Fast 3D Prints : Simple Tips For Speed Up 3D Printer Without Losing Quality
By Fast 3D prints is something that everyone from hobbyists to people creating end-use products wants to achieve.
Many users who are starting their adventure with 3D printing are surprised at how much time is required for a single model.
It’s not just a few seconds, as some parts can take hours, even days to print.
Right now, you might think of increasing 3D printer speed.
In this blog, with these quick tips, you’ll learn how to speed up your 3D printer.
Speed Up Your 3D Printer Without Losing Quality
Speed is particularly problematic in the case of Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) printers, which is by far the most common form of 3D printers used today.
Depending on the size of the build and the level of quality you’re aiming for, an FDM print could take 12 hours or more to finish.
Lower speeds generally make 3D printers better quality when you have not properly optimized your 3D printer.
There are many ways to speed up 3D printing times without losing quality by carefully and gradually adjusting the settings in your slicer.
Setting Printing Speed
The most common way is to adjust the print speed in the settings of your slicing software.
3D printing machines with quick 3D printing rates can deposit more substance in a limited time than slower 3D printing machines.
For the print speeds that are set slower by default, you can start by increasing these to be equal to the other values.
One of the most common slicing software is Cura.
In this software, the print speed setting is available in the Basic tab. You can change the speed by entering the value in the Print speed field.
If you are not working with the latest version (15.04) and using any of the former ones, you first need to change to Advanced mode followed by opening the speed tab before accessing the printing pace setting.
However, if you do too large a speed change that may cause many problems at once, it is better to do so in intervals of 5 mm/s, rather than attack them all at once.
Layer Height
Layer height, also known as resolution, is the distance between the nozzle and the previous layer of a 3D print.
With an increased layer height, the print time is lowered significantly as fewer layers are required to achieve the same height, but the print quality also degrades.
Most of the time, layer height of 0.2 mm offers a good speed/quality ratio.
For detailed prints, mostly use 0.15 mm. This value lowers the layer height and provides improved print quality, but the print time can increase significantly.
Don’t go lower than this because the print quality improvements are worth the extra print time.
Change Larger Nozzle
No doubt will a larger nozzle reduce your printing time.
For example，you can change the nozzle on your 3D printer from 0.4mm to 0.8mm. Or you can choose even 1.0mm print head.
A lot depends on your current nozzle size. The standard print heads are 0.2mm and 0.4mm. But going with a bigger size can save your printing time and increase your 3D printing speed.
Choosing the Correct Infill
The infill density also has a huge impact on your 3D printer speed.
More infill contributes to stronger prints, but takes more time and costs more materials.
Infill density is the solidity of the inner filling of prints, and the larger this percentage is, the fuller (and heavy) a part is.
The best way to shorten the print time is by reducing infill density and wall thickness.
You can print the figure with no infill will improve speed and surface quality, however, you have to notice that no infill will probably cause vulnerability.
If you expect to print fast and not waste too much material, but you also want to give your product the right strength. The best method is finding the right balance!
Experiment with different infill patterns, the printing speed, and the infill extrusion to achieve the result that meets your product requirements.
Maximize Extrusion Volume
The extrusion volume of your nozzle is determined by three factors:
- print speed
- nozzle diameter
- layer height.
Changing any of the three will make your printer extrude more filaments, which means you have to increase the print temperate to ensure that the filament gets melted quickly to be deposited.
Print Two Models At Once
Producing several prints in the same batch is a good way to meet multiple needs at the same time.
To perform this step, use the function center and arrange it in your slicing software.
Producing in the same batch provides more convenience and saves time.
Resetting and heating your printer is no longer necessary.
Keep in mind that you use the same filaments for both products to prevent heat problems. Thus, this option is an indirect way to increase your 3D printing speed.
Change 3D Printer To Fast 3D Prints
If you have done everything that you can and are still not happy with your current 3D printer speed, you can think about changing a 3D printer.
FDM start from 50-150 mm/hr up to 500 mm/hr.
DLP/SLA printers have a minimum of 20-36 mm/hr rate with maximum performance at 720 mm/hr. Those printers are faster and tend to become way speedier in the future.
SLS printers are generally the slowest, with rates ranging from 48 mm/hr to 60 mm/hr.
Multi Jet Fusion 3D printing machines move quite fast from 2800 cm³/hr to 4000 cm3/hr for a start, and the fastest working at 4500 cm3/hr.
Of course, the price of the printer also will affect the printer’s speed.
For example, the cheapest FDM printers can cost as low as $300 or even $200, and they usually print at 60mm/sec. The Massivit 1800, an industrial machine, which can reach a speed of 1,000mm/sec.
Sometimes, it is better to purchase an additional 3D printer or even two affordable machines, rather than to purchase one out of your budget machine.
Two or three machines working together also will increase the print speed.
I hope these tips on how to improve your 3D printing speed helped you.
When wanting to speed up 3D Printer, you must follow your instincts and try new settings, every now and then.
You can find more STL files offered by OXO3D Anime Store, and you will enjoy turning quick 3D print ideas into fantastic prints, share the photos of your models in Anime 3D Printing community on Facebook, and fall in love with 3D printing.
