A very basic overview of 3D Printing as a hobby!
All 3D printing works on the same basic principle – you have a material that is in a raw form, and you use a machine that takes computer-generated code to put down a thin layer of that material. The printer then moves either the model or the print head a bit, puts down the next layer, and so on, until the model is complete. The material can either be plastic filament of various kinds, liquid resin that is cured / hardened, or other things that are more exotic.
Hobby 3D Printers come in two formats: FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling), where a heated nozzle puts down layers of molten plastic into shapes, and the nozzle is moved by motors; and SLA (Stereolithography Apparatus), which uses Ultraviolet light to cure liquid resin into a hardened state in the desired shape. I’ll briefly go into the differences below.
FDM (“Filament” for short) printers are relatively inexpensive. You can buy a spool of 1kg of filament for about $20, more if you are looking for specific colors, unusual materials, or higher quality plastic. The filament comes off the spool, through a motor (called an “Extruder”) that pushes or pulls the filament to control the flow, and into a heated nozzle (the “Hot End” assembly) that is controlled by the printer’s control board to move about. As the layers are deposited, the printer either raises the nozzle, or lowers the print bed, and then works on the next layer.
One of the most common FDM printers is the Ender 3, which comes in several varieties for about $200 – the Ender 3 Pro and Ender 3 V2 are both excellent entry point into the hobby, are open source hardware, and have plenty of room to be upgraded and expanded upon. (The V2 has a bunch of minor upgrades over the Pro, and is well worth the price difference.)
Pros:
- Usually less expensive than Resin printers
- Larger print sizes / beds
- No major cleanup or post-processing with chemicals
- Very open to tinkering, upgrades, and modifications
Cons:
- Lower quality & detail than Resin printers
- Requires more tinkering / fidgeting to calibrate and use
- Slower printing rates / times for large or multiple objects
SLA (“Resin”) printers work by having a vat of liquid resin. An LCD screen emits UV light that cures the resin – much like a TV Screen or monitor, the LCD has pixels, and emits light only in the shape of that layer that is to be cured. After enough time has passed and the layer is hardened, the model is raised a bit, and the next layer is then processed. When the model is done being printed on the printer, only a part of the process is done – it then needs to be washed (either in Isopropyl Alcohol or water, depending on the resin), and cured even more in UV light (or sunlight). The resin can be toxic, and possibly smelly, and vapors can be an issue if precautions are not taken.
Pros:
- Much higher quality / resolution / detail
- Print time is the same per layer regardless of the size / amount of models being printed
- Usually very easy to operate and use
Cons:
- Usually more expensive than FDM printers
- Smaller print beds / volumes
- Requires cleanup and processing when done printing
- Materials can be toxic if not handled properly
Common Information for both types:
Both types of printers work with 3D models, usually in a file format called STL. You open the model in a program on your computer called a “Slicer” that takes the 3D model, and turns it into actionable code to be used by the printer. There are lots of different Slicer apps out there, but there are many good ones that are Free / Open Source for both kinds.
Designing models is another story. There are lots of apps out there to make your own 3D models – some are free (such as Blender), others are not, but have professional support and backing (AutoCAD, Zbrush, etc.).
There are also many websites out there where you can download STL files. Some are free (such as Thingiverse), others ask you to pay a fee set by the sculptor (such as Cults3D or MyMiniFactory).
The author of this article primarily uses his 3D printer for household tools and useful geeky objects, gaming minis & terrain, and sometimes large scale busts & sculpts of comic book heroes. I haven’t gotten into Starships yet, but I’ve been eyeing making a Yamato, Arcadia, and some Macross / Mospeda kits in the near future.
Additional resources:
https://all3dp.com/– General 3D Printing help and guides
http://www.fatdragongames.com/– An online store for D&D terrain & minis, and a useful guide on how to do FDM style printing (specifically the Ender 3 Pro & V2, which are excellent entry-level printers).
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5Lbnd97HV3rU98gcwHklzQ– Tomb of 3D Printed Horrors – same group as Fat Dragon Games, this is an invaluable resource for how to assemble, fine-tune, care for, and troubleshoot your Ender 3 and other FDM printers. Well worth watching before you buy anything, so you don’t ruin your new toy before you get to use it!