Print Perfect Minis! How To Change Your Layer Heights When Resin 3D Printing - Fast or Flawless
Full article with all STL Files - core-electroni...
Print perfect 28mm scale models ever! Or adjust all the speed settings to max the output of your Resin 3D printer. Mastery of Layer Heights provides you the choice to decide between Speed or Precision. Today we configure the Layer Height in our slicing software (Lychee and Chitubox), manage the carry-on effects when doing this, and present great printed examples epitomising when and why this is worth it. Welcome to our Fifth Episode in our Resin Printing Series.
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If you have any questions about this content or want to share a project you're working on head over to our maker forum, we are full time makers and here to help - coreelec.io/forum
Which Layer Height is Best to use? It is model and time dependent. Using A Larger Layer Height means a Faster 3D Print. Using A Lower Layer Height means a Better Representation of the 3D Design. The 100 Micron Layer Height is the usual upper limit for these 3D printers. Light can only travel through resin so far without either inaccurately dispersing or just physically being unable to penetrate through the liquid resin material far enough. On the other side, a 10 Micron Layer Height is currently the thinnest you can print at. This limitation is imposed due to the viscosity of the resin liquid. To be clear, Layer Height is the thickness of each layer of cured material (Z-Axis). It is very rare to utilises Multiple Layer Heights when printing a single model, instead, a single layer height is chosen in the slicing software for the whole print to complete with. This setting can be altered in all good resin slicing software. There are a couple of things to keep on top of whenever you are altering layer height to make sure your Resin 3D prints come out perfect. Layer Exposure Times, Total Bottom Layers, Final Cure Time and Understanding the Risk when changing Layer Heights are all addressed. With this knowledge under your belt your 3D printers will work better, faster and more accurately than ever before.
Now a 10 micron Layer Height is remarkable (and is the perfect layer height for 28mm scale models)! Particularly when you keep in mind a fine human hair is 17 microns (μm) thick, 3-8 μm is the thickness of spider silk and 10 μm is the size of a water droplet in a cloud. Hell, the length of a length of bacterium is only 1-10 μm (and with that 3D-printed bacteria are closer than the common citizen thinks - www.sciencedir.... Also check out the full write up for more on that Terracotta Warrior (that took over three days to Resin 3D Print on the machine here) or more on any of the other 3D printed models you can see on the table.
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0:00 Intro
0:15 What is Layer Height
0:30 What Layer Heights to Use
0:45 Video Overview
0:57 Test Pieces Introduction
1:18 Slight Incline Test Piece
1:54 First Layer Height Comparison
2:36 Kirby Test Pieces
3:03 28mm Scale Miniature Test Pieces
3:19 Find Setting in Lychee Slicer
4:16 Find Setting in Chitubox Slicer
4:37 Carry On Effects to Know and Manage
6:13 Tips for MAX SPEED
7:24 Outro
Пікірлер: 74
Yours have been the best explanations of resin printing I've found! Thank you so much for taking the time to help us all unskilled and get something useful out of our printers.
Incredible video! Thanks for showing the difference between the layer heights. Incredibly helpful and saves us all a lot of time! Also, very well produced video too. Great job!
Glad I found these guides. I’m pretty new to the space and printed some models last night but the detail I was expecting just wasn’t there. I’m going to fine tune the layer height and exposure and try it again. I feel much more confident about identifying the issue after watching these vids. Thank you!
Great information. Thank you ! I never changed mine and it was defaulted at .05mm. Works for me, but takes forever !
You're a legend, I've been struggling like mad with my new Saturn 2 and waterwashable resin to get detailed prints for 28mm models, I have only tried changing exposure settings, from 2.5 all the way to 2.0 but it made little to no difference, now that I know what layer height does i will try that when I get home and hopefully get more detailed prints thanks :)
@slyoldowl
Жыл бұрын
What do you have your settings at I'm learning too
@Potts2k8
2 ай бұрын
How did it go, did it sort your issues?
