Tutorial-3D printing with resin
Introduction
This tutorial demonstrates how to effectively 3D print with resin at the Makerspace. Whether it's been a while since your last training session or you missed a few key details, rest assured, we've got you covered here.
Equipment
The equipment used when 3D printing with resin consists of the printer itself, a container used to wash the printed object and a curing chamber.
The 3D printer: Elegoo Saturn 4 ULTRA
The resin printer used at the Makerspace is the Elegoo Saturn 4 ULTRA.
Printer specifications
- UV Projector with LCD screen mask
- 12K LCD Resolution (10” Screen)
- 218.8 x 122.8 x 220 mm Printing size
- XY resolution of 24 microns
- Fast layer cure time of 1-3 seconds
The Washing station
After the print, the 3D printed object is washed and soaked in a suitable solution such as isopropyl alcohol to remove uncured resin.
The Curing station
After washing the 3D printed object, it is placed in the curing chamber to solidify the resin and make it safe to hold.
Safety considerations
- The resin is toxic, and a skin irritant, especially when uncured. It causes contact dermatitis, and repeated exposure can worsen the effects of exposure.
- Always wear gloves, mask, goggles, and an apron/sleeves when working with the resin.
- Always ensure that the ventilation is on for the fume tent, and that you are not breathing in when opening the tent as some fumes trapped in the tent may quickly rush out.
- Resin is extremely toxic to marine life, and as such no resin should be placed or washed off into a sink. There are proper resin disposal steps that will be covered later.
- The solvents used for cleaning are also toxic and should not be ingested or inhaled.
- The resin is the main safety concern, although your hands should not be near the machine during operation as well.
Exposure to resin
Accidental Resin Spill:
- First let a makerspace staff know, they will know the proper steps to get you and the afflicted area cleaned up.
- If resin got on your skin run warm water on the affected area and use mild soap to scrub the area into the disposal bucket (do not let the contaminated water, go down the drain).
- Wipe the area down with baby wipes. If you get a reaction, let staff know and seek medical attention. Long-term exposure can lead to chronic dermatitis that requires topical steroids to treat.
- Wipe down any spill on surfaces with baby wipes, dispose of baby wipes in resin disposal bin and cure them before throwing them in the garbage.
- MSDS Available at: MSDS
Resin Disposal Disclaimer
All uncured resin should be treated with care and under no circumstances should be allowed to be drained into the sink, all materials that get uncured resin on them should be cleaned using baby wipes which are placed into the uncured resin disposal bin found within the fume tent…
Very important!
Step-by-step
What you need to get started
- A 3D model (Typically a .Stl or .Obj file)
- Download chitubox software, the slicer (Free!)
- Proper operational instructions
- Read carefully the Safety instructions
- A Makerspace employee, as a supervisor
Important requirements
- Remember to hollow out your model if possible, using the hollow tool. If you use the hollow tool make sure to add a hole to let the resin leak out
- Remember to always add a raft to your model to make removal easier
- Always ensure that the cure settings are correct for the resin in use
- Ensure that the model has adequate support
Slicer settings
Once you opened Chitubox, you should see the following features explained in the image below:
To 3D print with resin,
1. Open your file in the slicer,
2. Adjust it, for example, you can reduce or increase the model's dimensions using the scale feature
3. Add support, it ranges from light to heavy depending on how big your model is.
4. Make sure that the emojis are green, indicating that you are good to go.
5. Slice it.
6.Adapt the print setting to your resin color. You have access to the resin settings table.
The following table indicates the print settings for Elegoo Saturn 4 UlTRA
7. Save your file on the USB key assigned specifically to the resin printer
8.Ready to print!
Post-printing process
Starting post-processing
- After the print is done, let excess resin drip into the vat for 5 mins
- When your part is ready to be removed from the build plate, let a staff know that your print is done. The staff will remove your print for you.
- Adhere to the previous figure, about where your model can be placed at each stage of cleaning and curing!
Cleaning vat
- Take models after prepping from the red tray and place them into the cleaning vat.
- The cleaning vat container may be removed entirely for better access.
- The cleaning vat has a sealable Tupperware lid that must be always closed unless you are placing or removing a part otherwise the solvent will evaporate.
- After the model is placed in you can seal the vat and set the cleaner to 2-5 mins using the dial.
Drying
- After removing the part from the cleaning vat, leave it to dry on a red tray for approx. 30 mins
- The red tray is for drip-dried uncured prints and can be used to remove the uncured supports from your model, you can also remove them after curing if desired.
Curing chamber
- After drying your model, you can now place your piece in the curing chamber
- You must turn on the station lights to ensure the curing chamber will turn on
- After the model is placed in you can put the lid on and set it to 2-5 mins using the dial.
- You will need to put your piece inside for multiple curing stages to ensure every side of the piece is cured. Rotate the piece every time.
- You can also use the handheld UV flashlight to get to areas of the print that the chamber might have missed
Cured Parts-Green Tray
- The green tray is where all cured parts can be placed for support removal (if not already done) and air drying
- Ensure that no uncured resin gets onto the green tray, so that it does not need to be cleaned after each use!
- Ensure that your models are completely cured and that there is no resin-colored liquid still wet on the surface of the model.
- Clear, or white sticky residue from the cleaning solvent may be coating your model, which can be cleaned off.
- If your model is completely cured, any remaining residue can be cleaned off using a toothbrush and clean water (allow water used to cure in sunlight as a precaution)