1st Build Printer Suggestions

[Egothrasher]

Good day ladies and gentlemen,

I've decided to start my journey and travel down the rabbit hole of costumes and 3d printing. I've just read through the printer post with everyone's printers. I had a few questions and would love some feedback/tips/suggestions. My project I have in mind is the master chief armor.

- Quite a few brands seem to stand out, creality and some others to name a few. Are they any recommendations in terms of printers with larger print beds, less glue up and piecing together. Ability to print pieces in one go.

-Resins printers have the ability to print smooth and more detail. So it seems there is less post cleanup required. I know they are more expensive, and I'm sure there are other factors involved. Cleanup, UV, waste disposable, it seems etc. Are they suggested for a costume piece or just stick to filament.

- Is there a big difference between the printers with an open bed versus the inclosed ones? Or should I just be looking at bed size.

- If I were to start with galactic armory files. How easy is it to scale/adjust pieces to my size. Is it just a matter of dragging them bigger or should I start to learn a new software program? I don't know if it's possible to make a mannequin in software then I can adjust the pieces and visually see them digitally before printing. Or do I need to just print and trial and error?

Thanks for all your help and can't wait to start my journey!

 

[ItSpartan116]

I will recommend the CR-10s and Anycubic Korba 2 Max for a beginner since it affordable and easy to work on. Ultimaker Cura is a good slicer and sizing program for beginners and Meshmixer to cut model to pieces. Sizing is not really hard but not easy, it mostly time to get used to it and learn alot by looking at Cosplayer and 3d printer creator. Ending here, 3d Printing is not hard but will take time to learn and alot of practice through trails and errors.

 

[SgtSaint]

There's already a "what's your printer" and "wish I had known before buying a printer" thread on the site that have many pages of feedback and reviews. That really would have tons of info and are there so the site doesn't get 100 "what printer should I buy" posts a month.

Excerpts of my regular 'new armorer post'

If you are new to 3d printing or considering buying your first 3d printer just so you can make an armor:
3d printer have come a long way since I started with them in 2009. But they still aren't fully plug-n-play like a department store inkjet: But some of the newest & smallest ones are getting there. There's a lot more to 3d printing than just hitting print: Like knowing your different materials and when to use them. Or knowing when more walls and less infil, or more infil and less walls is the right choice. You should expect there to be a learning curve and at $20/spool that curve comes with a cost. I'm just saying walk into 3d printing with your eyes open.
"What's your printer?" thread on the 405th forum:
What's Your Printer?

Jumping right to armor is really not the best way to go when beginning 3d printing. You really want to work up to something this big and specialized. Work up to things so big that a 3% goof can mean added costs, joints that lock up and you can't bend your elbow etc. Little easy things first… Things with no supports to start. Move up to props like pistols. And keep moving upward over time.
• A few settings differences can be the difference between a part too weak to be used and printing your armor so heavy it's exhausting to wear. The difference between a $10 part and a $40 part adds up to a significant difference over an entire armor.


If it's your first printer taking a hybrid approach can actually save money. Get the small bed printer for home use and see if you even like doing this. Large 500mm machines aren't cheap and take up space and fails are proportionately expensive. If you love doing it and can justify the big printer as your second or third machine, go for it. But if you want to make the smaller things at home and outsource the big stuff to a print farm like www.starbase3d.com (mine for transparency) the extra-large printers mean being able to have big armor pieces like legs/chest/back done in single-prints instead of several seams to be glued and blended into invisibility.

Helmet probably should be last, not first. Yeah yeah, everyone wants a helmet to drool over. But it's the thing everyone stares at so you want to do it AFTER you've developed a process, techniques and skills.
Personally I always recommend starting at the feet & hands then working up & in to the body.
• You're going to weather and distress the boots more than anything else... and they get looked at with the least critical eye.
• Then shins which have to ride on the boots.
• Then thighs since you have to avoid joint conflict so you can sit etc.
• See how this goes? Up from the boots, and inward from the hands to forearms to biceps to shoulders.
• By the time you get to the chest and helmet; the parts at eye level that everyone stares at, looks at first, is right there in your face in every photo - you can make them look stellar.

And if you start at the boots you're looking at parts that are only a day or two per part not 6 days per part. So you can hone your scaling skills.