@lordy6666
2 ай бұрын
@Potts2k8 My issue, after to weeks of headbanging and rage quitting turned out to be Elegoo's own resin being incompatible with their own printer! I switched to Sunlu resin and have not had a bad print yet. Weeks and weeks lost to that stupid resin!
@Potts2k8
2 ай бұрын
@@lordy6666 oh jeez, how very counter productive of them. I just had my Anycubic delivered today and while waiting on it, I've seen horror stories with resin quality, leaking vats (on my particular model too 👀) and... I really need to stop being hyper fixated on all the horror stories 😅 Happy to hear you got it sorted in the end. Any fun prints you could recommend?
@lordy6666
2 ай бұрын
@Potts2k8 depends what your interests are, for me it's wargaming so I printed a lot of Avatars of War models.
Your videos always make resin printing seem more complicated and more error prone than it really is. If all I ever watched was you, I'd never have dared to start in the first place.
@Maskof7eyes2
Жыл бұрын
Thanks for this it really helps me make decisions, especially after YT took away the dislike count for the pol and big brands
@zagan1
7 ай бұрын
It's not scary but you'd probably not like it if you had 50 failed attempts to get something done. These videos would be the advanced side, where you want slightly better runs
@LordOcelot
3 ай бұрын
Dude you’re so right
@kena4977
Ай бұрын
It has been my experience that making something come out of your printer is easy enough. It is making something perfect that is complicated. I think is trying to split the difference here. Enough information for a newbie and detailed enough for people refining their craft.
@Martial-Mat
Ай бұрын
@@kena4977 Good observation. Do you think resin printing will ever have its Bambu Labs moment, where the technology is dramatically improved to make it easier and more reliable?
This was super helpful, thank you for making this video.
I Printed multiple miniature Armies. Although I am not an expert, I've taught myself exposure times, etc from youtubers like yourself. I was out of town for a week, so I emptied my resin vat, to ensure no issues. I came home rendered an entire plate and not only did the whole plate fail, but the resin was falling apart like my exposure times were extremely low, and the weirdest aspect is now the bottom quarter of the figures are shortened. for example, if I make supports that are roughly 5mm off the raft, when i print, the supports are gone and the item is melded within the raft. I have to suspend the model up 10-15mm of supports just the have the print come out with 5mm of supports. I have no idea what could be causing the issue. I factory reset everything, and it is still doing it. I ordered some replacement FEPs, because it did get slightly damaged due to the amount of misprints I have been getting to fix this issue. Thoughts on what it might be? (Phrozen Sonic 8k Mighty, Phrozen 8k Aqua Grey, and Lychee Slicer Pro)
@Core-Electronics
Жыл бұрын
It sounds to me like the resin has aged (gotten cloudier) and the good exposure settings you found before are now no good. Especially considering the models are not forming correctly. So I would crank up Normal Exposure time a couple of seconds. I'd also double check that your build platform is perfectly level with the FEP. Hope this helps! 😊 Tim
@BionMTG
Жыл бұрын
@@Core-Electronics I received the resin roughly a month ago, but I did read level the printer as well as the plate. I tested back to factory settings for everything and it is still having the issue where it squishes the bottom 5 mm. So I emailed Phrozen
I have an anycubic...and have been having issues with layer lines..I use lychee..I've had some success with prints and some failures ....so many parameters in resin printing as a newb...I feel overwhelmed.. but this was a great start to learning about a facet I've had issues with! Thank you sir!
This video is a GODSEND thank you so much!
@Core-Electronics
2 жыл бұрын
Naww thank you! 😊
Straightforward nice
That was helpful information. Thank you.
This is an excellent guide and explanation, thank you. I especially appreciate the written article in combination with the video, thats a great way to learn information. I've realised that 50um may not be necessary all the time, so I can increase speed and decrease wear+tear by increasing my layer height most of the time. Question: you mention exposure time changes with layer height adjustments. In general, do larger layer heights require more exposure time or less?
@Core-Electronics
2 жыл бұрын
Thanks for your kind words, and yes generally larger layer heights and thicker layers will require more exposure time.
How about exposure times, it doesn't change at all?
