Switch Theme:

Top down resin printing - doomed gimmick, or the future?  [RSS] Share on facebook Share on Twitter Submit to Reddit
»
Author Message
Advert


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.




Made in gb
Leader of the Sept







Hi all

I saw this on Kickstarter amd thought it was an interesting take.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rocket1/rocket-1-worlds-fastest-and-most-accurate-dclf-3d-printer

Floating resin on top of another liquid to allow us curing to happen from above.

No FEP, and therefore no suction leading to failed supports. Gravity holding the model down on the bed rather than trying to pull it off the bed. However not sure how much benefit the gravity thing is as by definition The resin floats in the lower support liquid. And supports are probably more effective In Tension rather than compression anyway.

Anyhoo, I though it was interesting and worth a blether

Please excuse any spelling errors. I use a tablet frequently and software keyboards are a pain!

Terranwing - w3;d1;l1
51st Dunedinw2;d0;l0
Cadre Coronal Afterglow w1;d0;l0 
   
Made in us
Dakka Veteran




Seattle, WA USA

It is interesting, though that is not the first of that kind. Gizmo3d produces a top-down printer, and has been for a few years at least. https://www.gizmo3dprinters.com.au/

It's a mixed thing. On one hand, you do have lower need for supports, but there is the requirement for the big ol vat full of resin, so there are issues there too.
   
Made in gb
Decrepit Dakkanaut




UK

The concept has been around for ages - heck its in the into to Small Soldiers. That said early reviews of the Rocket 1 are not favourable

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhIPzHfb-Ts



Even the big speed increase over other regular LCD printers isn't that great a gain and their "super fast times" are quoted for 0.1mm thick layers (which is basically not valid for most who print at 0.05mm at the thickest).


If you watch the video he highlights that one of its biggest issues is mess - the Rocket 1 has design aspects which result in spilled resin all over the place. It's a lot of mess and this is in the hands of someone who is pretty experienced in 3D printing, so even if you can "tame" the printer its clearly not user friendly.




For me the other big limit is as Valander notes - the need for a big resin vat full of resin to get started. The Rocket 1 has a capacity that takes up to 3.75litres of resin. That's basically 4 bottles of resin and then you've got 0.25l to print with before you need a 5th bottle. That's a big up front cost.

They do say they've got a "filler" chemical which basically settles underneath the resin, however that doesn't sound good to me either as that binds you to a specific print height and if you want to change it you've got a lot of mess faffing around changing out two liquids (likely losing a portion of both in the process) to change the ratios.


Then if you want to play with another resin for a single print - yep - its either a second big vat and a lot of resin or another hassle and mess draining a very heavy vat.





Overall the idea of having no FEP pull is great, it means reduced pressure on the supports as the only weight is the weight of the model so you really could get away with lighter and fewer supports for even more perfect model printing. And it does seem to print well.
However for me I would want that printer. It's just not practical. Basically 5 litres of resin to get printing; all the potential mess; all the increased faff of dealing with such a big VAT.



Even if they resolve the mess issues, I think printers like that would need resin prices to come way way down to be viable for home printing.

A Blog in Miniature

3D Printing, hobbying and model fun! 
   
Made in us
Courageous Questing Knight





Texas

Definitely could be the direction printers will move, but there looks to be a lot of glitches that need to be resolved and obviously the machines will get better as the technology gets older and more mainstream. However, it is a super interesting way to go!

My Novella Collection is available on Amazon - Action/Fantasy/Sci-Fi - https://www.amazon.com/Three-Roads-Dreamt-Michael-Leonard/dp/1505716993/

 
   
Made in de
Regular Dakkanaut




Berlin

It definitely has potential. It also would solve one or two problems.
The resin reservoir wouldn't be a problem, as in theory you have to fill it only once. So basically it just increases the printers price by the resin cost. I agree that it still would be suboptimal for people who switch or test different resins regularly.
Anyway time will tell, and I still hope for powder printers with better resolution. Mainly because it would be easier to upgrade the powder printing process for color printing.
   
Made in us
Nasty Nob on Warbike with Klaw





St. Louis, MO

Uncle Jessy on Youtube did a review.
I was actively unimpressed.
It's messy as heck, prone to issues if you don't have the resin vat full, and... it takes up SO MUCH room for such a small plate size.
Too expensive, too, IMO.

Eric

Black Fiend wrote: Okay all the ChapterHouse Nazis to the right!! All the GW apologists to the far left. LETS GET READY TO RUMBLE !!!
The Green Git wrote: I'd like to cross section them and see if they have TFG rings, but that's probably illegal.
Polonius wrote: You have to love when the most clearly biased person in the room is claiming to be objective.
Greebynog wrote:Us brits have a sense of fair play and propriety that you colonial savages can only dream of.
Stelek wrote: I know you're afraid. I want you to be. Because you should be. I've got the humiliation wagon all set up for you to take a ride back to suck city.
Quote: LunaHound--- Why do people hate unpainted models? I mean is it lacking the realism to what we fantasize the plastic soldier men to be?
I just can't stand it when people have fun the wrong way. - Chongara
I do believe that the GW "moneysheep" is a dying breed, despite their bleats to the contrary. - AesSedai
You are a thief and a predator of the wargaming community, and i'll be damned if anyone says differently ever again on my watch in these forums. -MajorTom11 
   
Made in es
Inspiring SDF-1 Bridge Officer






It is an interesting idea...

...that right now doesn't really work.
   
Made in us
Last Remaining Whole C'Tan






Pleasant Valley, Iowa

Really glad this got posted, because the concept is interesting as hell. The Rocket 1 pretty clearly ain't it, chief, as the kids say - but imagine what this will look like in a year or so.

One thing that wasn't in the KS video was that you will no longer really need internal supports. I've found for really large models you need to make sure you have internal supports or else gravity will distort the model or even cause skin tearing, if you have suction (which you shouldn't!). That would never happen with this type of setup.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2022/02/07 23:28:18


 lord_blackfang wrote:
Respect to the guy who subscribed just to post a massive ASCII dong in the chat and immediately get banned.

 Flinty wrote:
The benefit of slate is that its.actually a.rock with rock like properties. The downside is that it's a rock
 
   
 
Forum Index » 3D Printing and Digital Modeling
Go to: