So, I got the notice that my 2.0 A350 has arrived in the US and the FedEx label has been printed. Aside from being ridiculously excited, I have created massive collections on Thingiverse, been reading lots of FAQs and various threads on this and the 2.0 forum threads, and am trying to make sure I have all necessary support materials on hand to start trying things out without more-than-normal frustration (I’ve never done 3D printing before so I expect quite a bit) and excessive trips to local stores in the middle of stuff. So I’m looking at advice for a total beginner (though some intermediate user suggestions would be nice, too, if marked as such) as to what sorts of ‘extra’ materials I might need, and if you have specific sites or brands that are your favorites, I wouldn’t mind knowing that sort of thing, too.
Stuff we already have:
-a large, stable craft table in a room that can be closed off
Stuff we plan on building/acquiring:
-a plexiglass enclosure
Stuff I’ve heard could be helpful:
-some sort of adhesive for the hotbed
-a wire nozzle-cleaning brush
-various grades of sandpaper, for finishing
-materials to print as supports
I feel like I’m missing many things, or that some of these things might not be important at first, but I could use later.
That’s a good list, in no particular order of importance, here’s my thoughts.
I use tweezers, like the ones that come with it, can kinda pull chunks off quickly. I think it’s better than a brush.
Try without first, I don’t use any. Cheap washable glue stick works great if you do need something. So does blue tape.
Nope, support material is whatever you’re printing. If you’re printing with PLA, your supports will be PLA, they are generated as part of the print in the slicer.
Consider something opaque as a barrier when running lasers. Plexiglass won’t protect your eyes at all. Or throw a blanket over.
Don’t use that until you can get good prints with PLA. Also you’ll need the adapter so it can feed right, it’s around here in the forum somewhere.
The toolbox that comes with it has pretty much everything else required to get started, and if there’s something you don’t like then you can upgrade it. I bought a few different types of model removers: a long thin one for getting under large prints, some short thin ones, medium, etc. These work pretty good (per @atom’s recommendation)
If you’re going to do laser/CNC think about how you’re going to get the smoke and dust out of the house. When you get an enclosure built, plan for a fairly powerful fan to go out a window or something. Something like a high static pressure 120mm fan or something.
I was thinking about that–would a directed fan that pulls FROM the enclosure (and, like, out the window behind the whole setup) work, or would it produce too much draft?
And I’ve seen tinted plexiglass for enclosures. Would that be enough, so I could still have some idea of what was going on, or is completely opaque more necessary?
Thanks @brent113, you’re so helpful and fast already!
That’s exactly what I have, and I used a variable speed booster fan, so it’s not too drafty.
No. It’s tempting, but visibly tinted and Blue/UV blocking at the laser wavelength are not the same thing, and this laser is extremely powerful. I really can’t overstate how important the distinction is. You need a light reduction of around 1000 times to protect your eyes from this laser, and lightly tinted in the visible spectrum is no good.
Completely opaque is just easy, because wood, blankets, lots of stuff is opaque.
If you want to be able to watch what’s going on I’d recommend reading some of the threads on this forum regarding laser safety, and consider picking up some high quality eyewear, like offered from Laser Safety Industries. It isn’t cheap (~$100 per pair), but we’re talking about your eyes. The goggles that come with the machine are OD 1.19, which in my opinion is not safe for anything but occasional, very brief, indirect viewing.
And ha, you just posted while I was checking.
EDIT: Thought of something else that has come up occasionally - make sure you have a way to talk to it at least sometimes over USB - Wifi doesn’t work for commands where you need to get a response, like M503 to view settings.
So, this makes some things easier and some things more complex, and my twiddler brain (which is why I’m getting this device ) is trying some ideas.
If we made an enclosure out of plywood (cheap & easy to obtain), bound at the corners with…PVC pipe cut with slots, maybe? Or would 3D printed joints be easier?
