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Support material or no suport material

Discussion in 'Troubleshooting' started by Omegagundam, Nov 3, 2014.

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  1. Omegagundam

    Omegagundam Member

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    Hello everyone
    I am wondering if i should have the support material on as i print or just leave it off.
    when i print my items with support material at times its a pain in the arse to get it off.
    When i print big object it uses a lot of my plastic and it at times when printing it pops up off the bed and it normally interferes with the nozzle to where it pops the object i am printing right off the bed.
    WHat are your all takes on what i should do? I just got a roll of PET tape should i try using that?
     
    #1 Omegagundam, Nov 3, 2014
  2. SteveC

    SteveC Well-Known Member

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    What do you use for bed adhesion?
     
    #2 SteveC, Nov 3, 2014
  3. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    This was my main reason for moving away from free software. Simplify3D makes wonderful supports that:
    1) work (they support what needs it)
    2) pop right off

    I have said before (and likely will again) that I remain convinced this is possible with others (like skienforge) but I had no luck getting 100% usuable supports until I switched.

    The usage of plastic with supports is what it is (although I have my support infill at 15% to help where it can). There is only so much you can do there.

    Ultimately if you can arrange or re-work a model to print W/O supports that is a win, but if you need them... you need them.
     
    #3 mark tomlinson, Nov 3, 2014
  4. Mike Kelly

    Mike Kelly Volunteer

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    Support material is a function of the design. It's needed when overhangs cause filament drops and curls.

    As far as adhesion goes the two options are rafts and brims. Rafts build a platform for it to print on to try and minimize warping on the first layer. It's a good option but uses a lot of material. Some people also find that the raft either sticks too well or not enough.

    Brims are the better option for ABS prints, especially if you have to print with supports. It provides a lot of the same adhestion advantages of a raft but without needing as much material. A high number of brims is a good idea if you have support that is far away.
     
    #4 Mike Kelly, Nov 3, 2014
  5. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    +1 on brims, they are a good solution for taller, skinnier objects that do not have enough footprint to hold on...
     
    #5 mark tomlinson, Nov 3, 2014
  6. Omegagundam

    Omegagundam Member

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    For adhesive i am using a extra hold hairspray... i forget the name brand

    Is Simplify3D a paid program? i use matter control right now but if Simplify is way better i would like to give it a shot.

    The objects i am printing are not very tall just long and semi wide. I would say the max height i have been printing is like 3-4 inches. After like 10-20 min of printing like 1 side will pop up and it gets higher as the printing goes on. I have this roll of 8in by like 200 foot roll of PET tape i got from canada for ABS for like $42. I might try it tonight to see how well it works.
     
    #6 Omegagundam, Nov 3, 2014
  7. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    Yea, you can get it here.

    http://www.simplify3d.com/

    I consider it a world apart from MC. In all fairness though, MC can do a decent job (as can some of the other free ones--just not with supports) but I have not had to even think about slicing even once since switching. It just works (and is faster than any other slicer I have seen).
    The one time I did have issues I pinged their support and they fixed the model for me (it was a model malfunction that NetFabb did not flag).
    Now they have repair functions built in as well.
     
    #7 mark tomlinson, Nov 3, 2014
    Last edited by a moderator: Nov 4, 2014
  8. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    That sounds like a job for that new stuff I just got : Wolfbite. It is used instead of hairspray and the like. It is supposed to really make ABS stick well. I have not yet tried it.

    www.airwolf3d.com
     
    #8 mark tomlinson, Nov 3, 2014
  9. Omegagundam

    Omegagundam Member

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    Kewl thank u everyone...
    well here are my settings right now in matter control for skirt and brim and the big picture is the item i am printing and support material info.
    the object i am printing as u can see is long... the top part of it that sticks out is where it starts to come up. Its the very top of the image where the long thing sticks out.
    ok i cant upload images so i gotta go thru photo bucket ...

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    should i change these settings?
     
    #9 Omegagundam, Nov 3, 2014
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