I had this idea that a 3D pen could be used as a rework/embellishment tool for 3D prints, but nobody seems to have tried this before.
I bought the pen from Makergeeks which is unusual in that it takes regular 1.75mm filament in both ABS and PLA. There’s a little fudging in this because it doesn’t have any temperature control, it comes from the manufacturer with ABS and Makergeeks throws in some PLA.
Tonight as a first test I printed a small piece out of white ABS which is 10mm high and 2mm thick and has the word “hello” as text that’s 0.5mm recessed. When that was done I used the pen to glob black ABS into the lettering - the idea was to fill the groove, not to be pretty. Then I took the result and sanded it down level. Not perfect, but I’m satisfied with it as a first try! I might make the lettering a little deeper and I’ll certainly make the next test bigger so it’s easy to hold on to when sanding.
Very interesting/creative technique!
If this works out as a technique then I think that the makers of 3D pens will have completely missed the most interesting use of their products. They go from a curiosity you can play with for a while and get bored to something that everyone with a 3D printer should have.
The 3doodler guys have been talking about silicone molds that one can fill to make blocks of shapes… Not exactly the same idea, but definitely more than simply drawing lines.
Someone recently pointed out that these pens can be helpful for rescuing prints that have stayed to lift off the bed.
I was thinking that those pens can be used for painting the model by the colour you want
With a small layer thickness
When I did my cymon bot I stuffed loose noodles of filament into the grooves and painted it with acetone to melt it in place. Maybe a little more work, but a good effect.
I was also thinking of an example where I might print a snowman in white and then add the black details with the pen. Also the acetone wouldn’t work with PLA (I do ABS, PLA, and Bridge Nylon so far).