@Core-Electronics
2 жыл бұрын
4:47 - Optimal Exposure Times Changes Dynamically with Different Layer Heights. Hope that helps 😊 and thanks for the comment.
what if print micro gear box,,im wonder how much the smallest size of gearbox can be printed using resin printing..
I have a phrozen mini 8k printer. Currently printing something with very small channels (150 microns) and channels are not fully forming. Printing at 50 micro layer height. If I change this to 40 is there any other changes I need to make
Can you help me woth these lines please? The test cards I'm getting near perfect it's just getting these step lines on the right hand side test Slider not smooth but the rest is perfect I just can't get these layer lines to vanish if or if they even do vanish or just get closer together?
For smoky black siraya tech what do you recommend for bottom exposure and normal exposure?
@Core-Electronics
Жыл бұрын
Hit up this guide and print some Validation Matrices 😊 You'll figure it out within half an hour for your particular resin and printer combination - core-electronics.com.au/guides/perfect-resin-print-exposure-setting/
Thanks, very informative! Had my printer for about 4 days now and a few failed prints and noticing that half the print is stuck to the plate and half isn't, assuming this is a levelling issue so will experiment!
Great video. In your personal opinion what settings would you say accomplish the best results for 40-50mm characters in terms of speed without compromising too much of quality? A 100% subjective question but would love to take your educated estimate over my noob level exp. After all you touched the spot in terms of stressing the hardware. I would rather optimize my lcd lifespan than going all greedy with huge changes in printing times and hardware stress that will only cause tiny benefits under a magnifying glass (which I won't be using) Out of ignorance I would assume that the higher the resolution of the printer also compensates the quality lost with thicker layers. Thanks in advance for your much appreciated wisdom
@Core-Electronics
Жыл бұрын
If I was printing one off models for a DnD campaign and I was putting my heart and soul into it I would definitely use the smallest 10um layers for it. However if I was printing off a large army for tabletop war gaming I'd be more than happy to use 50um (and maybe only for the general of the army use 10um 😊). Worth noting, Layer Height and Resolution of Printer are two different measuring sticks. Layer Height determines is Z-Axis accuracy whereas Resolution is X-Y Axis accuracy. I write about it here - core-electronics.com.au/guides/3d-printing/perfect-resin-print-layer-height/#Where Best of luck and thanks for your question!
@davidc3150
Жыл бұрын
@Core Electronics thanks a lot for the insight. I got good deal on a anycubic mono 4k and 8k phrozen resin. Weird combo I know. But what would be the settings you would recommend? Should the default slicer settings be safe just tweaking the layer height and adjusting the # of base layers? Thanks a lot for your help
@Core-Electronics
Жыл бұрын
Definitely come have a look at this video here I did on Exposure Time. I find manufacturers often tune the exposure settings too high - kzread.info/dash/bejne/q5yL27OJg5nXnbQ.html
Very accurate!! Thx
I have just ordered a Resin Printer and have yet to slice or print anything. For a complete beginner, which slicer would you recommend to give the most trouble-free experience?
I have a Question. I am printing Injection moulds and sometimes they have to be flat on the base but when i print them they come out slightly shorter (it is like the printer skips a few layers) so when i close the mould the part where the injector goes is not a circle and it can't inject properly. is it a settings issue or it is a printer issue ? (also if i print them flat the print time is going down significant so if it is a settings issue if you can tell me where to look ) Thank you :)
if you reduce layer thickness, do you need to alter exposure?
