Something I just learned.
ABS, 230-110-0,35mm Slic3r.
The left one was printed flat on the bed. Came out fine.
The right one not so good. It was printed standing up. It’s very brittle, luckily not in the way it’s a problem, but not very sturdy.
A big surprise for me was the difference in printing time. The good one on the left only took 3 hours, while the "bad’ one took more than 5 hours to print.
Yup, that is why the Strength Tester [1] I did has one version flat and one version standing. Different properties using the same settings.
@Chuck_McManis same differences in printing time?
Maybe i’ll try one 45 degrees tilted.
The vertical one definitely takes longer, but since they printed together in a single print I could not say exactly what the ratio is. I suppose I could time it after it finishes the flat one and see that total time to finish.
@Chuck_McManis Slic3r gives a nice approximation of the time needed.
Acceleration is the cause for the time difference. the flat one has much longer sides where it can run at full speed.
The print times differ in part to the number of moves the extra layers cause, the max speed each move can hit due to acceleration variables, and the slic3r settings for cooling will slow things down if a layer does not take enough time to ensure the material to solidify. As for the strength, less layers equals less potential adhesion issues, but more important could be the direction of the force being applied to the part in its application. The part printed flat is also closer to a heat source to keep the part warmer throughout the print, promoting better layer adhesion.
You always want to think about your orientation. You’ve got support/overhangs to worry about, interlayer bonding, warping and sometimes nozzle drag. (Machinists and injection-molding designers worry about these kinds of things too, but the issues usually aren’t visible to the end user.)
