple more. There are also larger child plate versions of all of these brands, but all around the £500 mark rather than the £200 mark.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Hey guys. so I've never really thought about 3d printers. I always thought they were super expensive and that I'd find them difficult to program or use. However, I've been reading up on them today and found out that they aren't that expensive now.

So I need some advice from regular printing folk. Are they easy enough to use? What else do I need other than the printer? Are they useful for making conversion or kitbash parts? That's what I'd mainly be using it for.


I've been looking specifically at the anycubic photon s, which fauxhammer lists as the best quality of print for miniatures and modelling.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Get the Anycubic Mono ahead of the Photon. Why? Because the Mono costs a fraction more but has about four times the shelf life before you have to replace the screen and prints in about four hours rather than taking a whole day.

Thanks! Yeah see having an area to use it is my main issue. I have a side porch area that would be perfect but it has no outer door, so id have to bring it in and out every time.

Regarding the resin, does that come as a liquid? Or a powder you need to mix? How much does it cost?

And the software to run it, does that require anything special or high end pcs? Will it work on a regular laptop?

Resin costs about £40 per litre and comes as a liquid.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/ANYCUBIC-PRINTER-Resin-500ml-1000ml/dp/B07DLQ1SJY?th=1&psc=1

The water washable stuff is a bit more but you dont need to pay extra for the IPA.

Lord Blackfang tried some outside printing action on a balcony and had some problems that might be worth reviewing.

https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/792314.page

You dont need any special specs to.run the software.

The models that are really inexpensive now do not have the monochrome screens, which do last for thousands of hours instead of a few hundred. There is so much info in other threads that you can peruse and we are always here to help!!

By my math, the effective yield of a mono screen should be 12 times more than old screens. 4x the operating life, yes, but you're also printing 3x faster. It wouldn't surprise me if it turns out mono printers have a bottleneck other than the LCD screen for effective lifespan.

But yes, certainly buying a non-mono printer would be the height of folly at this point.

That meant nothing to me! Ha. So which models would you recommend?

Latest generation Anycubic with a small build plate. I have this one and it's amazing.

https://www.anycubic.com/collections/anycubic-photon-3d-printers/products/photon-mono-resin-3d-printer

And the forthcoming large buid plate version

https://www.anycubic.com/collections/anycubic-photon-3d-printers/products/photon-mono-x-resin-printer

Elegoo equivalent machine
https://www.elegoo.com/collections/3d-printer-accessories/products/elegoo-mars-2-pro-mono-msla-3d-printer-uv-photocuring-lcd-resin-3d-printer

And large build plate option
https://www.elegoo.com/collections/3d-printer-accessories/products/elegoo-saturn-msla-4k-monochrome-lcd-3d-printer

Epax version
https://epax3d.com/products/epax-x1k-mono-lcd-3d-printer

And large build version
https://epax3d.com/products/epax-x10-uv-lcd-3d-printer-with-8-9-inch-4k-mono-lcd-screen-no-resin

They are all fundamentally the same. My Anycubic machine is great. I have also heard great things of the Elegoo machines.

I would recommend reading around here as a good source of information about machines and materials.

https://m.all3dp.com

Great, thanks so much for the info! I'd love to be able to print small components or custom shoulder pads etc for my kitbash projects. That's all I'll really be using it for so a small build plate would probably be fine. I'll have to consider space in my house. What are they like noise wise when printing? Also are there any big risks of leaving them unattended?

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
That meant nothing to me! Ha. So which models would you recommend?

So a quick summary, resin printing works by shining a UV light onto resin to harden it with pixel perfect accuracy. There is a smartphone-grade LCD screen sitting between the UV light and the resin. Essentially, this screen displays a negative image of the model you are printing, one slice at a time like a slideshow. The active pixels block UV light, the inactive pixels let it pass through and hit the resin, so resin hardens in the parts where there is no picture on the LCD.

The LCD screen is the weak spot of the printer, it's working on max power almost all the time the printer is running and so burns out quickly, about 500 hours on average, which is only like a month of 24/7 printing. Replacement screens are fairly cheap and easy to install.

