Okay, so I’ve been in silent mode for a while since there were ‘issues’ with my printer. Naturally the awesome folks at formlabs have been very patient with me and have been helping resolve all problems. They are the BEST! <3 <3 <3
The new printer is now sitting in my studio (the previous one was in my living room), and already loaded up with a print. Wish me luck! <3
Oh! I should probably point out that the doll in the photo IS a print from the FIRST form1 printer I had before the laser conked out on me… and yes, that is the correct temp and humidity level in my studio. Not much I can do about it. ^///^
Nice to see you back up and running :) I’ve had similar issues, and am awaiting my replacement unit.
What prompted you to move your unit, and start monitoring the temp and humidity ? I think that would be great data to collect along with every print . Temperature or humidity swings may correlate to some type of print fail issues.
Thanks for the update, can’t wait to see the new prints 
It’s great to be back up and printing! <3
Moving the unit to a different location was more prompting from my family. They didn’t want my printer sitting in the living room anymore, which is completely understandable. XD
As for the humidity and temp monitoring? I always monitor those in my studio. Ambient humidity levels are normally in the 70-80% range on non-rainy days, and temps stay around 80-90. It’s a hazard of living in the tropics. Just keeping a small space like my studio with humidity levels in the 40-50 range is quite a struggle. ^///^
Unfortunately, the first two prints off this particular machine aren’t at the level of awesomeness that the FIRST printer gave me before it decided to die a horrible, horrible death (this is the third unit). They are usable, but will require a good deal of sanding and repair. I’ve got the weird ripple issue again, AND some funky delamination. So far I’m not getting the jelly-supports yet. Long story short, it’s a case of ‘second verse, same as the first’. What I’m REALLY hoping, is that right now the problem is older resin? I’ve got an unopened bottle at the moment, but I’m going to see about finishing off the open one first. ^.~
Tomorrow evening I’ll see about snapping a few photos of the current prints. ^_____^
@Catherine
Wonderful work on the doll. Did you knit the sweater? Looks cozy!
By the sound of things you’ve already heard both temperature and humidity have an effect on curing photopolymers as well as operating the Form 1. Temperature will affect the density of the resin (viscosity), power output and longevity of the laser which is why Formlabs recommends 82 degrees F as a best use upper limit. As to humidity, it would be best to store your resin in sealed containers when not in use or at least when humidity levels are above 40%.
A somewhat costly solution is to install a small air conditioning unit into the smallest room of the home (maybe a spare bathroom or closet) in order to keep the temp around 80 and also drop the humidity down. Air conditioning units are dehumidifiers. Placing mylar film on the exterior of windows will reflect heat away from a room and can be purchased off Amazon for $25.
These printers do seem to have a limited lifetime as I’ve learned of users going through twice the number you have. Hang in there!
Not sure what’s up with the AC unit in my studio. When I turn that puppy on, the humidity immediately starts climbing, which is why I tend to keep it off. I’m probably going to have to rearrange the furniture in my bedroom to accommodate the printer in there. The bedroom is smaller than the studio, and I can keep the temp around 75-80F (imho, close to what I consider freezing!).
Yup, I knit the sweater. Thank you for the kind compliment! Actually, it was made for a larger doll. On a lark I put it on this small doll, and thought that it looked insanely adorable. <3
Right now, I’ve got printing the doll thighs and two sets of option hands. Because it’s funny, one hand set is a rude gesture! XD
Here’s a quick shot comparing a set of my prints. The chest and waist of the doll on the left are the first two prints off my current printer. The hips (left) are from the previous one (there’s a weird air-vent running from the back to the front on it?). The doll on the right, is probably the grand sum of what was mostly salvageable from the precious printer, but only after a LOT of work. Don’t remember which printer coughed up that chest though…
It does sound strange the A/C makes matters worse! If you can see the unit from outside and water is dripping out, you should be fine.
When using clear resin, you can make fixes to your models quite easily. Fill the vent hole with uncured resin then place the piece under UV light. Place outside in the sun for 30 mins if you don’t mind a little yellowing of the resin or under a UV lamp, available online. Placing something in the sun indoors will take much longer since window glass reflects 95% or so of UV rays.
The vent was possibly caused by resin sticking to the tray or an obstruction getting into the path of the laser – dust on the big mirror or the underside of the resin tray are common.
Happy printing!
The A/C unit that I have in my studio is one of those horrible floor units. I wish I could have gotten a unit put in the wall… but to do that I’d have had to put a hole in my wall, and that would mean breaking through poured concrete. The window in my main studio room is IN the door. Don’t ask. Houses in Puerto Rico are made to withstand hurricanes, floods and earthquakes. Unfortunately, this also means it’s somewhat problematic to make a normal house with central A/C… well, technically, we do have air conditioning, we get air in the condition it’s outside! XD
So far out of a total of 13 prints made on the new printer… 10 have come through without that weird delamination or ‘blistering’ that plagued my second printer. There is still some weird striations, but I can live with that since it PALES in comparison to some of the abstract art that the first printed decided to grace me with. ^___^
Oh, I know that type of A/C: more noise than cooling! And the hot air vent pipe always cracks because I stretch it too far to vent it outside.
If the striations you refer to look like my first picture, then wedging 4 wooden toothpicks between the resin vat and the retention mechanism can reduce the “hopping” of the resin vat on particularly sticky peels. The movement of the resin vat contributes to uneven layer thicknesses resulting in soft/thicker layers which can cause failures.
Another common source for “air vents” is captured recessed pockets. If the print is oriented so that a cavity or pocket being printed results in a closed cavity of large enough size the peel process and peel return will cause the pressure to become to unequal between the cavity and the area outside resulting in holes forming along the path of least resistence
I only had the air-vent happen that once… and thought it was more curious than anything else. But, it was easy to repair.
The printer is still going strong! Which is GREAT since I’m really giving it a work-out. I’m on 20 prints now, there have only been ‘issues’ with 4. So far, everything ‘wrong’ is fixable. Woot!!! <3
Gah! These kids are turning out insanely adorable! I might print a new chest for the little one, since there is a little ‘wonkyness’ on the current… but other than that, I should have all the parts required to completely assemble her! Now off to sand 3D prints within a millimeter of their little resin lives!!! ^___^
Your characters look fantastic when put together!
Okay, there are now issues with the printer. A ticket has been submitted to formlabs… and I’m starting to clear out a space in my bedroom so that if a replacement printer is shipped out, I can set it in there. The bedroom is a smaller space, which means the temp&humidity are more easily maintained. ^____^
Also got the two dolls that were printed shipped out to a casting company. So excited to see them when they are totally finished!!! *flails around happily*
Is it the laser again? I just had my printer replaced because the laser went bad.