Not saying: Don't ask
Am saying: There are so many experienced armorers that have poured collective man-years into really good build threads, articles and tutorials filled with do's and don'ts and wish-I-had-knowns that you're doing yourself a disservice by not reading them. A casual afternoon of reading the tales of those that came before you would put you MONTHS further ahead, save you time, money, effort, wastage and exasperation. Not to mention after all those people's hard work making the articles it would be a shame for them to not get read.

 

[Cadet]

What's Your Printer?

This question always seems to come up a decent bit so I figured "why not just make a thread?" Post your printer(s) you use for props and costumes and if you like them! This is to help newer people figure out what printer they may want for starting their costuming adventure Printer Name Bed...

www.405th.com

"I wish I knew" Tips When Starting to 3d Print

Hello again everyone! The "What's Your Printer" thread has now nearly hit 100 replies (holy cow!) as a result of that we're looking to move to the next stage in creating the ultimate 3d printer for Halo & cosplay reference thread! In this thread we'd like to know what are some things that you...

www.405th.com

 

[N8TEBB]

If I were to start with galactic armory files. How easy is it to scale/adjust pieces to my size.

I'd like to recommend checking out this thread for a bit of information on the Galactic armory files. Start at the post linked, then read a few of the following posts.

Mark VI Mjolnir Powered Assault Armor GEN 3 - 3D Printed - Full Walkthrough

Booster I'll contact you directly to help you. I feel your pain!

www.405th.com

As for scaling armour pieces in general, I use a program called armorsmith. It is a paid program that costs roughly $40. You simply input your measurements and it created a digital mannequin that you can scale your armour pieces to. I'd say it's worth the money. There are a lot of tutorials on how to use it on YouTube. I'd recommend watching a few videos to see if it's a program that you'd find helpful.

Is there a big difference between the printers with an open bed versus the inclosed ones? Or should I just be looking at bed size.

Having an enclosed chamber will allow you to print more temperamental plastics like PETG. Personally, I have an open bed. While I've been able to get along mostly fine printing in PLA, sometimes I feel a bit held back that I can't print many different kinds of plastics. It can also be a problem because the room the printer is in can get a bit cold in the winter, which can cause some bed adhesion issues. I think it will be hard to get a unanimous answer from us as we all have different uses/goals for each of our machines. But overall, it won't hurt to have an enclosure. But if you don't get one, you may hold yourself back from printing a bigger variety of plastics in the future.

Resins printers have the ability to print smooth and more detail. So it seems there is less post cleanup required. I know they are more expensive, and I'm sure there are other factors involved. Cleanup, UV, waste disposable, it seems etc. Are they suggested for a costume piece or just stick to filament.

Resin printers are great! They really shine for making very small details. It's a bit overkill to print an entire helmet in resin. A resin printer could definitely do it, but you could also cut your lawn with mustache scissors. If you're looking to print an entire suit, a Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM/Filament) printer would be the way to go. Most folks who have resin printers here use them in tandem with FDM printers. The FDM take care of the large structural areas, while the resin printer takes care of the details that can be glued on afterwards. From what I understand, resin printers also create fumes and require the use of chemicals that require extra special attention. FDM printers printing PLA are fine to use inside without ventilation on the other hand.

Quite a few brands seem to stand out, creality and some others to name a few. Are they any recommendations in terms of printers with larger print beds, less glue up and piecing together. Ability to print pieces in one go.

This is a great question! Unfortunately there is no one right answer. Most everyone on these forums will have a different answer. And I cannot offer too much helpful advice, as my printer is approaching it's 4th birthday and oh boy how the times have changed since then. The best advice I can give it to read through those links that Cadet linked above and see what people are able to make with the printers they have. See what their complaints are, what their praises are, and from there you may be able to narrow it down to what you want to get out of a printer. Luckily for you, most entry level 3D printers are pretty decent. So even if you don't get the absolute BEST one for your purposes, you will most likely have an easier time making it work than someone who bought the best of the best 5 years ago. Either way, like sgt saint said, it will be a learning curve that requires quite a bit of effort. So don't be discouraged when it doesn't always work the way you'd like.

Hope this information is helpful! Let me know of you have any questions. And to any other members that may be reading: feel free to correct me if I'm in error in anything and feel free to add to what i've said!

