3D Printing

Military-spec filament produces stronger 3D-printed objects

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While consumer-grade 3D printers may be adequate for making things like models or curios, they’re not always up to the task of creating objects that stand up to real-world use. That could be about to change, though, thanks to a new printing filament.

Compact, inexpensive 3D printers typically utilize a process known as fused filament fabrication (FFF). This involves heating a plastic filament to its melting point, then extruding it through a nozzle. Successive layers of the molten plastic are deposited one on top of the other, forming a single solid object as they cool and fuse together.

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Ender 3 conversion to 400×400 with the Ender Extender kit

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Is your Ender 3 now too small? Perhaps you’ve invested time and money getting it how you like it and don’t want to lose your tuned machine. Ender Extender kits retain much of the standard parts, but replace pieces of the frame to make the build volume much larger.

This was a pretty smooth install, some more pictures in the manual would be welcome but even in its current state this is very doable. The performance of the printer seems to be maintained but with a much larger build volume. Overall I am a fan of this mod because it represents great value for money over an off the shelf large format printer, with the bonus of being compatible with Ender 3 upgrades.

The Ender Extender

RaspberryPi 4 Mini Desktop Case – Ice Tower Cooler + Secondary PCB Cooling Fan

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This is a case I designed for the Raspberry Pi 4 with the Ice Tower Cooler by 52Pi.

I designed this during the coronavirus quarantine and in some ways influenced by this ongoing experience.

For one, there’s potentially hours of experimentation potential as there are different fan options to test… if you’re stuck at home bored with nothing to and a spare Raspberry Pi and some fans sitting around.

Furthermore, since supply shipments are sketchy, I kept the 3D printer filament usage to a minimum, thinned parts wherever possible, provided opportunities to fabricate some parts out of other household materials (like possibly cardboard for the top and bottom panels which are not structural and otherwise featureless).

Read more… (and download the STL)

More pics and write up…

Blister Pack with a Jet Fighter Toy is a Business Card

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In the world of business cards, it seems that for some people a white rectangle of card just doesn’t cut it any more. A card isn’t simply a means to display your contact details, instead it can be a way to show off your work and demonstrate to the world your capabilities. For [agepbiz] those are the skills of a 3D design specialist, so what better way to proceed than by distributing a 3D-printed example of his work? How to render that into a business card? Put it in a retail-style blister pack, of course. Take a look at the video below the break.

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3D Printing Ventilator Valves for #Coronavirus AND How YOU Can Help!

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3D Printing helped save lives when Cristian Fracassi from Isinnova modeled and 3d printed a Venturi valve for respirators. Italian doctors couldn’t get them fast enough from the manufacturer for the Coronavirus / COVID-19 response.

This story took hold, and many reached out wondering how THEY can help with their 3d printers. Here are some ways to help! UPDATE 3/19: Looks like some of the information I reported was corrected.

The price of the ventilator valves was not $11,000 – and the company behind them did NOT threaten to sue. Also, looks like Josef Prusa and his team stepped up and is helping out.

Copper 3D makes the free #N95 mask design to fight #COVID-19 pandemic spread

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With the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic around the world, many companies have joined the fight to stop the deadly virus by creating and producing various types of medical supplies and healthcare solutions. Clothing companies began to sew aprons and protective N95 masks, chemical companies produced antibacterial gels, public and private universities and research centers started projects to create solutions that would help in a simple and quick way to study and prevent the disease.

Companies from the 3D printing industry have also taken on this challenge by successively presenting projects that are easy and quick to implement, increasing protection and safety of people. Until now, we have described examples of cooperation between The FabLab in Milan and Isinnova, who created the missing valves for an intensive care device for the Italian hospital in Brescia, the Belgian Materialise, which created a simple and fast 3D printing model of a safe door opener or the Czech PRUSA Research, which has created its own antibacterial gel. Now we are presenting another project – it is possible that so far the most functional and useful of all the above …?

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Cloud slicing with Octoprint – Cura or Silc3r – featuring Ender 3 Pro

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If you already run Octoprint, you might find it a hassle to slice in separate software and then upload the gcode to the pi.
In this guide, I take you step by step through setting up the pre-installed CuraEngine, installing Slic3rEngine via SSH and Putty, as well as the Full Featured Slicer plugin so you can manipulate your STLs with a GUI.

The slic3r install is not straightforward, so the step by step is down below. Many people will be happy with their current slicing workflow, so this video will act as little more than food for thought. Personally, I will be implementing this setup to make 3D printing easier for my colleagues at work with a Prusa MK3.