FORGEWorking with metal-infused filaments Washington
DC-area artist and curator Dave Mordini shared a
discovery with this author. “I took an old broken lawn
ornament and put new feet on it. I then 3D-scanned it
using an inexpensive consumer scanner. I decided to
add pizzazz to an aluminium casting of it by using
copper-infused filament when 3D printing my mould.
The 3D-printed mould is packed in sand. When you
pour the hot aluminium into the mould, the plastic
part gets burned away, but the copper remains.”
3D printing chain-mail There are a number of design
files on Thingiverse for 3D printing chain-mail. Spanish
maker Agustin Flowalistik has a popular file on the
site (thingiverse.com/thing:3096598) which prints
handsome and sturdy mail using H-shaped rings.
3D printing T-shirts 3D printing T-shirts might be
a lot easier than you realise. It involves clamping
the shirt to the print bed and printing a design in
1–2 layers. Lightweight foaming PLA might even
work better. In this video (hsmag.cc/EOhjwL) on
3DPrinterGuides, Alex shows you how.3D printing lithophanes and coloured lithophanes
Thomas Brooks has created an app called
LithophaneMaker (lithophanemaker.com). He
offers an intro to 3D-printed lithophanes in this
video (hsmag.cc/bKv14W). In a follow-up video
(hsmag.cc/IG3IFg), he shows how he used a
Mosaic Palette Pro 2 (mosaicmfg.com), a device for
turning a conventional 3D printer into a multimaterial
printer, to create multicoloured lithophanes. A
lithophane is a type of three-dimensional image
carved (or in this case, printed) to allow different
amounts of light to shine through.Using Ironing and Fuzzy Skin The 3D printer slicer
app, Cura, comes with two options you may not be
aware of: Ironing will smooth out and sharpen the top
layer of a print; the Fuzzy Skin option creates a rough
surface texture to your prints. Chuck, on the CHEP
channel on YouTube, demonstrates two applications
using these options (hsmag.cc/k8GNfy).Casting cardboard in 3D-printed moulds On
YouTube (hsmag.cc/3R5Me3), young maker
XYZAidan shows how he created a series of moulds
on his 3D printer and cast cardboard pulp in them,
which he made in a blender from cut bits of cardboard
rubbish. With this technique, you can shape all sorts
of 3D objects out of recycled paper.Turning your 3D printer into a CNC engraver In a
video on RCLifeOn (hsmag.cc/IKZv2Y), Simon shows
how he turned his 3D printer into a CNC engraver
using a DC motor, a 3D-printed bracket, and some
end mills.It is sad how often I see 3D printer filament at
someone’s house or makerspace where rolls of PLA are
left exposed to the air. PLA plastic absorbs moisture.
This can cause the material to bubble in the extrusion
nozzle, ruining your print or clogging the head.
Becky Stern has an Instructable (hsmag.cc/cbHIwT)
and video (hsmag.cc/Q5ghCQ) on how she turned an
airtight plastic tub into a PLA filament dry box. The box
holds four spools and feeds them directly to the printer
through Teflon tubing and rubber 0-rings.
The project is very simple. Besides acquiring the
parts, most of the time will be spent 3D printing the
mounting brackets for a spool rod and installing the
airtight feed tubes and O-rings. The project can be done
in a few hours and will ensure that your moisture-
sensitive filaments will remain dry as a bone.MAKING A FILAMENT DRY BOX
Marc de Vinck,
Tim Tate, Becky
Stern, Brian
Jacoby, Chris Gilroy,
Andrew Lewis, Dave
Mordini, Meredith
Scheff-King, Erin
Winick AnthonyTHANKS
Above
You can use a 3D
printer for more than
3D printing
Credit
RCLifeOn
Below
Keeping filament
dry is a key part of
accurate printing
Credit
Becky Stern