Then I would need air input and air output. The larger the air input, the less intense the draft (I think), so…hmm. I’m trying to figure out how to manage the air flow and dust so the fan doesn’t get gummed up by sawdust. I DO have a canister vacuum that is circular with lots of filters, which we can’t use right now because the wand broke, BUT I could likely hook it up to deal with the dust quite nicely, as long as I have sufficient air intake. (Should I poke holes? Leave spaces around the joints? What would be best?)
Yea, I didn’t really think of it before, but what would absolutely be the best is to have separate ventilation and dust collection ports. There is a vacuum shroud on thingiverse that can act as a dust collector, and that will need a port through the enclosure. Separately, general dust and smoke will need to be evacuated to keep a slight negative pressure on the enclosure.
Regarding drafts, there’s 3 processes here, I’ll just discuss separately
3DP: you wouldn’t have a fan on for this process (except for perhaps a small circulation fan), as you’d want even temperature throughout the enclosure. You might even consider researching heated enclosures if you ever want to print ABS, which suffers from shrinking issues as it cools further from the bed. Relatively simple to put a heated fan and temp controller in the enclosure to heat the entire thing, though it’s best to relocate some electronics outside so they don’t overheat.
Laser: a gentle negative pressure is all that’s needed to keep smoke from entering the room. That should keep smoke from building up too thick inside, as well, and there really shouldn’t be many issues.
CNC: If you’re doing vacuum dust collection and airborne dust evacuation as well you’ll need significant make up air. Perhaps a flap could be opened, or a small cover removed with a small filter to allow air to enter during CNC, that could be closed in other modes of operation.
First I strongly recommend having some extra nozzels there supper cheap and good to have on hand.
Second I recommend getting some 1/8" wood stock for playing with the laser, it’s cheap easy to use and thin enough where you can cut it (with some effort)
Third my preferred viewing laser viewing option is an IP camera, especially using an old Android phone. Because then with a free download of 3dfox the phone can double as a machine interface (to send commands like m503 with)
I recommend getting a gasket box for filament you are not actively printing with, it will keep your pla good and they are cheap and easy to find.
Lastly with whatever enclosure your building, keep in mind how your going to get filament into it, that is just as important (ok maybe not cus some of the fumes from the laser can be toxix) as getting the air out
Edit: oh and some a small bit of wire or long needles to have remove partial clogs.
If you really want to be able to look inside the enclosure while running the laser, a twelve-inch (30cm) square of certified OD5+ acrylic that can actually protect you from the laser light runs about $150US (https://lasersafetyindustries.com/laser-viewing-window-410-190-532-nm-10-600-nm). It’s more expensive than the cheapest properly certified glasses, but can be used by more than one person at a time. You could build this into a plywood enclosure.
Also, get some cheap colour-indicating dessicant to keep your PLA in top shape when you’re not printing. Put spools that are unsealed but not in use in a sealed container or large ziplock bag with the dessicant.
Should be adequate for this machine though with the 1600mW laser. It wouldn’t be entirely enough with the future upgraded 8W laser and additional goggles should be worn for extended viewing.
Three things I’ve found indispensable:
A pair of digital calipers. Good ones for around $30 can be found on amazon. (igaging is the brand I got and am happy with)
A magnetic dish to hold screws. Harbor freight has them for a couple bucks. There are a lot of screws when changing functions.
Blue tape - for holding down laser objects and to use for 3d printing surface (although I prefer glue stick)
-S
6" is great, and this forum doesn’t let you post if the total length is less than 20 characters, so for short answers typically you’ll see something like “and 20 characters”
I have the same iGauging set and have been very happy with them. Being able to turn it on and it remembers the 0 position is a nice feature some of the cheapest calipers don’t have. And it gets decent battery life. The way I use it, batteries last about a year.
Great to hear that your machine is arriving soon! I too am awaiting my delivery, may I ask when yours was shipped? I have a tracking number, but FedEx is still waiting on the package.
Your post and the answers have given me a lot to consider picking up to have on hand for when mine arrives.
Right, but the ‘shipped’ was actually October 27th. The notice we got was that it had arrived in the US and the FedEx label had been printed and they were ‘getting it ready’ though I don’t know what that means.
) is trying some ideas.
