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I recently bought my first 3d printed miniatures and I was wondering if someone could give me some answers to some questions!

1) The information I got with them said that they were 'semi-cured'. What does that mean, exactly?

2) Some of the finer bits (Things like swords, etc.) are very flimsy and bendy. Can this be fixed?

3) Do you just use dishwater soap to clean them?

4) Do I need to use a primer or can you paint on them straight away

There's probably more questions that have slipped my mind but I can't think of them!

I would really appreciate any help or tips anyone can give.

Cheers,

Slipstream

1) probably means they were run through a wash and cure machine for a limited time. If you under cure a bit it can leave the resin a bit more flexible, but if it’s not fully cured then it’s not as hard as it could be. You can fully cure by leaving on a windowsill for a day or so. Full sunlight is best, but any daylight will do.

2) I have had success in using hot water to straighten my 3D print resin parts. Dip the bit in water just out of the kettle, straighten (minding your fingers in the hot part) and then dip in cold to set it again. Hot water out of the tap might be good enough as well.

3) You don’t need to clean them as such. There is no mould release agent to mess with paint adherence. If there is a lot of damp resin still obvious, then you are better off curing fully in sunlight. To actually clean 3D resin off you need to use Isopropyl Alcohol (IPA).

4) would recommend a layer of primer to seal away the resin surface before you start handling it. Any active resin left on the surface will irritate your skin, but a layer of primer will give you a totally inert surface to work with.

1) It means you should not touch them without nitrile gloves and put them in daylight for a few hours to fully cure the resin. Don't forget to flip them on the other side after some time. I find these sellers super unprofessional, selling unfinished and still harzardous models. It's supposedly to keep them from breaking during shipping, but this can also be mitigated with better suited resin and proper packaging.

2) They should harden with exposure to UV light, i.e. daylight. How much depends on the resin that was used, as it varies a lot.

3) Again, depends on the resin, but generally no, unless you see lots of shiny and sticky spots.

4) Again, depends on the resin used, and what kind of surface finish it has. But make sure you let them fully cure in daylight first, otherwise they will never fully cure under the paint, leading to paint cracking or flaking off as most resin secretes an oily film over time when not fully cured.

Too ad to the above

1) Ideally don't buy from that store again. Part-cured resin is a skin-touch hazard; hence the need for Nitril gloves*. I'm aware of one or two stores that have exclusive-to-them models that do ship part-cured models; otherwise most others that have generic models and licence-to-print should have other stores selling those models.

2) AS noted you want to get the model cured; put it on the windowsill and let the sun do its work.

3) When fully cured the model should
a) have no to extremely little odour
b) be generally smooth to the touch. No rubbery or softness to it
c) be brittle. This is 100% normal for 3D printed resin. How brittle depends on the resin - if they used a really high grade resin it might be flexible even when fully cured, but most high detail model resins are brittle.

4) You might hear of "Overcuring" this is not an issue. The amount of UV you need to actually overcure and damage resin is extreme. However many people presume that brittle=overcured when its actually just the resin achieving its final fully reacted** state

5) As noted above the swords and other fine parts will be more brittle and hot water and gentle bending can be used to adjust positions after fully curing.

6) I feel I should note, since it was sent part cured, if there are any presupports on the model take them off before the final curing (technically they should have been removed earlier, but if they are part curing it wouldn't surprise me if they also ship with supports on). The supports are a LOT easier to get off now than if you fully cure.

7) You might find you get little pock-marks on the model from where supports have been removed. These are typically not too hard to remove. Use a scalpel or modelling knife and I find it works best to work in a random pattern over the mark. So unlike a mould-line where you work in two directions over the line; with a pock mark you want to (as much as is practical) work in multiple angles to wear it down. Sometimes you might end up doing it mostly in one angle and then adding a few more in as you finish up.


*laytex doesn't work as it eats through it very rapidly. Though its likely "good enough" for a part cured and washed model for very short durations. Even Nitril gets eaten through which is why you always use disposable ones; but you get a more functional worktime when doing resin printing

** On the surface. UV light doesn't penetrate that deep into the model. So if you drill into it or cut it open you'll be exposing fresh part-cured resin.

You can use green stuff to full in holes on the model. Next, sand over the rest to make flush.

Make sure to wear appropriate masking when sanding resin.

Thanks for all the replies and tips, Guys!
Not only did they come semi-cured, they were also sent with the supports. I'll remember that the next time I dabble in 3d stuff.