How To Succeed with LayerLock SLA Resin 3D Printing Construct Surfaces

Like FDM 3D printing, guaranteeing a printed half sticks to an SLA machine’s construct plate is important to profitable resin 3D printing. Robust mattress adhesion is particularly essential when printing with resin because of a big majority of SLA machines favoring the stereolithography technique of producing a print that’s hanging the other way up. Add on the truth that SLA printing includes some suction between the print and an extra floor–an FEP movie–and now there’s one other issue that may have an effect on the print’s attachment to the construct plate.

With gravity pulling in your hanging print and the additional pulling power occurring from an FEP movie (if it isn’t connected good), it is no surprise that customers strongly recommend printing on a construct floor with a texture that the resin can maintain onto. Most, if not all, resin 3D printers include a textured construct platform proper out of the field. Nonetheless, over time, the crevices in that texture naturally get crammed up by resin after a few Liters. It is then really helpful to sand the construct platform to breed a few of that texture.

Understandably, the intestine response to listening to it is advisable take sandpaper to your machine that prices a whole bunch of {dollars} is not nice. So what’s an alternate choice to protect the integrity of your construct platform whereas nonetheless ensuring these prints stick with it? Enter LayerLock SLA Resin 3D Printing Construct Floor–a improbable answer to reaching sturdy mattress adhesion for Laser, DLP, and LCD/MSLA resins. This construct floor is product of phenolic-like materials that gives the required texture that resins can maintain onto. As an alternative of scratching up the construct platform, you possibly can take the sunshine 220g sandpaper supplied with each LayerLock SLA sheet to this LayerLock floor as an alternative, preserving your construct platform pristine of any sanding. Efficiently produce the gorgeous intricate components made out of many widespread supplies corresponding to Peopoly Phenom Deft, AnyCubic UV Resin, Siraya Tech, MatterHackers’ MH Construct Epoxy-Free Photopolymer Resins, and plenty of extra with LayerLock SLA Resin 3D Printing Construct Floor.

Set up for Varied Printers/Strategies

Set up of LayerLock SLA Resin 3D Printing Construct Surfaces is pretty straightforward, but in addition essential for profitable digital fabrication. Take a look at the steps beneath on the way to correctly set up this sheet onto printers just like the AnyCubic Photon, Elegoo Mars Professional 2, Peopoly Phenom L, Creality LD-002H, and extra.

Don’t personal one in every of our LayerLock SLA construct surfaces? Take a look at the sizes we’ve got in inventory for numerous resin 3D printers right here.

Step 1 – Verify Placement on LCD Display

• Clear off any mud, resin, and particles that will nonetheless be in your LCD display.
• Earlier than trying to connect the LayerLock SLA sheet onto the construct platform, we suggest you place it in your printer’s LCD display.
  • This ensures you could have the right measurement on your SLA printer and that the sheet attaches to the right spot in your construct platform.

Be aware: After attaching the sheet onto the construct plate in Step 4, you’ll discover that the sheet doesn’t cowl your entire construct platform. That is intentional as some resin 3D printers use thick tape to carry the LCD display and a bit of bit of 1 fringe of the construct platform lays over it. This could incessantly trigger uneven mattress leveling–a contributor to poor mattress adhesion. Some printers could have extra exaggerated points than others.

By sizing the LayerLock sheet to the LCD display fairly than the construct platform, not solely does this resolve the problem detailed above, it additionally ensures that you’re nonetheless maximizing your entire print space so no print quantity is misplaced.

Step 2 – Sand Construct Sheet Floor

• When you’re happy with placement and compatibility, seize your LayerLock SLA sheet and evenly and evenly sand the floor that shall be printed on. It’s the aspect that doesn’t have the tan adhesive liner.
  • Use the 220g 3″ x 3″ piece of sandpaper offered together with your construct sheet.
  • Be aware that it is essential to sand the floor earlier than first-time use. If you happen to print with out sanding it beforehand, it should have an effect on the effectiveness of the adhesion between the sheet and printing materials.
• When you end sanding, use isopropyl alcohol on a paper towel or microfiber material to wipe away the mud amassed on the sheet till clear.

Step 3 – Pull Off the Adhesive Liner

• When you’re happy with placement and compatibility, seize your LayerLock SLA sheet and take away the adhesive liner on the again of it.
  • Keep away from having your fingers contact the now revealed adhesive.
• With the adhesive aspect dealing with up in the direction of the construct platform and away from the LCD display, place the LayerLock construct sheet again on the LCD display.
  • Be certain to line up the sting of the SLA sheet towards the perimeters of the tape/LCD display.
• As soon as aligned, proceed to step 3.

Step 4 – Prep Construct Plate

• Be certain your construct platform/construct plate has texture on it. If you happen to do not see or cannot really feel any texture on it, you will have to scuff it up a bit of with sandpaper. If the floor is totally clean, then adhesive won’t stick with it.
• As soon as you have confirmed there’s texture in your construct platform/plate, seize a paper towel and pour some isopropyl alcohol (ideally with an IPA of 90%+) on it.
• Use that paper towel to wipe down the floor of the construct plate you’ll be attaching your sheet to.
  • LayerLock SLA Construct Surfaces could be connected to construct platforms and versatile spring metal plates.
• Clear the floor till there isn’t a mud, particles, or resin on it.