The latest generation of printers are using monochromatic LCD screens. These are made specifically for printing and have pure black instead of the normal RGB pixels, so they block light better, allowing the use of a stronger UV source to harden resin about 3 times faster. Because the screens are both more robust and have to be powered a for a much shorter time per layer they last way longer.

In summary, do not under any circumstance buy a printer without a Mono screen.

Ah that makes sense. I will keep that in mind.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Great, thanks so much for the info! I'd love to be able to print small components or custom shoulder pads etc for my kitbash projects. That's all I'll really be using it for so a small build plate would probably be fine. I'll have to consider space in my house. What are they like noise wise when printing? Also are there any big risks of leaving them unattended?

I got the mono recently, and bought the "eco resin" - 1/2 liter printed about 45 minis.

It makes a small bit of noise via servomotors. I can hear it faintly if its running and im in bed. Ive got it in a little side room. The eco resin doesnt smell basically at all if the cover is on.

The biggest risk is that somehow the vat gets broken and the resin in the vat leaks all over the place. I just sit my printer on a £1 plastic tray with quite high sides in the event that happens. I think the printer gets written off in that case, but at least all the floor and stuff around wont get damaged

For that to happen though you need to have some kind of foreign object in the resin for the build plate to smoosh into the transparent base of the vat. Alternatively, using metal objects to scrape the vat would also damage it. Apparently sometimes failedprints can get pretty stuck to the base of the vat requiring intervention and then you just need to be careful.

Otherwise the thing just buzzes away gently to itself

Sweet. I definitely like the idea of having one. Do you reckon you could print small toys for kids too? Or would they be too delicate?

I think it depends on the.type.of resin you get get teenage of the children. I wouldn't give anything to very young children as the resin I have been using is pretty brittle potentially leading to sharp.edges. and it's probably not great for chewing on in general.

On the other hand if they can be trusted not to eat the things, then if they break you can just print them a new one

Thingiverse has loads of lego and playmobil compatible.stuff.

Some follow up questions, I see the anycubic mono comes with the option for a 'wash and cure machine'.

What is this and is it necessary/worth having aswell?

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Some follow up questions, I see the anycubic mono comes with the option for a 'wash and cure machine'.

What is this and is it necessary/worth having aswell?

I did not get one. Personally, I don't think I will be getting one. Currently I'm in New England going through the weakest piddliest sunshine we get all year, and I can fully cure my models in about an hour outside in the sunlight?

The cleaning is honestly the fiddliest part, but I'll be much more likely to invest in an ultrasonic cleaner than the 100$ machine. You can get one of those from amazon for like 35$ for jewelry. That just saves you the scrubbing with a toothbrush at your model while it's floating in the alcohol.

Basically, when the figure prints, it's still coated in a thin layer of sticky resin, which you have to wash off, and then you have to leave it out in the sun for it to fully cure and dry. from what I read online, the concern with curing is mostly if it's super hot outside, you can see warping from the heat when you do this, so maybe it'll be more of an issue in the summer? But a regular grow lamp apparently works just as well for this.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
Protip, learn from my mistakes: clip off the supports from your model BEFORE you cure it. Cuing makes the model much more brittle, and you're a lot more likely to accidentally clip parts off your model when you're trying to clip off supports.

The only post-processing you might want to consider after curing is sanding on big, visible flat and rounded areas. I now do all my clipper and hobby knife work prior to the final cure.


Automatically Appended Next Post:
End of the day, think of resin 3d printing like any "do it yourself" process - changing your own oil, fixing your own car, building your own furniture, etc. It's a means to put in more time and effort in order to have a thing that's more unique and cheaper (over time).

and by cheaper, over time, if I'd purchased the minis I printed with the first half-liter of resin from GW (which included one MASSIVELY resin-wasting fuckup on my part) it'd have cost me 286$.

It's the old "here we make things cheap, good, and easy - you get to pick 2" chestnut. Resin printing is the first 2.

My Resin printer is the original Elegoo Mars and it is a workhorse. I have gone though a few LCD screens, but I have had 3 major projects where I have literally printed close to 2,000 minis and quite a few very large ones.

