From the course: Additive Manufacturing: Tips, Tricks, and Techniques
Tips for creating transparent prints with filament
From the course: Additive Manufacturing: Tips, Tricks, and Techniques
Tips for creating transparent prints with filament
- [Instructor One] If you want to create a transparent 3D print on your printer that uses filament, you might think that all you need to do is buy transparent filament. However, 3D prints have a fairly complex structure of inner and outer walls, usually with some differences for the first layer. The gaps between layers or the internal structure will be visible unless you take active steps to prevent it. - [Instructor Two] Because infill will always show through on a transparent print, your choices for real transparency are either to print completely solid or completely hollow. Not every print is possible to print hollow, so the geometry of your print may drive that choice. While printing thinner layers results in a smoother surface, thicker layers often retain more of the material's transparency. The pieces here were printed at 0.3 and 0.1 millimeter layer heights. You may also want to smooth the surface after printing. This print has been coated with a clear resin to fill in the layer lines and make it smoother. - [Instructor One] If the print has to be solid, though, that's a little more subtle. If you print with a 100% infill, Ultimaker Cura will switch over to lines infill, which is best for evenly packing material. We found that a more effective way to do this, though, is to set the top and bottom solid layer thicknesses high enough that your entire print is solid. Slicers seem to handle this better automatically compared to 100% infill. Here, thin layers should make it easier to avoid capturing bubbles of air. In order to fill the spaces of print entirely with no small air gaps inside, you may need to raise your flow multiplier by 10 to 15%. Here we can see a difference in transparency between not quite enough plastic, the right amount, and too much. A shiny print surface will produce prints with a glassy bottom surface. If your build platform is textured or you use a build surface with texture like blue tape, you'll need to orient your print accordingly or sand it after the fact. - [Instructor Two] You may need to sand or chemically smooth the surface of your print to get true transparency. The smoother surface left by printing with thin layers will be easier to smooth after printing. PETG can be very clear when printed at the higher end of its temperature range. Lower temperatures often result in more of a frosted matte finish. Some other materials may appear frosted at higher temperatures, especially if they have moisture absorption issues. - [Instructor One] Along with high temperatures, printing slowly is important when printing solid for transparency. Doing so, gives the plastic more time to flow into all the cracks and for air to escape before being trapped inside. - [Instructor Two] High temperature low speed printing is also useful for making prints stronger and more isotropic. Prints created this way often don't fail along layer lines when they break. These settings aren't optimal for overhangs, however, so you need to strike a balance with different types of prints. - [Instructor One] Finally, to maximize the clarity of solid prints without post-processing, you'll want your top surface to be as smooth as possible. Cura has an option called Ironing that uses the hot surface at the end of the nozzle to remelt the plastic and smooth it out. Creating a truly transparent 3D print with a filament printer can be tricky, but with some experimentation and patience, the results can be impressive. Some tweaking of your slicing settings and perhaps a bit of post-processing may be required if your expectations are high.
Practice while you learn with exercise files
Download the files the instructor uses to teach the course. Follow along and learn by watching, listening and practicing.
Contents
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Choosing a material for a surface quality3m 33s
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Tips for print surface quality4m 16s
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The five-minute guide to printing with resin4m 27s
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Clearing a nozzle clog without disassembly4m 40s
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Filament jams4m 47s
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Tips for large filament prints3m 48s
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Filament 3D printing in the automotive aftermarket3m 30s
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Metal 3D prints without sintering3m 19s
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Checking printer platform calibration3m 49s
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Abrasive filaments and your nozzle2m 59s
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Retrofitting wireless capability on a 3D printer3m 22s
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Tips for creating transparent prints with filament3m 19s
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Ordering operations within a layer4m 34s
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Distributed manufacturing in emergencies: Lessons learned6m 31s
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Additive manufacturing surge capability4m 14s
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Nozzle replacement issues3m 18s
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Thicker layers3m 53s
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Sanding 3D prints2m 51s
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Printing food3m 47s
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Recycled filament4m 22s
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Painting and dying 3D prints3m 10s
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Infill strategies6m 26s
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Creating detailed features6m 35s
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Print bed surface options3m 42s
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Choosing and applying tape3m 35s
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Advanced Cartesian printer calibration4m 4s
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Advanced extruder calibration7m 2s
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Architectural 3D printing applications5m 59s
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Printing at different scales4m 20s
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Printer speeds5m 45s
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Belt 3D printers2m 48s
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Bridging and overhangs6m 1s
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Design for injection molding vs. 3D printing5m 32s
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Printing with flexible filament5m 31s
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Nanoprinting3m 26s
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Emerging software standards: 3MF6m 22s
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Modeling stresses and printing with filament4m 42s
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Repeatability in 3D printing6m
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Printing on fabric2m 23s
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Faster resin printing3m 7s
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Generative design and lightweighting4m 28s
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Custom supports4m 34s
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Modifier meshes3m 11s
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CAD software tips for creating multimaterial prints3m 57s
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Keeping filament dry2m 12s
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Testing 3D prints4m 50s
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Bioprinting3m 38s
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Large prints4m 14s
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Vector vs. raster printing5m 10s
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Categories of 3D CAD software4m 17s
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