Vinyl decal on printbed = awesome

Looking forward to ABS results.

 

I just printed a test cube one the vinyl... WOW!!! If you can lay your hands on some vinyl, GET IT!!! Highly recommended you try it... the bottom is shiny, there was good adhesion, no warping (although if you get warping with a 1cm test cube... you're REALLY doing something wrong) and easier to see, since I got a white sheet. My print settings are: 205*C 1st layer, 180*C the rest of the layers. 0 infill, rectilinear top/bottom fill, black PLA, 0.3mm layers.

 

Awesome man. Glad you are getting same results as i am. Anyone with issues needs to try for sure. Mine is dialed now, all im doing is hitting print, getting awesome prints.

 

Thanks alot for the heads up! I'm glad I read this and will be getting some immediately. I'm not having any sticking issues unless you count sticking too well. Have to replace the tape every print as it takes alot to remove parts. This will solve that and give a nicer finish. Too cool, thanks!

 

I tried this one with no luck. It didn't stick. It was given to me by a friend. It's really glossy so I don't know if that affects the stickiness! I will try it again a couple of times.

 

Mine is gloss, tried two different brands...mactac was best but both worked. The unknown was about 15yrs old and it was around 0c when i put it on...put bed heater on and it bubbled a little. I think it was from being so cold...a few hours later it was good with heated bed on.

Set nozzle height as low as you can without it actually touching. Then set first layer height to .3. I have never had one not stick doing that. Also wipe vinyl clean with windex or alcohol just in case.

 

Seems to be working now. I have PLA only and NO heated bed (getting one soon) and I think since the bed is not level properly at some points the extruder gets to close to the vinyl and it generates a bubble and then since the bubble is higher than the flat vinyl the extruder touches and melts the vinyl. But its the only way I can make it work. If I increase z axis a little bit more it wont stick. :/

 

Strange. I haven't had any issue burning into mine, and Ive hit it a few times. I don't doubt it though.

Try tightening the belt under the bed, that was enough to straighten my glass bed out ALOT. Throw a straight edge on it and see how bad it is. I did my own bed levelers with rubber orings, and I can now level mine in about 20 seconds.

The belt on mine is TIGHT, but it still moves freely.

 

Thanks Racegrafix! I think bed levelling is killing me. My print was going very smooth until it suddenly went all crazy. I will tight the belt when it finishes. Thanks a lot. Do you have a photo of your orings. Do yo know a part number or size?

 

The size is like a 3mm i.d., since its a 3mm bolt...or 1/8". I flipped bolts, removed nut in middle...added oring and washer. This matched stock height and with nut on top i can tighten or loosen to raise or lower.

I only did it on two of the 4 bolts. I just left front two stock and adjust rear but my machine sits backwards due to cable length.

 

Just tried Taulman 618.

They say use wood or garolite to get it to stick, and it stuck to vinyl perfectly. I gotta get my temps dialed in, because nylon is prone to warping...I haven't figured out the correct settings yet. I can get 45 minutes into a print with no issues though, very nice lines.

so far tried 243C hot end 60c heat bed , no fan

I think 245-250 and 70C may be the trick.

 

Strange...you can type in mactac 8300 and a bunch show on ebay. I tried an economy grade on another brand and its doing great also. I have a feeling the "cast" vinyl will work really well..it seems to feel a bit more rubbery when its heated.

 

Just spent the day giving vinyl the test and one thing I can say, I've got a roll of blue painters tape and a full can of hairspray for anyone who wants to pick it up... Don't think I will need them anymore lol...

I have a sign/print shop very close that was super cool with helping out, they had "heard of 3D printing, kind of" but loved the idea. I find a lot of people I talk to have "heard of it" but really don't know what it is.
I went there today just hoping to buy a couple cheap vinyl squares for testing and the lady that I talked to was awesome! As soon as I said what they were for she grabbed a small stack sheets of one vinyl for me and before I had a chance to even thank her, she went and grabbed a large 27" x 15 foot roll of white mactac sample that they never used still in the box. All for free!!
They don't know it yet but they are getting donuts tomorrow with a little 3D printed thank you sign from me.

One thing I can verify so far is that certain vinyl IS prone to the slight melting/burning that was talked about prior, I am noticing that and trying to adjust the first layer to prevent that. When it's done I can totally see the image melted into the bed at 213 first layer PLA. I don't have any of the mactac 8xxx series but just ordered a square on ebay to compare it.
To be honest as well as this sticks, this should eliminate the need for a hotter first layer, maybe even reduce it. however I think if the head moves too fast at first it will pick it right off the bed. trial and error time.

The benefit is hugely how easily and cleanly the parts come off the bed. For me there is no going back. Especially if I find the 8300 series holds better at high temp.
For reference the roll of vinyl I have is Mactac MAC-R0828, Not quite ideal but awesome for me to practice with.
She told me that the "R" in the number means removable. Something important if you don't want to scrape it off the bed to remove it, so anyone ordering from Mactec, If you see "R" remember it's a good thing.

 

Awesome! One tip for removing it, heat the bed (60c seems to work) and it will come off easier. And if you have big sheet...when you are removing, score it with razor blade in one inch strips. That way you arent fighting the whole sheet if its stuck really good.

I have around 10 prints on my current sheet and no need to change anytime soon.

 

Awesome, you know that gives me an idea about scoring it. I was using 2 inch painters tape before and it made it easy to only replace a strip at a time if I had to when I dug into it when removing parts.
I'm going to go the same route with the vinyl. Im going to pre cut it down to 2 inch wide strips and place them as seemless as I could the tape. That way it will make it easy for me at this time to make quick patch repairs on the fly.
I dont have a heated bed yet and this large roll of vinyl does seem somewhat prone to melting so far, this will help me get the best use of it. Thanks for helping me think of that

 

Oh man, I found the ticket...

I had a large print that goes from one end of platform to the next, kinda tricky to get stuck on first layer cleanly over such a wide area....mainly when it first starts. Tried it twice with small problem. Changed nothing, took and scuffed vinyl with 1,000 grit sandpaper. Wiped clean with alcohol(did each time as well), and stuck instantly. If you have a difficult to print part...this will most likely get it done. Huge difference in adhesion.

 

Racegrafix Keep the ideas flowing my friend. NOW I'm going to adjust the belt below the bed and then I will sand the vinyl a little bit to see if it helps with the first layer problem.

Guys what is your Layer Height and First Layer Heigth? I have mine at 0.2046 and 150%
I'm thinking to increase the FLH to 200%

 

I am doing .2046 and .3. I tried .2 and .3 and saw no difference. I tried .2046 and .25 and that was bad...very unreliable.