There are a number of previous threads talking about life of screens, DIY wash & cure stations, etc.:

https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/792352.page
https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/791471.page
https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/792668.page

Wow that's impressive.. I'm literally wanting to print legion specific shoulder pads and small bits like that. I'll have a look through those threads later this evening.

I like the idea of getting one, and have the funds to do so. My main limiting factor is space and a working area to use it in.

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Wow that's impressive.. I'm literally wanting to print legion specific shoulder pads and small bits like that. I'll have a look through those threads later this evening.

I like the idea of getting one, and have the funds to do so. My main limiting factor is space and a working area to use it in.

I started from a place of looking for recreations of old-school out of print sculpts, custom bits, and a couple units where I really liked the concept but hated the execution GW did with them, and wound up in a place where my backlog of to-print is already over 100 models It's one of those little hobbies.

"Why, is that a set of multipart, multipose Juan Diaz inspired daemonettes? I'll take that."

"A full set of Kasrkin with all modern Scion weaponry, characters, banners, medics, and vehicle commanders? Yep, that's mine now."

"Multipart tau-aligned space marines? Yep, mine."

"Skaven genestaler cultists? I'll just download that..."

"Various pop culture sci fi aliens as Tau auxiliaries? Never know what you'll need those for"

"I should probably also learn how to use this 3d sculpting and animation rigging program so I can repose these models myself, I'm a cad designer this should probably only take a few hours..."

I also didn't go for the wash and cure thingy on the basis of space.

My wash and cure kit consists of a pair of cheap plastic storage tubs with a strainer included, a solar powered turntable and a string of uv leds. All in, about £30 and pretty compact. It's certainly enough to get a first cure done, and then a windowsill for as long as is required, even inn the UK.

The anycubic station is elegant I think, and potentially more efficient with the IPA, but not strictly necessary.

Obviously your mileage may vary, but for me the wash and cure station was a good buy. It is undoubtedly a little pricey for what is essentially a self-stirring jug and a few UV LEDs, but as a time/hassle saver I'm so glad I have it (though I did buy at a steep discount, not sure what the regular price is like)

With the Photon you can stick the whole build plate in the wash with the prints still attached and clean it all at once, which also minimises any contact with the liquid resin as you can hold the whole thing by the handle as you transfer from printer to wash station.

As for curing, I find at most two six-minute cycles easily does for regular sized minis, and the turntable gives a nice even cure. No need to rely on the weather, or DIY a curing setup.

Basically, having one means that I can go from the print finish to a cleaned, cured and paint-ready model in about 20 minutes, consistently and with minimal exposure to the more harmful liquid resin. It's not an essential by any means, but if you're after convenience I've got to say it's worthwhile.

Well the wash and cure only costs about £100 so I could stretch to that too. Anything that makes the final cure easier would be good. I hate curing UV resin.

Yeah, it's super easy with the machine. Set the models,on the turntable, choose a time (2. 4 and 6 mins are the options, I usually do 6 as standard then another 4-6 after turning the model round/over to get the last bits). There's room for a plate full of models and the support structures , so you can do it all in one go.

Also, to be fair, the machine does look amazingly high tech

Or maybe I'm just easily swayed by brightly coloured plastic

Haha, yeah.

Can anyone explain the difference between the mono and the mono se?

 queen_annes_revenge wrote:
Haha, yeah.

Can anyone explain the difference between the mono and the mono se?

Here you have the main differences:

https://all3dp.com/1/anycubic-photon-mono-se-x-the-differences/

@ Flinty I think your resin printer is too close to source of direct sunlight.

At that proximity, you are bound to get films of cured resin in the vat.

Thanks for the concern, but it hasn't happened yet

I have the blind down and stuff blocking direct sunlight to the vat. I have had resin in the vat for a day or so after printing and it hasn't led to any problems. The lid.seems to be quite effective at blocking UV.

Also I live in scotland where the natural skin colour for native caucasians is pale blue and it takes 2 weeks in benidorm to go white.l