3D Printing Archives - Page 2 of 7

July 8, 2023July 11, 2023

3D Printed Brass Threaded Insert Soldering Iron Stand

A simple solution for holding a soldering iron when inserting brass threaded inserts into 3D printed items

NOTE – This is a revised posting with a modified write up.

When faced with adding threaded holes into 3D models I am faced with three choices.

The easy option is to model the threads in Fusion 360. This is fine for a ‘fit and forget’ single fastening but for repeated screw insertion and removal the modelled thread will begin to wear.

My preferred solution is to use embedded nuts in the plastic or leave an open hex cavity to fit a nut into after printing. Some jobs do not have enough space to use the embedded nut technique so brass inserts are the next choice. Brass threaded inserts come in a number of sizes and geometries and are available from Amazon and other sources. The inserts are melted into the printed medium with a soldering iron or other such heat source.

Having had mixed success with a handheld iron I pondered for a while with Fusion 360 whether I could make a jig to improve insertion repeatability. This led to some internet searching and finding a couple of solutions. The first one was via Clough42. He showed a heavily engineered solution supplied by Naomi Wu.

Naomi’s product was impressive but seemed to be way over the top. Next up was a site by Valera Perinski. His site is remarkable and oozes all manner of 3D printed objects, one of which was just what I was looking for – a simple insert punch.

https://www.myminifactory.com/object/3d-print-stand-press-2-in-1-80752

Valera’s design, while simple, looked elegantly functional. I downloaded the STLs. Valera offers these free of charge with a comment that he would appreciate any contributions. A contribution was duly made. Thank you Valera !

My modified version of Valera’s design is shown above and is described in the attached ZIP file along with the my versions of the 3D print STLs.

insert punch v4 Download

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May 21, 2023February 26, 2024

eSUN filament reel silica drying pod

A variation on a theme

After seeing various ideas for a filament reel desiccant holder, I decided the concept seemed like a good idea.

As mentioned in previous posts, I am now using open source filament in my Sindoh printer and my Qidi. The filament is fed from a ‘hot box’ via a 4mm OD/2mmID PTFE tube into the Sindoh or the Qidi. The ‘hot box’ is not continuously powered but is just switched on occasionally to provide background drying. By adding a desiccant holder fitted into the reel centre hole, the background moisture level can be better controlled between powered heating sessions.

I have settled on using eSUN PLA filament and I modelled my desiccant holder specifically to fit the eSUN reel size. The Fusion 360 model for the silica holder is designed using Fusion Parameters. For those familiar with this Fusion facility, you can use the FX functions to customise the size of the holder to suit other reel sizes.

This finished holder is shown below.

The holder has two parts, the cavity and the end cap. The end cap is screwed and held in place with a print modelled 11tpi BSP thread. Both parts are printed with the large gripping flange face down on the bed. Slicer generated internal support will be needed for the overhanging threaded flange at the top of the cavity. After printing, inspect the two threads and where needed clean off any flash PLA. My prints meshed without any aftercare.

Note that while I have put ventilation slots in the barrel sides, these are probably not so effective once the holder is mounted into the reel centre. This leaves the end holes as the dominant air path. To help the air circulation in the latest download I have added additional holes on the end flanges (not shown in image above).

The desiccant can either be left in its supplied pouches or can be poured directly into the core cavity. Note that if the silica crystals are tipped lose into the cavity, the model will initially act as a sieve with any broken pieces of crystal falling out of the holes. If you are using lose crystals, don’t overfill the cavity. This will allow the natural printing revolution of the reel to cause the crystals to tumble in the cavity. This provides a more even exposure to the air.

You can buy bulk quantities of silica crystals that change colour with moisture absorption content. When dry they appear to be clear or orange and change to green when moist.

UPDATE – Linked below is a ZIP file containing the Fusion 360 file for the desiccant holder and the screw on lid. James at Clough42 gave me some pointers on this. The updated file uses the Fusion parametric functions (Fx) so that the depth of the gel holder can be changed to suit the width of the filament reel. Just change the Barrel_Length value to match the width of the reel in use.

Also in the ZIP are the STL files for a 68mm width holder and associated lid This will suite the width of most 1kg filament reels.

silica-gel-holder-programmable-height-v1

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May 11, 2023May 11, 2023

Sindoh 3DWOX filament feed upgrade

Open Filament guide tube and adapters

I recently posted about the conversion of our Sindoh 3DWOX 3D printers to allow open source filament use. One benefit of the conversion is that it allows the filament reel to sit in an external reel box such as a ‘hot box’ dryer from where it is fed direct into the printer. This has resulted in filament being fed much more reliable than it had been using the printer internal cassette system.

On my setup I had a couple of clangs where the exposed filament between the ‘hot box’ and the printer got knocked and damaged. My solution to this has been to 3D print two filament interfaces to allow a PTFE protective feed tube to be used.

