I have a Form 1+ printer I bought as working used 5-6 years ago. The person who sold it to me had numerous other, much larger 3D printers, and had no need for it. He had backed the original kickstarter for the Form1, and then had his Form1 upgraded to a 1+ later on. It came with quite a bit of FormLabs brand clear resin, but this is all ancient now. When we attempt to print anything (tried with two different resins), it looks like it’s working perfectly, mechanically speaking, and the peel motor works fine. But the end result is…nothing, not even something blobby or chunky.
Given the age of the resin, is this fully expected, or is it likely I have another problem? I checked out the mirrors and everything there looks fine. The laser also seems like it’s working properly, but I have nothing to compare it to. I have not yet performed a laser focus test.
Is there any available resin on the market today from either FormLabs, or third parties, that I should expect to work with the Form1+ ? All of the resin I have is ancient, but it was sealed and unopened yesterday.
Resin does have a shelf life, and 5-6 years is likely well beyond it’s “best by” date.
I used a number of different resins in my Form1+. At the time, the resin manufacturers would provide recommended settings for the Form1+ for their resin. They might, still, though I kind of doubt it since the Form1+ is ancient as far as SLA printers go…
But the laser also has a useful life, it may need replacing. The fact that you see a beam doesn’t mean it’s got enough power to cure the resin.
And whether the mirrors look good to you or not, a machine that’s been sitting around for 5-6 years is almost certainly in need of cleaning. The mirrors condense volatile organic compounds from the air. You have to clean them every once in a while, just like you have to clean the inside of the windows in your house (and for the same reason).
And note: there is a very specific way to do the mirror cleaning. If you don’t follow that procedure and use the specified materials, you will damage the mirrors. On these mirrors, the reflective surface is on the front of the glass, a really thin layer of Aluminum that’s easy to rub right off the glass…
Thanks. With some other (also ancient) black resin, we’re able to get it to print (poorly), and I assume this is on account of the age of the resin. The unit has very few hours on it, so the laser is “nearly new” despite being 6+ years old. I will definitely be cleaning the mirror (properly) at some point.
Now I really just need to find some resin that “should” work.