Hi, so I'm an absolute rookie - I have never 3d printed (except a 1-day class where I designed and printed an object, maybe 15 years ago), never cast anything, but I plan to... a lot! I've constructed many injection molded styrene models though, and kit bashed, and made things from scratch. I would love to be able to print items with the finest details - in scales from about 1:144 through 1:220, tiny, tiny, very fine details.. and no smoothing hopefully. Mostly though in the 1:144 - 1:160 scale. I want to recreate highly accurate, extremely detailed models of buildings and infrastructure such as manufacturing plants, power plants, odd commercial structures that were built a century ago and added to and modified otherwise over the years, etc., as well as bridges, high-tension power pylons, radio and television broadcasting antenas of decades past, highway interchanges, bascule/draw bridges, traffic lights, street signs, mailboxes, old payphone booths, garbage cans even. Some parts will be minute, for one example - the crossmembers of a multi-pane residential window, or a power meter on home, or even the hexagonal nuts on a fire hydrant. My main concern is this - I hope to not have the lines that all of the hobbyist's 3D prints have, at least the ones that I have been shown in person. The other has much to do with the tiniest of deatild and the ability to make such fine details. Am I relegated to the necessity of sanding or using acetone, etc for smooth prints? I hope I'm wrong, but I suspect that a "print and use item, taken right off the printer bed" simply wouldn't work for printing an almost perfect to scale (in all aspects) multi-paned ( 3' x 3') residential window that I would print in white and immediately glue it into the appropriate opening in a printed brick wall. The "wood" parts that hold each of the individual window panes in its proper place in the home window assembly, I imagine, might be too fine to print well and look correctly sized. Please tell me I am all wrong! I have the funds to buy a very nice printer, and time is not a major concern either. If a printer can print task after task day and night, I'd just design what I want, load it, and come back after sleep/work/whatever. Could I also then print a model of a human with facial expressions, let's say facial hair, maybe even sun glasses, or holding a wrench, a knife, or the end of a cable or chain or rope? And speaking of the brick wall, I definitely would want to be able to print standard size bricks in a brick wall with mortar stacked in a standard offset type of arrangement which is always used in brick and mortar c🎉😂😂😂❤onstruction most of the brick walls that I have seen are made only in grid patterns (ie - square bricks?!), which are not realistic at all (structually weak!) and the blocks that I've seen shown on-line and at hobby shops are always far larger than anything even remotely realistic to the range of 1:144/160 scales. Just take a look at any normal brick building and you'll see that the mortar between the bricks virtually always lies indented and not flush to the face of the brick (ask a mason - it needs to be that way, there's a purpose. The mortar, (no concrete which has gravel in the mix) is never brought flush to the bricks' face. And from what I have seen, most of the sheets of scale brick walls that look somewhat realistic are very likely based upon hand-carved pieces made from master craftsmen in days past - from a painstaking, time-consuming, carefully carved master carving which then served as the basis for the next step - the actual, fiercely-strong metal dies intended to, (and hopefully) ended up producing tens or hundreds of thousands of mass-produced, pressurized, hot plastic injected model brick walls. Injection molded parts are made using injection molding dies which are mounted in the huge injection molding machines that weigh multiple tons. They cost many hundreds of thousands of dollars, and similarly are far from cheap to move, set-up, operate, and maintain. ((Shoot! Gtr, I just realized that I am late for an appointment. I shall edit later as/if necessary. But PLEASE(!), please answer my question, even if just relatively briefly.) But PLEASE, share your thoughts, an insightful, informative response would be so hugely appreciated by me, and many others, I can only imagine!! Thank you for sharing your knowledge - it means a lot to me and others. The generous beneficence of your knowledge and understanding of this subject does not go unrecognized! I thank you, thank you, and thank you again!
@Core-Electronics
8 ай бұрын
Hey hows it goin! To start with the print lines question, resin printing has the smallest layer height of mainstream printing technologies and will give the least visible layer lines. You run into issues with layer lines when you have detail on top of print (like on kirbys head at 2:45). The more square the detail though, the less layer lines you get. Another issue is that when you paint a print, a lot of the times it will make the lines more pronounced as well, depends on the technique. The biggest issue I see is finding accurate 3d models for all of this. If you have the skills to model them yourself then you are set, but if not you will need to learn to do so, or you might be able to find some 3d artists online that model specifically for the historical miniatures you want, you just have to find them if they exist. If not, it might be worth learning a modelling software like blender. I think the best advice we can give is to find a printing community in that niche (hopefully its not too niche that there isn't an established community). Often you will find guides or strategies that people have found to get good models, or even if you just want to see what is achievable with printers. You might even encounter that some things will print fine, while smaller or certain pieces may need to be manufactured with other means. But a resin printer is the best printer for this job. Best of luck mate!
