Print ABS without warping, using Divide & Conquer redesign
I just made a redesign of a flashlight adapter for printing it in ABS -without heated build plate or ABS glue.
The original form, when printed in ABS would always resulting in a completely unusable part. The large base alone would produce enough tension to lift the part from the plate, and split layers sooner or later.
Therefore, in the hope of reducing internal stress, the current form features small ‘cells’ that are connected in a flexible way.
It’s currently still printing (51%). What’s your guess: Will it turn out well?
PS: If you like, you can study the part in 3D at https://clara.io/user/universalist.
I’m interested, but what is “devide and conquer redesign”, software or technique?!
@Matthew_Satterlee It’s just a technique, no specific algorithm was involved. However, I think the step to software (implementing it into a slicer) would be possible.
How do you get ABS to stick to a cold bed? Is simple masking tape doing the trick? I have done some stuff with painting a glass bed with a solution of ABS in acetone, but have not yet seen if it can work on a cold bed.
@Aaron_Birenboim
Plain masking Tape (yellow 50mm “80°C” type) works for me (btw. the longer it has been on the plate, the better).
The trick to making it stick is to have the part standing on several legs with (round and not too large) or feet. Multiple separated feet will stick better than a single one (at least with ABS), and legs reduce the tensions that build up in the upper layers of the part.
If you’ve been reading this and thought ‘Yay’, I hope you got better results than me. Even after four iterations, my design still produces brittle and rather non-functional prints. I’m not longer sure if I’ll ever get a working ABS print this way.