 

[Egothrasher]

I'd like to recommend checking out this thread for a bit of information on the Galactic armory files. Start at the post linked, then read a few of the following posts.

Mark VI Mjolnir Powered Assault Armor GEN 3 - 3D Printed - Full Walkthrough

Booster I'll contact you directly to help you. I feel your pain!

www.405th.com

As for scaling armour pieces in general, I use a program called armorsmith. It is a paid program that costs roughly $40. You simply input your measurements and it created a digital mannequin that you can scale your armour pieces to. I'd say it's worth the money. There are a lot of tutorials on how to use it on YouTube. I'd recommend watching a few videos to see if it's a program that you'd find helpful.


Having an enclosed chamber will allow you to print more temperamental plastics like PETG. Personally, I have an open bed. While I've been able to get along mostly fine printing in PLA, sometimes I feel a bit held back that I can't print many different kinds of plastics. It can also be a problem because the room the printer is in can get a bit cold in the winter, which can cause some bed adhesion issues. I think it will be hard to get a unanimous answer from us as we all have different uses/goals for each of our machines. But overall, it won't hurt to have an enclosure. But if you don't get one, you may hold yourself back from printing a bigger variety of plastics in the future.


Resin printers are great! They really shine for making very small details. It's a bit overkill to print an entire helmet in resin. A resin printer could definitely do it, but you could also cut your lawn with mustache scissors. If you're looking to print an entire suit, a Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM/Filament) printer would be the way to go. Most folks who have resin printers here use them in tandem with FDM printers. The FDM take care of the large structural areas, while the resin printer takes care of the details that can be glued on afterwards. From what I understand, resin printers also create fumes and require the use of chemicals that require extra special attention. FDM printers printing PLA are fine to use inside without ventilation on the other hand.


This is a great question! Unfortunately there is no one right answer. Most everyone on these forums will have a different answer. And I cannot offer too much helpful advice, as my printer is approaching it's 4th birthday and oh boy how the times have changed since then. The best advice I can give it to read through those links that Cadet linked above and see what people are able to make with the printers they have. See what their complaints are, what their praises are, and from there you may be able to narrow it down to what you want to get out of a printer. Luckily for you, most entry level 3D printers are pretty decent. So even if you don't get the absolute BEST one for your purposes, you will most likely have an easier time making it work than someone who bought the best of the best 5 years ago. Either way, like sgt saint said, it will be a learning curve that requires quite a bit of effort. So don't be discouraged when it doesn't always work the way you'd like.

Hope this information is helpful! Let me know of you have any questions. And to any other members that may be reading: feel free to correct me if I'm in error in anything and feel free to add to what i've said!

Thank you for the information. I have bought armormsith and it is great. Especially once you can custom size the armor pieces and the quick plane is such a useful tool. I can see go much space there is between the model and the avatar.

Question in regards to armormsith though. I've watched a lot of franks videos, he mostly does iron man cosplay. He suggests wearing like sweaters/thicker clothing when taking the measurements. I did that. In regards to the undersuit pieces though, do I want those to still have a gap between the print and the avatar? Or should I try to make those as close to the skin as possible?

For the armor pieces I left a little gap, which I can later layer with foam/padding. As I wouldn't want to have skin to plastic, not very comfortable. Plus, especially in the arms/biceps/thighs, muscles change dimensions as you flex and move.

 

[N8TEBB]

Now I made my armour from foam which is flexible, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I did my measurements not wearing thick clothing. I did notice right away that the first armorur piece I made was too tight, so I made sure to scale up the future pieces a few percentage points before printing the templates. I suppose this is why it's a good idea to wear thicker clothing when measuring. I would assume that if you wear thick clothing when measuring you don't need to leave a gap on the armour pieces in armorsmith. It's already accounted for by the thickness of the clothing, no?

Which part of the under suit are you printing? the abdomen section? You will probably want a bit of clearance to breathe. I would assume you could make it skin-tight in armorsmith, which will make it slightly larger in real life because of the thicker clothing you wore while measuring. That's is only what I intuitively think though, so don't take that advice as gospel. My suit, being foam, can bend and change shape when I move which makes scaling a bit less worrisome.