@DoctorVdW
8 ай бұрын
Thank you kindly for sharing insight and knowledge! I will follow your tips. :)
I have a problem with my Anycubic Photon M3 and Chitubox, I get vertical lines in my work, not horizontial. Any thoughts? Thanks,
@odisy64
3 ай бұрын
are you using a ACF sheet? i started getting lines after i used a ACF
Really well done as a nu-be very helpful! . Be advisable to print the like cones of calibration after each speed / thickness change?
Can smaller layer height also help me eliminate air pockets in resin? I mainly print with clear resin and sometimes have some bubbles.
@aldoberrios41
8 ай бұрын
Hello, do you find a way to solve this problem?
how am I supposed to know which line to stop at for my models
thanks
I have a LD-002H using siraya tech fast resin at 1.5s normal exposure and 40s bottom exposure and having fails am I overexposing? Also when I do half plate builds everything comes out perfectly but when I do large builds it fails
@Core-Electronics
Жыл бұрын
Heyya mate, I recommend using a smaller change between Bottom Exposure Vs Normal Exposure. When those two numbers are very different (more than 20x) it makes it hard for the resin to stick to itself. If 1.5s is the optimal Bottom Exposure I'd use 15-20 second Bottom Exposure Layer. Also take a look into Transition Layers. You can set up your Resin Printer to slowly decrease the Bottom Exposure Time, over several layers, until it reaches your set up Normal Exposure time. Hopefully above helps 😊. I talk about Transition Layers in this guide - core-electronics.com.au/guides/perfect-resin-print-exposure-setting/
@MMQsTacosConLimons
Жыл бұрын
@@Core-Electronics thanks I’ll try that
@MMQsTacosConLimons
Жыл бұрын
@@Core-Electronics my normal exposure is 1.5s perfect exposure and bottom layer @ 20s and i end up with bottom splits what am i doing wrong? also im going to change the transition layer to 5 what you think?
@MMQsTacosConLimons
Жыл бұрын
@@Core-Electronics what do the beeps mean when I’m leveling the build plate for my ld002h
@MMQsTacosConLimons
Жыл бұрын
@@Core-Electronics I’m trying to build large prints on this machine is there certain settings for large prints and what’s the best calibration tool also every time I have a bottom exposure passed 35s there’s extra light resin around my prints
Those bottom layer numbers seem very high. I print at .04 mm and I use 4 bottom layers. (no rafts)
Why does your lychee only have 1 setting for the lift distance etc if you check it now it has 2 settings in the same menu and it's so confusing
@macathunorcent5492
Жыл бұрын
That will depend on if your printer supports two stage movement or not (two stage lets you set a slower speed followed by a faster speed during the lift and retraction phase to increase print times).
why does my chitubox look different?
Damnnnn so much information! Didn't about those speed options, gonna give it a try! Thanks! Anyone using Elegoo mars 3 + water washable elegoo resin? Been using some 25/2.5s exposures times but having problems of supports not sticking to part (not plate) and layer peel 😢
@Core-Electronics
Жыл бұрын
Hopefully the info helps you 😊. I would consider using transition layers between your Bottom and Normal Exposure times. If supports are not sticking to part I would increase the diameter size of the support tip.
@firemarshalljon4349
Жыл бұрын
I started bumping up the exposure first
@tld12379
Жыл бұрын
Increase lift height and make sure the temp is high enough.
The math does not add up. 203 layers @ 100micron is not the same height as 3502 layers @ 10micron...
@Sicarius089
8 ай бұрын
They do, to make it clearer, 100micron (0.1mm) is printing at a higher layer height which means there only needs to be a smaller amount of layers. 10microns (0.01mm) is considerably smaller thus causing more layers to print to get to to same overall height of the model printed at 100um.
your bed isnt leveled well
3:39 AWFUL settings! Now i understand why that tiny print took nearly one day. Ridiculous.