Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

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jcspball13
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Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by jcspball13 » Mon Mar 14, 2016 1:27 am

Came across an article that shows you how to color pla before printing to get different colors

http://3dprintboard.com/showthread.php? ... nt-Colorer

Haven't been able to test yet; but has anyone else tried this or another way to color pla before it prints?

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sthone
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Re: Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by sthone » Mon Mar 14, 2016 1:34 am

I've done it with EPC Seen Here with moderate success. I'm sure PLA would probably take the color better. I basically drilled a hole through the marker and stuck the filament right through the hole as shown in that thread. I think natural PLA works best from what I remember reading.
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jcspball13
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Re: Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by jcspball13 » Mon Mar 14, 2016 1:45 am

Cool; I have tried 3 markers now but could not get the filament through without it getting stuck; any tips to help me? My hands are now covered in ink!

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Jules
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Re: Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by Jules » Mon Mar 14, 2016 1:48 am

Yep, I did it several times on white PLA, red Sharpie gives a lovely pale pink color. Dark green gives a nice light green, etc. Very uniform and opaque.

I quit after a few tests though, 'cause i was concerned that the Sharpie ink would cause carbon build up in the nozzle. (Lots more blackening going on in there.) :roll:

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rpollack
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Re: Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by rpollack » Mon Mar 14, 2016 2:51 am

It works really well on natural ABS - just leave gaps between the colors. If we go to a show with a lot of kids we'll set up a big spool of natural ABS and have a cup of sharpies. Here is an example print from the very early days...

Jules - it does not seem to cause any problems.

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Jules
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Re: Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by Jules » Mon Mar 14, 2016 3:04 am

I'll probably try it again next time I need some pink filament then - the filament colors on offer are too "Pepto Bismol".

jcspball13
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Re: Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by jcspball13 » Mon Mar 14, 2016 3:19 am

Any suggestions on getting the filament through the sharpie? Keeping getting stuck!

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Jules
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Re: Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by Jules » Mon Mar 14, 2016 3:49 am

I did it low tech....i put on a disposable plastic glove, then colored one side. (wasn't doing a large piece with it - it took just a couple of minutes)

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sthone
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Re: Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by sthone » Mon Mar 14, 2016 11:48 am

jcspball13 wrote:Any suggestions on getting the filament through the sharpie? Keeping getting stuck!
Are you trying to stick it through the long way through the entire marker?
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jcspball13
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Re: Coloring pla with sharpie before printing?

Post by jcspball13 » Mon Mar 14, 2016 11:10 pm

Yes just like the article shows

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