Form 4L: Recommended workflow for switching resins with the Resin Pumping System

Support & Troubleshooting
1

Hi everyone,

I’m using a Form 4L and would like clarification on the recommended workflow for switching between resins with the Resin Pumping System.

I found last year’s USB C Ports on 4L discussion, which explains that only one pump should be used at a time. My question concerns switching between pumps dedicated to different resins.

I currently have two pumps: one dedicated to Tough 2000 Resin and the other to Black Resin V5. The goal is to avoid cross-contamination when switching between projects. I only need to use one pump at a time.

With this setup, I have to move the printer to reach the rear USB-C port and swap the cables whenever I change resins. Using a single pump would avoid that cable swap, but my understanding is that I would need to clean the internal tubing and pump components between resins, then reapply lubricant to the lobe pump. That would make frequent resin changes impractical for my workflow.

Could someone clarify the following?

  • When switching between Tough 2000 and Black V5, could residual resin in the pump or tubing affect print quality or material properties?
  • If using one pump for both resins, what cleaning and lubrication steps are required between changes?
  • If using a dedicated pump for each resin, is manually swapping the USB-C cable each time the intended workflow, or is there an easier supported option? Im planning on getting a USB C port Switcher 2 in 1 out.

I’d appreciate guidance from Formlabs or anyone regularly switching between resins on a Form 4L.

2

get A USBC extension that’s what we did so we no longer have to rotate the machine to get access to the port on the back.

3

@Jpena_Vertec Using an extension like @MattRForerunner suggested, is what we do in our print farm here.