Tips for printing backup parts?

[scampa123]

I took a crack at printing my first backup part last night. It's one of the filament drives for the dual setup.

I printed it in PETG for now as a test, but will likely look to print the parts in ePC as per JimC's recommendation...I know the Makergear parts are printed in ABS...

I printed this at 93% infill.

Here are the questions I have:

1. Did this part come out usable? There are some "fuzzy" areas to the print
2. I let S3D generate support (i removed 1 or 2 generated pieces), but should I have generated support at all? (I'm sure it affects the fuzziness mentioned above...should there have been more support??)
3. Can I export the parts with support in S3D for later reuse, or is that a waste of time?
4. When looking to bore the holes with the bits described on the forum, do you bore them by hand?
5. Any other recommendations to printing these replacement parts?



Thank you!!

[willnewton]

1. Maybe, with cleanup, but it could be better.

2. Yes, but remove supports from the small bolt/nut holes if generated.

3. Yes, you can save it as a Factory file in S3D, but you aren't probably printing LOTS of them, so is not hugely important.

4. I usually just use a hand-held drill to clean up the holes. If your printer is working correctly, your holes should just need the slightest reaming to size. The bit will practically center itself when done carefully. If you have to use force or resize a hole, you might want to use a drill press. To much force or speed creates heat and melting, which can throw your drilling off. I use a slow speed and will pulse the trigger to keep the heat down.

5. Most of your issue on this print seems to be caused by PETG inherent "stickiness" which makes printing with supports a bit tricky. They can become difficult or impossible to remove without damaging the print. A switch to ePC or something similar will improve how the support breaks away and you will get a cleaner print.

[Jules]

1. I'm not so sure - there's an area in your second pic where it looks like the structural integrity of the part might be compromised. (Also might just be the angle of the photo....hard to tell.)

3.jpg (72.73 KiB) Viewed 13445 times

2. I have always had to generate manual support for the drives. i prefer to put more supports in there, (where the software doesn't always think it's needed), but it helps with that bird's nest underside on the curved bottom surfaces on the interior.

Here's a similar drive for the dual, printed in the black PETG, that I haven't needed yet. My other one is on the machine and I don't want to take it apart just for a picture. (This style has a guide tube on top, but it needs the same kinds of support. The matte finish on the bottom is caused by printing on PEI, yours won't necessarily look that way.)

And from the top:

It just gives you more control and a better finish on the drives. (They're a tough shape to print.)

3. If you spend a lot of time generating the supports manually, you might want to save the factory file for future prints. (I didn't, but probably should have. It does take a while.)

4. i do. Just twirl it gently between my fingers. Some of the guys use a drill.

5. 60% infill is probably enough for these. (I read somewhere that the actual best strength is obtained in the 60-80% infill range, FWIW.)

[scampa123]

Thanks so much Jules for the visuals/photos...It really helps to "see" what acceptable looks like!!

I'm glad to hear I can drop the infill a bit...It makes the print take soooo much longer!

I still need to determine just how much support to put in, and where...I'll do some trial and error...It will be a bit more bearable with less of an infill!!

Thanks again!

[sthone]

I think you'll find printing this in EPC a lot easier (that stuff prints like PLA) and it will come out cleaner.

I usually print my Drives at 80% and just use the auto support set at 1mm and just delete the support it adds to the filament path. The supports with EPC are super easy to remove too.

[scampa123]

When you are printing the replacement parts, do you typically do one part at a time? Or do you do a few parts at once?

While printing in PLA I would print multiple items at the same time pretty easily....With PETG I was having issues at time attempting to print multiple things at once...I haven't tried with ePC yet...

I'm just looking for what folks are doing in general...

Thanks!!

[willnewton]

It depends your own needs.

Lotsa parts: overall faster print times, failed print has greater consequences (you lose many parts instead of one), you can intentionally print more parts to give them more cooling time (helps preserve detail), can become complicated if your parts need different settings to produce the quality you desire.

Single parts: less at risk per print, a bit more time in removing and prepping for the next print, easier to optimize settings, easier to diagnose issues

I mostly print single parts.

When duplicate parts are needed I will usually print several at a time, but I don't ever try to fill the bed with parts.

If things have long, thin areas and are smallish, I will print two, spaced apart on the bed, to give time for cooling.

I will choose to print certain parts at the same time to get the print to finish at a convenient time for me to come back,check in, and start another part or restart a failed print. Example: If I know I have 4 hours before bed or will be returning to the shop in eight hours, I might parts to give me the desired print time.

I don't put complicated prints at risk by adding other parts to the bed in the interest of saving time. That almost never works out.

Basically, you'll figure out what works best for each situation. It is hard to give a direct for/against answer to your question. You will have to do a lot of self-education, learning from each success and failure.

[willnewton]

1. I'm not so sure - there's an area in your second pic where it looks like the structural integrity of the part might be compromised. (Also might just be the angle of the photo....hard to tell.)

3.jpg

Oooo, I missed that pic. Yeah, that is Not what you want to see. Jules' prints are much more in line with what you want to produce. I wish mine looked that good!

[scampa123]

I think this came out pretty clean:

[Jules]

... Oooo, I missed that pic. Yeah, that is Not what you want to see. Jules' prints are much more in line with what you want to produce. I wish mine looked that good!

I'll bet yours do too look that good! (And I'm not at all sure about the problem area on the pic, it might be fine, it just looks a little loose right at that spot. )