3D Printers

This article is mandatory reading for anyone who would like to 3D print, but it does not replace a personal introduction!

All of our printers use "fused filament fabrication" (FFF, a.k.a. FDM) and are therefore limited to thermoplastics as materials. Lots of cool things can be made with this technology, but it's good to be aware of the limits of FFF before starting to design your parts.

Our 3D printer farm

General Usage Guidelines

Slicing

You can use Slic3r Prusa Edition with the default settings for the MK2 provided by Prusa Research.

Do Your Math

A few simple calculations will save you a lot time and material:

shell thickness must be a multiple of the nozzle diameter
elements very close to or below the nozzle diameter won't turn out well
bottom/top thickness must be a multiple of your selected layer height

Supervision

even simple prints can go wrong, so please watch the homing process and the first layer closely and check the progress regularly
do not leave the printers unattended - you'll have to find someone else to supervise a print if you absolutely need to leave the building
there is no need to sit in front of the machine all the time, just do not leave the Space!

Cleanliness

for improved adhesion, remove any dust from the print bed and wipe it with a few drops of isopropanol
- do not use acetone on the PEI sheet, it will destroy the print bed!
collect any clean plastic waste in the appropriate (material and color!) bags for recycling

SD Cards

if you don't know a file, don't print it - ideally, slice all your models just before printing

File Storage

always back up your files on your own storage, the SDs and the laptop might be cleaned up at any time without much warning!
do not use old G-codes over and over again, but rather save your STLs and slice freshly for every print - there could have been changes to the machine since your last visit!

Pricing

We try to keep the price low to allow anyone to print. Apart from the material cost, we need new acetone from time to time. More costly is the time that needs to be put into repairing malfunctioning printers, plus possibly replacement parts. Usually we have more print requests than free functional printers. Please donate for these expenses:

5 ct/gram material cost
+ 1 € per hour of printing (first 30 minutes are free, 50 % off for members)
+ any additional amount you like

The higher priced long running prints could allow us to build more printers in the future. If you really cannot afford it, talk to us. We would like to support you in that case.

Changing filament requires an introduction and is different for each machine!

Tutors

If you're not sure about something, these Makers might be able to help: