Using ABS plate as support

[Jena67]

I work for a company that produces HiPs abd abs sheets. I have cut a square out of a 3mm thick abs abs sheet.
Using a double sided tape I've positioned it over the original plate. I've connected the resistance plug to the Temperature reader plug in order not to heat the steel plate and not to get a "too hot temperature error".
Printing is much faster, no need to wait for the platform to get warm, no issues about wrapping and the printed part is easy to remove. For me this is the best solution. I've already printed more than 1kg over the same abs plate!
I hope this idea might be useful for other upers!

[ETPDesign]

Would you, please, post some pictures?

How easy is it to break the part away from the plate after printing?

Do you have to do anything to the ABS plate to prepare it for the next print job?

[josejuako]

Photos and thanks.

J

[Jena67]

Here are the pictures.

As you can see the surface is a bit rough, I've damaged it using a blade to take the parts away at the beginning.

Now I use the "spatola" sorry I don't know the English name, that's inside the UP box.

If somebody is interested to buy the ABS sheets please contact me, I'll get some with the next ABS production batch.

There is no need to do anything to the surface between prints, just take the part away, re install the metal plate on the printer and print!

IMPORTANT: do not heat the plate, I think it could melt the double sided tape.

Ciao!

[Jena67]

From these pictures you can see that there is no wrapping and that the part can be removed from the support plate in a clean way.

[Polaris]

Hi Jena67
that's awesome

Yes, I resorted to the use of a 9mm plywood board to eliminate the heating of the platform.

Mark 2

Mark 2-0.jpg (224.17 KiB) Viewed 967 times

What most people believe is that you need to heat the substrate.
Based on what I learned in metal shops is that, AFTER you weld everything up (essentially what we are doing printing) that you then put it in an oven to 'normalise'.
This takes the stresses out of the entire part while keeping it in tolerance.

What did you do to connect the sensor and the heater plugs? just tie them together with wire/kapton tape? make another block ?

I'm working on a solution to make this process efficient at the moment. IE a quick release platform using as little force as possible on the guide bearing/structure.

[Jena67]

Hi Polaris,

wow who painted your printer? really nice!

I left the plate support and heater in place.

I first disconnected the 4 poles plug that is in the support arm, you can see it if you take the plate away and open the support arm removing the 4 screws.

After unplugging the 4 poles plug I've got a "too hot platform" error and the printer did not start.

What I did was to connect the plug in the wrong way so the 2 wires of the temperature sensor coming from the board was connected to the heater wires.

Do not do the opposite or you might burn the temperature sensor.

In this way the board records a low support plate temperature but the printer prints.

The 2 ends of the heater feeding wires are not connected to anything so there is no power consumption.

It could be interesting to test also a PMMA support plate, my company also produces them, I'll test them soon, they're as flat and shiny as glass, if the part can be removed there is no need for printing with support.

Ciao

[Polaris]

Yeah Hi Jena

Sorry, couldn't quite follow the platform connection explanation...

Platform Connector1.jpg (208.77 KiB) Viewed 883 times

here's a diagram of what I thought you were meaning... is that right ?

Platform Connector2.jpg (140.39 KiB) Viewed 883 times

The $3 / 20minute paint job was just some $1 spray cans of blue, and black & white, while I had the covers off and was waiting on parts.
3D printing systems was too quick off the mark and got me the replacements before I could finish all my mods tho