The first of these printed interfaces is a push fit into the Sindoh printed adapter. The Sindoh adapter performs two functions in the absence of the printer cassette. It provides a guide to feed the filament into the printer and also overrides the filament detector flap. The filament feed aperture in the Sindoh adapter is quite wide and I designed my printed part to push into their guide and provide a 2mm feed hole to more accurately ‘aim’ the filament. This feed hole enlarges to a 4mm section that is a push fit grip on 4mm PTFE tube. Note that dependent on print quality you might have to open out this hole and the 2mm hole to suit the OD of the PTFE tube and the filament. Be careful as the 4mm section does not go all the way through the print leaving a short inner 2mm section.

The 3D printed adapter on the ‘hot box’ mounts a M6 threaded pneumatic fitting that grips the end of the PTFE tube. This is fixed over the existing ‘hot box’ exit hole and aims the PTFE tube exit downwards. I drilled and tapped four M3 mounting holes in the plastic wall of the box base wall to mount the adapter. It sits straddling the base/lid interface line. This allows the box lid to still be opened. The images below show the Fusion screen shots and the final connected assembly.

The solution works very well. The length of PTFE tube can be tweaked to suit the physical relationship between the printer and the ‘hot box’. The tube also gives added moisture protection to the filament when it could be exposed to humid air between printer runs.

These two small adapters have made the filament feed much more professional and the new arrangement has removed the danger of accidental filament damage.

The only problem with external feed to the Sindoh is that the door on the printer can no longer be closed so I need to work on a plan where to drill a suitable slot in the door….

The link below is a ZIP file with the associated files as both Fusion 360 and STLs plus the Sindoh open filament adapter files which were part of the Open Source documentation.

filament feed files Download

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May 1, 2023May 1, 2023

Sindoh DP200 conversion to Open Material

At last a solution for alternative filaments

My Sindoh DP300 has given me reliable, good quality 3D prints since I purchased it in 2017. The DP200 was probably one of the best printers around at that time and had a reputation for simple out of the box operation for those with little or no 3D printing experience (aka me). As a result of this I recommended it to friends and family and collectively we have a number of DP200s in service.

The only frustration we have had since then is the inability to use 3rd party filaments. My understanding is that being an early machine, Sindoh was cautious about the prospect of owners trying to use more advanced filaments and potentially damaging the extruder nozzle. This would have opened the floodgates for warranty claims. Sindoh’s solution to block the use of third party filaments was to issue each reel of their own branded filament with a small PCB personality card. This needed to be mounted in the filament cassette and verified that the filament was legit. The PCB module also recorded the consumption of filament from the reel. I can understand why Sindoh opted for this approach. We did not have an issue with this. Sindoh filament was not dramatically different in price and was readily available and always delivered good quality prints.

As time has progressed, Sindoh has relaxed this restriction on their later models allowing third party filaments to be used. This left the DP200 a little isolated and totally dependent on sourcing the Sindoh filament. During lockdown there was a heavy demand on filament from all sources and like others, their filament went up in price. It also became very difficult to source. This problem has continued albeit not quite as extreme, but it has certainly become difficult to source at a realistic price. As mentioned we have a number of DP200s within family and friends so this has been a continuing frustration.

Out of idle curiosity, I recently emailed a query about this to the Sindoh support team. In my experience they had always been very efficient in responding to cries for help. To my surprise there was a message in my inbox next day with two firmware updates for the DP200 to allow Open Material operation.

On completion of the update process we now have our DP200s able to take filament from the internal cassette or from an external feed box without the need for the chip card. The upgrade was well documented and easy to do. We are very grateful to Sindoh for this support.

There are disclaimers associated with this upgrade. Sindoh is rightly cautious about offering this as a general release. The upgrade infringes the DP200 warranty and use of anything other than PLA and ABS is clearly not recommended. Sindoh also request that the upgrade is not made freely available as a download so I’m sorry that I cannot offer it via my blog. I get the impression that each and every request for the upgrade seems to be treated on its own merits by Sindoh.

From our point of view we are more than pleased to be able to source third party filament for use in our DP200s. I got the impression that my DP200 had perhaps gone into a big sulk when my Qidi ifast arrived. Hopefully the workshop karma will now return.

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April 23, 2023April 23, 2023

Joining PLA filament

A simple but easy way

I found a simple solution to joining PLA on a YouTube video that seems to work and does not need any after cleaning. It appealed to my lazy approach to find simple solutions to problems.

Buy some 1/16″ bore / 1/8″ outside diameter (1.6mm x 3.2mm) silicon tubing from Amazon. This is sold in 10 feet lengths. Note it must be silicon so it does not melt with heat.

Cut off a 1″ / 25mm length of the tubing. Cut the ends of the filament square. Insert the ends of the filament into the tube so they butt into each other. It helps to stretch the tubing so when it is released it puts pressure on the two filament ends.

Use a soldering iron or similar hot device, heat the tube in the area of the join for a minute or so. Once it has melted, roll the warm joint gently between your fingers and then leave to cool. Once cool slide the tubing off the filament or if mid reel then slit it and remove it.

You will have a joint that is hardly visible and which does not need any further processing such as rubbing down.

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