My neighbour's new 3D printer gives a great finish using ABS plastic.

[brian777999]

My neighbour who is not into model trains has just bought a new 3D printer kit from ebay for $300. He had it up and running in one day and he has shown me some of the parts he has made using ABS plastic and the finish was perfectly smooth. This is in contrast to most 3D printed model trains parts I have seen in magazines where the finish is quite rough. He suggested it is because they are printing it too fast and that if you print it slower you will get a better finish.

 

1. Can anybody comment on the speed of printing and how this influences the finish ?

 

2. What sort of plastic is mostly used for 3D printing of model trains ?

 

3. Is any one piece of design software a clear winner for model trains ?

[billbedford]

Photos?

[SimonME46]

I'd love to see some details of his printer and the results please

[eldavo]

1. Speed is certainly a factor when printing with fused filament machines. It's a seriously black art getting it right.

 

2. The most commonly used plastic is PLA (PolyLactic Acid). Next most common is ABS but this requires a heated build plate and is generally much more tricky to use.

 

3. No. There are lots of free packages and sometimes using more than one for any given model gives the best result.

 

Somebody should write a book on it. In fact someone(two) have and is due for release in October.

 

Cheers

Dave

[Jam_Railways]

Great to see people in this hobby getting into 3D printing.

What I would say is:

 

1. Layer height (thick each layer is in making the model) is a big factor in how fine the finished part is. More layers = More detail.
    Also more layers take more time to print.

2. PLA plastic is more common but ABS tends to provide finer prints as ABS allows for thinner layers.
One thing which provides a very smooth finish is Acetone the results can be seen here http://sinkhacks.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/JWE_0468.jpg but it reduces fine detail.

3. I use Autodesk Inventor as a CAD software but a word of warning to get good at CAD takes time, however its is awesome to see something you designed on the computer appear in real life which is worth the wait, and also it is a fun process.

Hope this has helped,
James