Well… I was reading all the problems people have with this machine and was happy to not see any of those, until recently I started to see not totally cured supports and base, and today, a piece got more than half of the support totally bent and bubbles and hole in the piece. I printed at .05 with the latest version released today I think. And also have a few holes.
The tank has little to no fogging, just a few small spots, but are in a place that is not close to the area where I see those holes.
And when I remove the piece I feel that the base, have layers that are left on the build platform, peeling like phyllo dough…
So what is going on? will this be the beginning of time and resin waste?? it really feels like the machine is not something one would commercially use to print things to others for all the problems I read people have, seems to be prone to multiple failures.
The pin holes look like dust on your large mirror, or the bottom of the tray. The bubbles look like the ones @Steve_Johnstone gets. Formlabs told him they have a known problem with clear at 0.05 that they will fix on the next version of preform. So for the time being print at a different resolution when using clear, and clean the underside of your tray, and maybe your large mirror. However it’s probably the tray and not the mirror since the holes are so tiny.
What is inexplicable to me is how dust gets in there? the thing is operating all the time with the lid down and in a room where there is only photography equipment, no tools or anything, extremely clean. And I downloaded and installed a new version today that said on the release notes that the fixes where exactly enhancements for 0.05mm …
Does formlabs monitor these forums? keep wondering what could be the uncured and bend base? should the aluminum of the building platform be sanded from time to time when get too scratched by the removal process?
Funny is the object itself was not deformed, only the base and supports were all deformed.
I think I spotted a metallic particle on the tank, probably residue of the scratching done by removing the objects.
I’m really disappointed to see these faults appearing with the new version of Preform, but in all fairness I expect there are several variables that may cause this.
Some advice on trouble shooting (unfortunately its going to cost you time & money) -
Try and take as many variables out of the equation as possible.
Raze a support ticket with FL.
Check and if required clean all of you mirrors, including your
galvos. I would expect this is the first thing support is going to
ask you to do.
Restore your build platform to it factory condition. I recall you
using some sort of wax on it to aid part release and this may be the
cause of your print lifting. Coming from a FDM printing background,
having the print stick to the build plate is essential, even if its
difficult to remove later… at least you’ve got a print to show
after 10 hours etc. In someways its easier getting a stubborn Form1
print off as you can remove the print by cutting the supports and
then go to town getting the base off.
Insure there is no wobble in your build platform when securing it to
the Z stage. There is a little screw on the cam handle that you can
tighten up.
If possible print your test pieces in a new resin tray. If this
isn’t possible insure your tray is serviceable and that there are no
finger prints, dust, scratches etc. on the underside of the tray.
If possible use fresh resin and strain your resin between test
prints, regardless of whether they have been successful or not.
Print a test piece that we are all familiar with. To test for
possible laser flare, I would suggest @KevinHolmesTall cross
in clear v2 resin at 0.025mm layer heights. This is a extreme stress
test as you are printing over the same are area of resin during the
whole of the print. Please note that at this layer height you may get
some slight clouding on the PDMS over the test area.
Change as few variable between tests as possible & photograph your
results for FL supports.
I’m sure the more experienced guys will add to the list.
If the problem is due to dust or defects on the mirrors or resin tank, you can easily verify this by simply reprinting the same model at a different place, or with a different Z rotation. The bubbles/pinholes will stay in the same location relative to the build platform if they’re caused by the mirror or tank. If they move with the model, the problem is something else.
A new tray and the problem was gone. I never used the wax thing yet. But I didn’t printed at 0.05 this time. I did at .1. The tray didn’t even had a full litter, but had some serious fogging after a print I did at .2 it seems that shortens the life of the trays. They should offer an exchange program or something to make the tray consumable less painful. And a cheaper shipping option for it.
