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3D plastic of choice


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Hey guys, I’m about to try making a blaster with a 3d printer. I’ve always been a sheet styrene, epoxy and resin guy.

 

What I would like is opinions on the plastic to use. Basically PLA OR ABS.

 

I want to troop with the blaster so what do people use? What drawbacks have you found with each (especially if you’ve tried both)?

 

 

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I just completed an ABS printed DLT-19, and it turned out pretty well.  Please note that there will be a LOT of sanding and filling though to get rid of all the print lines.  (I think I had about 16+ hours on this).  I also had to drill out the center and run a half inch aluminum rod inside the length for stability, but if you are doing an E-11 that shouldn't be needed.

One thing that will help a lot is Rustoleum's 2 in 1 "Filler and Sandable" primer, available at Lowe's or most auto supply stores.  It will indeed fill small imperfections, especially with a few coats.  You will still need to sand down the ridges pretty well beforehand, though.

Another thing I would highly recommend is Tino's (T-Jay) E-11 completion kits.  One of these will take you leaps and bounds closer to screen accuracy.

 

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Great topic… I can’t want to see some experiences from other makers. 

 

I would like to do way more printing, but I have always been leery due to the brittle nature of 3D prints. Granted, using XTC does make them a little stronger. 

 

Does anyone have experience with printing in ABS, Nylon, or NylonX? 

 

I also think it is worth discussing what filament is best to use, and experience in finishing the print. I believe each filament requires a different work load. 
 

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Great topic… I can’t want to see some experiences from other makers. 
 
I would like to do way more printing, but I have always been leery due to the brittle nature of 3D prints. Granted, using XTC does make them a little stronger. 
 
Does anyone have experience with printing in ABS, Nylon, or NylonX? 
 
I also think it is worth discussing what filament is best to use, and experience in finishing the print. I believe each filament requires a different work load. 
 


It’s the brittleness that worries me too. So for the effort of more sanding to not have it break may be worth while.

What’s xtc? I only know of abs, pla and nylon


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39 minutes ago, darthkenny said:

 


It’s the brittleness that worries me too. So for the effort of more sanding to not have it break may be worth while.

What’s xtc? I only know of abs, pla and nylon


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https://www.amazon.com/XTC-3D-High-Performance-Print-Coating/dp/B01BKSLI9M/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1518117707&sr=8-3&keywords=3d+xtc&dpID=21VHiSAVApL&preST=_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

 

it is a resin finishing product. It "smooths" the print to get rid of the print lines. 

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9 hours ago, henselmonster said:

I am printing the same thing! I will have to see how you dealt with the stability which was my concern as well. 

Are you coming to Gary's AP this Saturday?  If so, I will bring it and show/explain what I did.

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ABS and PLA both have similarities and differences that may or not matter to you.

Roughly: ABS is more heat resistant and easier to sand but considerably harder to print.

PLA is easy to print but will be less heat resistant and harder to sand.

Both when printed well will give the same high quality finish. They also both cost about the same per Kg.

What do I mean by heat resistant? Well PLA becomes soft (technical term is the glass transition temperature) at around 60°C degrees. So leave your PLA prop in a hot car, or even out in the sun, and it will warp. ABS is somewhere around 100°C.

If you can print ABS easily and well, then for a prop it’s probably what you want to use. For everyone else, including me, PLA is the weapon of choice. The additional effort sanding isn’t that enormous but the difference in how easy it is to print often is.

In theory PETG would be the best of both but I gather it doesn’t take paint well. I need to experiment at some point.

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24 minutes ago, themaninthesuitcase said:

ABS and PLA both have similarities and differences that may or not matter to you.

In theory PETG would be the best of both but I gather it doesn’t take paint well. I need to experiment at some point.

What is PETG? 

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If you can print ABS easily and well, then for a prop it’s probably what you want to use. For everyone else, including me, PLA is the weapon of choice. The additional effort sanding isn’t that enormous but the difference in how easy it is to print often is.



So do you troop with a pla prop?


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Most of our guys here use PLA, they say it prints easier than ABS. I have a FOTK sidearm which I have been trooping with for the last couple of years which is PLA and had no issues with it. Even drilled and added screws for holster mount and they are solid.

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Most of our guys here use PLA, they say it prints easier than ABS. I have a FOTK sidearm which I have been trooping with for the last couple of years which is PLA and had no issues with it. Even drilled and added screws for holster mount and they are solid.


That’s probably the answer I was looking for. Thanks.


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10 hours ago, DarthDawg said:

What is PETG? 

PET is what they make plastic bottles from, the G is Glycol which stops the plastic crystallizing when heated.  It's generally seen as the best of ABS and PLA in that its strong and closer to ABS heat resistance wise but easier to print more in line with PLA.  The main down side is cost, it's about 30-50% more per Kg.  Also it's supposedly hard to sand and doesn't take paint well but I would need to experiment for my self to know for sure.

9 hours ago, darthkenny said:

So do you troop with a pla prop?

 

No but my daughters Jawa Ion blaster is all PLA and it's been dropped more than a few times and its fine.

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1 hour ago, themaninthesuitcase said:

Also it's supposedly hard to sand and doesn't take paint well but I would need to experiment for my self to know for sure.

I made my First Order forearms in PETG and I had no problems painting them. As long as the prepping job is done well, there shouldn't be any issue. However sanding PETG isn't easy indeed, but not that much more than PLA which doesn't take sanding well either. 

 

27072513519_754044e9db_o.jpg

 

38133157084_c6792177c0_o.jpg

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Awesome, maybe I need to move up my experiments with PETG then.  Sounds like a much better option vs PLA.

 

Your forearms look excellent by the way, I see too much 3D printed stuff with obvious layer lines and these just don't have any.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I use PLA primarily. I use a Markforged printer at work that uses nylon. PLA does not give off an offensive odor like ABS. PETG is supposed to be a good material for strength. ABS and PETG work best with a heated bed. Matterhackers has some good information on different materials.

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