Formlabs Resin Lithography 3D Printer

[Don Park]

http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=4575260

This seems like a 'big deal'.

Stereolithography printer (laser, not extruder)
$2300-2700 for the machine depending on your precedence
$140/liter for liquid resin

The resolution (according to the hackernews comments) is "25 micron vs
the Replicator 2's 100 microns", but more than that I believe the
resin/lithography process can make some shapes/features that are not
possible with plastic extrusion. In the video for example they show a
playing card desk sized clear structure, and inside is a continuous
tube that runs around the structure which they fill with liquid. I
think the point of that model was to show something that would be
difficult/impossible with extrusion.

http://player.vimeo.com/video/50181953
Jump to 2min 10sec for the printing demo

Don

[Tom Frisch]

There are several opensource DIY variants of this. One is called
Lemoncurry I believe.
Neat technology. Comes with it's own problems- expensive resin, slow
build times, small working envelope. But the resolution is awesome.

-Tom

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Tom Frisch / t...@tom11.com / mobile: 503.473.2801 / www.tom11.com

[Aaron Eiche]

I would like to see what that $140 worth of resin equates to in printed objects...

The resin method takes me back to Cory Doctorow's Makers, and makes me wonder if you could really design a machine that would only take manufactured chemical from company X.

As for FormLabs, I see the value of using the laser as it provides only that wavelength, but the projector-based machines have fewer moving parts. Wouldn't that be a wiser choice? (I recently contemplated building something similar using one of the pocket projectors)

[Tom Frisch]

I'm not sure a pocket projector could put out enough UV to cure the
resin in a reasonable amount of time, or at all. I didn't realize
FormLabs is using a laser, interesting. I think beyond the benefit of
less moving parts, a projector based unit exposes the entire build
tray at once, which should be faster.

Then again, the laser might cure the UV much quicker, and if it's
moving, that would help the build envelope problem that
projector-based designs face.



-Tom

[Tom Frisch]

Now that I watched their video (very nice) and read the details, it's
actually a pretty sweet setup. These are exciting times for
designers, that's for sure.

-Tom

[Chris Crewdson]

My primary concern with these kinds of printers is the cured resin's
durability. Can I drill and sand it? Will it crack and/or break under
load?
I primarily use my Replicator to print objects in ABS and use them as
day-to-day objects, not for prototyping.

Does anyone know if you could make something like a coat hook out of
this and expect it to stand up to daily use?

[Zach Archer]

I'd like to know more about the durability of the material, too.

I like the transparent quality, however. The HN page has a link to a
DIY printer with some beautiful examples, imagine illuminating these
with LEDs: http://www.instructables.com/id/Build-a-Laser-3D-Printer-Stereolithography-at-Ho/

-- Zach

[Chris Crewdson]

If you like that, PLA comes in a lot of transparent/translucent colors
and is nearly as durable as ABS. A little harder to smooth and tool
after, but close.

[Zach Archer]

Thanks, Chris. I believe I've seen printed examples of clear PLA, and
it does print somewhat opaque. The glassy transparency of the clear
resin is closer to what I'm seeking.

-- Zach

[Nathan McCorkle]

On Wednesday, September 26, 2012 11:01:52 AM UTC-7, Tom Frisch wrote:

I'm not sure a pocket projector could put out enough UV to cure the
resin in a reasonable amount of time, or at all.  I didn't realize
FormLabs is using a laser, interesting.

You could simply widen the beam of the laser and pipe into the DMD chamber in place of the RGB LED or color wheel (in a larger projector). There are also some visible cured resins, which if cheaper, would probably be better for the DLP chip itself (I'm not sure if UV damage is a factor, but possibly)