 

[Egothrasher]

I have decided for the undersuit, to make it out of foam pieces glued to the spandex black undersuit. Makes it more original to the design. Just have to figure out how to turn the 3d model into 2d. I believe you can do it with pepakura.

As for the printer, I currently live in Washington state. So currently it is pretty chilly. I was planning on putting the 3d printer on my workbench out in the garage. I am looking into the Kobra 2 Max. Do I need to look into enclosures since it is cold outside atm? I will be primarily printing in PETG/PLA. The acrylic enclosures I've seen so far cost almost as much as the printer. I will also be purchasing a filament warmer, when I do print in flexible pla/tpu. I don't know if any sort of fumes come off the printer while printing, to try indoors versus garage. But given the size of the printer and the long print processes, I believe the garage is a better bet.

 

[SgtSaint]

Resin printers are great! They really shine for making very small details. It's a bit overkill to print an entire helmet in resin. A resin printer could definitely do it, but you could also cut your lawn with mustache scissors. If you're looking to print an entire suit, a Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM/Filament) printer would be the way to go. Most folks who have resin printers here use them in tandem with FDM printers. The FDM take care of the large structural areas, while the resin printer takes care of the details that can be glued on afterwards. From what I understand, resin printers also create fumes and require the use of chemicals that require extra special attention. FDM printers printing PLA are fine to use inside without ventilation on the other hand.

• Resin printed helmets are awesome. Think of it this way: How many people go for those resin cast helmets that some vendors have? Its a big deal, right? Well with a resin printed helmet you get the same benefit, but scaled to your head just like an FDM print instead of the one-size-fits-most because it comes out of a mold at 100% every time.

Spoiler: Shameless plug for my shop

Full-size cosplay helmet printing service — Starbase3d

Made to order - made to size and fit you. We work with you to scale your helmet for a proper fit. Manufacturing of your helmet can take different approaches. Resin printed. As the photos show, a resin printed helmet will be the smoothest approach requiring virtually no sanding. However, due to

www.starbase3d.com

• Resin printing is absolutely a toxic workflow. Its not just smelly its actually carcinogenic. If you have the environment for it, its awesome. But its not something that should be on your household HVAC sharing air with living things like people, pets and so on.

 

[SinisterPropz]

If you want to print parts in one piece, Anycubic Kobra Max 2 is going to be your best bet. I have one myself and it works great for armor.

 

[N8TEBB]

Resin printed helmets are awesome. Think of it this way: How many people go for those resin cast helmets that some vendors have? Its a big deal, right? Well with a resin printed helmet you get the same benefit, but scaled to your head just like an FDM print instead of the one-size-fits-most because it comes out of a mold at 100% every time.

I didn't realize that they made resin printers that big! I always figured that a full helmet was just too big to practically fit in the build area of a resin printer. Thanks for the info

I was planning on putting the 3d printer on my workbench out in the garage. I am looking into the Kobra 2 Max. Do I need to look into enclosures since it is cold outside atm? I will be primarily printing in PETG/PLA.

Printers can work in a garage but they don't thrive out there. I find that the colder the room is, the worse adhesion I get to the printer bed. If it's going in the garage where the temperature can fluctuate quite drastically throughout the day then an enclosure would definitely be beneficial.

 

[SinisterPropz]

• Resin printed helmets are awesome. Think of it this way: How many people go for those resin cast helmets that some vendors have? Its a big deal, right? Well with a resin printed helmet you get the same benefit, but scaled to your head just like an FDM print instead of the one-size-fits-most because it comes out of a mold at 100% every time.

Spoiler: Shameless plug for my shop

Full-size cosplay helmet printing service — Starbase3d

Made to order - made to size and fit you. We work with you to scale your helmet for a proper fit. Manufacturing of your helmet can take different approaches. Resin printed. As the photos show, a resin printed helmet will be the smoothest approach requiring virtually no sanding. However, due to

www.starbase3d.com

• Resin printing is absolutely a toxic workflow. Its not just smelly its actually carcinogenic. If you have the environment for it, its awesome. But its not something that should be on your household HVAC sharing air with living things like people, pets and so on.

Yeah I have an Anycubic M3 Max in my workshop and make sure to constantly run oversized air purifiers in the room as well as small filters in the printer itself. I also always where a mask when the lid opens. Want to minimize the risk as much as possible.