No Need To Slic3r, Native .g and .gcode Files

Have questions or comments about Simplify3D, Slic3r, Cura, Reptier, etc? Or wondering about which CAD software to use...discuss it here...
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eddiegnz1
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No Need To Slic3r, Native .g and .gcode Files

Post by eddiegnz1 » Fri Aug 31, 2018 4:20 am

is there a 3D CAD software out there that natively creates .g or .gcode files such that slicing is not required? I would very much like to avoid converting files from STL to dot G because I unfortunately don't want to learn all the nuances and parameters of the slic3r software.

kind thanks,
Eddie

airscapes
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Re: No Need To Slic3r, Native .g and .gcode Files

Post by airscapes » Fri Aug 31, 2018 5:58 pm

Then you had better forget about 3d printing, it is not plug and play yet so if your not willing to learn how to use the slicer your not going to have a lot of luck with 3d printing.

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ednisley
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Re: No Need To Slic3r, Native .g and .gcode Files

Post by ednisley » Fri Aug 31, 2018 7:14 pm

eddiegnz1 wrote:
Fri Aug 31, 2018 4:20 am
3D CAD software out there that natively creates .g or .gcode files
It's not just a 3D printing thing.

CAD (computer-aided design) software produces a solid model, which a CAM (computer-aided manufacturing) program then converts into the specific dialect(s) of G-Code required by whatever machine tool(s) will create the widget. You can create the solid model using many different CAD programs and convert it into G-Code with many different CAM programs, each with its own collection of features and warts.

3D printing calls the CAM program a "slicer", but it's a different name for the process of converting geometry into machine instructions.

Even in subtractive manufacturing using lathes and mills, you absolutely must understand how the G-Code interacts with the production hardware.
don't want to learn all the nuances and parameters of the slic3r software
Then you must use a service like Shapeways: you create the model, send it to them, and get a neat widget a few days later. Their laser-sintered powder process provides much better built-in support than you'll ever get from consumer-grade fused-filament printers, you can select from a wide variety of materials (including metals!), and, as long as you follow their straightforward design guidelines, you'll never know how the magic happens.

If you intend to create more than a trivial number of widgets, though, the cost in both cycle time and money will begin gnawing at you. In round numbers, I've been designing and printing one widget a week for the last seven years, so adding a printer to my basement shop and learning how to use it has been a major win.

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