Help: 3D Printer Guru's Needed

Which printer is best for a 3D printed costume?

  • Lulzbot 5

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Lulzbot 6

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Monoprice Duplicator i3

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Other Not Listed (please comment)

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    4
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KirbyHalo117

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Okay, so I've already finished a Hybrid build (high-density foam / Pepakura) and I enjoyed it for a while until I sold it. I have been debating getting into another build. Here's the catch...

I haven't used 3D printers before, but I recently gained unlimited free access to a ProJet 160 (top of the line multi-thousand dollar powder-based printer) as well as a Lulzbot 5, Lulzbot 6, Monoprice Duplicator i3, Prusa i3 MK2, and a SeeMeCNC Rostock MAX V2. I would like to know your thoughts on which printer would be best to use, and if anyone is willing, help me scale and model all the parts for either a Halo or Iron Man costume. I'm undecided which one, or which MK, but if someone helps me out, I will also use the printer for their own stuff (as long as you pay for the filament)

This would be a great opportunity for someone to help me learn the ropes of 3D printing while also getting your own stuff printed without investing in a high end printer or dealing with maintenance. Please reply or PM me with your ideas or suggestions or help. Thanks guys!
 
I just did some research about the ProJet. Although it is very fast at printing, the material it prints (VisiJet PXL Core powder) is probably not strong enough for armor. What other suggestions do you guys have?
 
well, you should consider molding and casting printed parts; depending on your budget of course. The ProJet has some fantastic print quality that will result in almost no finishing work. All the FDM printers you have listed will require lots of sanding to get a nice result, just my ten cents. :)
 
well, you should consider molding and casting printed parts; depending on your budget of course. The ProJet has some fantastic print quality that will result in almost no finishing work. All the FDM printers you have listed will require lots of sanding to get a nice result, just my ten cents. :)

So you're saying I should use the ProJet 160 to make molds, then cast the parts out of what material? And how much budget are we talking about here? Will it be time consuming? Isn't there a way to just print the parts and they'd be usable right away? If not, how exactly do I cast the parts, and what do I cast it out of? Would there be a simple way to 3D print a mold that could be used to cast Aluminum Alloy parts?
 
The Projet is destined to do molds. It uses a plaster-like material to create high def models with : perfect for high resolution, smooth molds, worthless for anything that involves any type of mechanical strength.
As for what FDM to use : totally moot. Take whatever machine you feel comfortable about. The bigger the machine, the less assembly is required.
Monoprices are afaik rebranded Wanhao I3's. I'm dog lazy by nature, I'd go for the Lulzbot TAZ6 which has about the biggest printvolume of the bunch (roughly something just below 300x300x250 or something if memory serves me)

But as I've never used any of these devices myself, I'm reluctant to tell you which to use : it depense in what condition they're kept, how much workload they've to do outside of your wishes ect ect. When callibrated and maintained correctly, there shouldn't be much quality difference visable between any of them in the end.
 
The Projet is destined to do molds. It uses a plaster-like material to create high def models with : perfect for high resolution, smooth molds, worthless for anything that involves any type of mechanical strength.
As for what FDM to use : totally moot. Take whatever machine you feel comfortable about. The bigger the machine, the less assembly is required.
Monoprices are afaik rebranded Wanhao I3's. I'm dog lazy by nature, I'd go for the Lulzbot TAZ6 which has about the biggest printvolume of the bunch (roughly something just below 300x300x250 or something if memory serves me)

But as I've never used any of these devices myself, I'm reluctant to tell you which to use : it depense in what condition they're kept, how much workload they've to do outside of your wishes ect ect. When callibrated and maintained correctly, there shouldn't be much quality difference visable between any of them in the end.

Just to be clear, this means I can use the ProJet to make plaster-like molds then cast the molds using a melted down aluminum alloy? Is the material good for aluminum casts?
 
I wouldn't do aluminum. you can't really sand aluminum in an everyday location. Maybe some smoothcast brand resin for strong, lightweight, sandable casts.
 
I wouldn't do aluminum. you can't really sand aluminum in an everyday location. Maybe some smoothcast brand resin for strong, lightweight, sandable casts.

Which smooth cast? I can't decide on model type. Could you help me figure out which one would be the best for the highest quality armor possible?
 
Which smooth cast? I can't decide on model type. Could you help me figure out which one would be the best for the highest quality armor possible?

I don't know, it really depends on what qualities you need from the resin. Check out the specifications, narrow down your options, and choose between 2 or 3.
 
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