The wand did not go as well as I had planned... First of all, the file of the wand that I originally wanted to print was not in the type of file that I needed it. It would have taken a long time to convert it, so I chose a different one instead. I printed Dumbledore's wand instead! The black ABS filament was not tested yet and I did not want to mess with it the night of Halloween. I only have orange PLA filament, but it can be easily spray painted. The wand was printed in two parts, the first taking about an hour and 20 minutes to print. The second piece only took about 45 minutes to print. The pieces had cool supports that allowed the wand to be rounded. The supports were fairly easy to peel off, but did leave some rough spots on the wand. This can be easily filed down though. The detail in it is amazing!
My brother needs a Halloween costume, and now that I have my printer, I can print pieces for one! He wants to be Harry Potter. I need to sew a robe using black fabric or a giant XXL black tshirt. Then, I can print him some glasses, a crest, and a wand. For this project, I am going to be using Thingiverse to get the basic shapes, and then modify them to fit my 8 year old brother. I am going to use the crest to put on his black robe. I will use black ABS filament and paint it with acrylic paint. I will do the same with the want, but I will print it so it is hollow and insert an led light. The glasses need some assembly, but they are very easy to make.
I created a thingiverse account. Thingiverse is basically a website that people can post the gcode for their projects that they made. Here, they can share it with other 3D printer owners. Also, people can take the gcode for a project posted, modify it, and post it under modified. That way, people can work together to create awesome projects, even if they are living far away from each other. For a reprap, people can also print their own version of the printer and post it on here so other people can work towards making it even better. On my account, I plan to post different projects that people can print to make their daily lives easier and post the modifications I made to my printer.
The ball bearings are not here yet... They are still in China and the shipping information is still not available. Halloween is next week, and I still need to print my little brother's costume! He is going to be Harry Potter, so he needs glasses, a wand, and the Gryffindor Crest for his robe. The ball bearings are not going to come in time, so I bought door bearings. They roll and they do not wobble! The left side needs modification because it is a few centimeters short of going to the edge, but I can modify the prints so it does not get cut off.
I researched a lot about the difference between ABS and PLA filament.
The majority of online users use PLA filament-or Polylactic Acid- because does not need a heated bed, It can be printed using a lower temperature range (180-200), and it sticks very well without the printed object lifting off. Also, some claim that it smells like cotton candy when it melts and the fumes are minor. The downside is that it is a little more brittle, jams in the extruder a lot, and it is biodegradable so your prints will not last forever, especially for outdoor prints. ABS- or Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene- needs a heated bed in order to print and prints at a much higher temperature range. (210-240) It tends to be very easy to use and print with, but it shrinks while it cools. Therefore, it may lift off the bed and the layers might crack or split. It is very strong, and it tends to bend instead of snap when pressure is applied. The fumes have a very strong, which smells exactly like plastic. It is not biodegradable so it is perfect for projects that are exposed to the elements, or need to last for a long time. The printer still needs parts to be replaced, but I was too excited to wait! I printed my first one inch by one inch cube. It has holes in it because the ball bearings are causing the extruder to wobble, but overall it is the perfect shape and the temperature is pretty close to perfect. I used the orange PLA filament that came with my printer kit. The only problem with it is that when it goes into the machine, it sometimes snaps because there are air bubbles in the filament. This is not uncommon, but it is happening a lot more than I would like it to. I bought better quality filament, but it is in ABS. I also tried printing a hollow cube, but the wobble is a little extreme so it is coming out very weak and slightly warped. Hopefully the parts come soon so I can print something that is a better quality.
It took me about 1 month to complete and I recorded about 78 hours of footage. With studying and homework, I did not have a whole lot of free time but I got it done and it looks amazing! The ball bearings are still busted so when I printed my first cube, there were numerous holes. I found a new trick how to level the bed. Use a wrench and just screw the bed the same width as the wrench! To test that the extruder is low enough, put a note card under it and it shouldn't move. I should be getting the ball bearings and new gold piece next week.
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AuthorMy name is Alexandra Rozanski and I am a student at the International Academy East Campus. (Class of 2018) Archives
January 2016
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