• Be aware: In case you are attaching a magnetic base in tandem with a LayerLock sheet, observe the entire magnetic base’s tips for putting in their system on a machine earlier than trying to calibrate your resin 3D printer with a brand new construct floor.
  • Some machines require a brand new Z cease spacer to be put in earlier than calibrating. Please set up these new spacers as they are going to enable sufficient play to securely modify your printer’s construct platform.
  • The next printers want a brand new Z cease spacer if putting in a magnetic base system:
    • Photon
    • Photon S
    • Photon Mono X
    • Elegoo Mars 2 / Professional 2
    • Elegoo Saturn
      *Be aware that this checklist includes machines that LayerLock SLA has suitable sizes for obtainable magnetic base methods. If you happen to resolve so as to add a magnetic base system and LayerLock SLA sheet to an incompatible printer or unlisted suitable printer, you will have to find out if a brand new spacer shall be wanted to account for the extra Z top.
• Reattach the construct platform again onto the resin printer.
• Loosen all leveling screws till the construct platform can freely modify up and down.
• Be certain the LayerLock SLA sheet didn’t transfer from its place throughout this step. If it did, realign the perimeters of the LayerLock sheet consistent with the perimeters of the tape/fringe of the LCD display.

Step 5 – Connect LayerLock SLA Construct Floor

• Once more, if you’re putting in the magnetic base system on the identical time you are putting in a LayerLock construct floor, please ensure you adopted the magnetic base’s directions for set up earlier than continuing additional.
• Along with your LayerLock SLA sheet completely positioned on the LCD Display inside the tape, transfer your Z to the house place.
  • To maneuver your Z to the house place, observe your particular resin printer’s directions.
  • As your Z strikes to the house place, don’t modify something till it finishes the homing course of.

• As soon as the printer finishes homing, apply gentle strain on the construct platform down towards the LCD display. The quantity of strain you ought to be utilizing must be the equal strain you employ to maintain the construct platform leveled towards the LCD display as you tighten the leveling screws.

Step 6 – Verify the Edges Caught to the Plate

• Elevate the Z top in your construct platform excessive sufficient to the place you possibly can safely detach it from the printer with out it hitting the LCD display.
• Detach it from the printer.
• To ensure your LayerLock SLA sheet maximizes its adhesion to the construct platform, verify the entire LayerLock SLA sheet’s edges are flat towards the construct platform/construct plate.
• Use your hand to firmly press your entire construct floor towards the construct platform to additional guarantee all the things is touching towards the construct platform.

Step 7 – Calibrate Z Peak / Construct Platform Leveling

• Connect the construct platform again onto your machine.
• Be certain the leveling screws on the construct plate are nonetheless loosened.
• Comply with your SLA machine’s regular really helpful calibration directions.
  • Not all resin 3D printers have the identical adjustable Z top or observe the identical steps so we suggest following the producer’s particular required/really helpful tips.
• As soon as you have adopted your printer producer’s directions on leveling and have tightened the leveling screws, proceed to Step 8.

Step 8 – Load Your Take a look at Mannequin

• Select any mannequin you wish to check the mattress adhesion for the primary layer of your check print. We suggest one thing that’s small and fast like this skinny sq. so you possibly can fine-tune your settings and modify your Z top correctly if wanted earlier than leaping to testing a bigger print.

Step 9 – Print and Regulate If Needed

• Print the skinny sq. check print from Step 8. If you happen to’re printing a distinct mannequin, guarantee that is both 0.05mm tall or cease your print after it completes its first layer.
  • Once more, earlier than printing, ensure the LayerLock sheet has been sanded. If not, observe Step 2 earlier than printing.
• As soon as the print is accomplished, enable extra resin to drip again into the vat or rigorously wipe any extra resin from the construct platform again into the vat with a silicone spatula or plastic putty knife.
• With a nitrile glove nonetheless on, gently rub your finger throughout the print.
  • If it requires a scraper and light-moderate power to take away it from the platform, you are good to go!
  • If the next points come up corresponding to…
    • The half simply slides off the platform with simply your finger
    • Lifted corners
    • Air pockets beneath the print
  • …then think about these doable resolutions:
  • Verify you adopted Step 5–sanding the construct sheet and cleansing off the mud ensuing from sanding
  • Guarantee sufficient resin was within the vat to print your check print
    • Not sufficient resin within the vat may cause sometimes trigger air pockets/bubbles
  • If none of those resolutions resolve the problem, resetting the Z=0 top and re-leveling the construct platform could also be wanted. Repeat steps 6 – 8 till the primary layer requires a scraper and light-moderate power to take away it from the platform.

Be aware: Please ensure you usually are not additionally printing with new resin if that is your first time printing with the newly put in LayerLock SLA Resin 3D Printing Construct Floor. New resin means a brand new variable that could be affecting mattress adhesion. We suggest first confirming mattress adhesion could be achieved with a resin you’re acquainted with printing. As soon as that’s confirmed, then print with the brand new resin utilizing suggestions from this How To Succeed information on the way to usually fine-tune most photopolymer resins to your SLA printer.

That’s it for set up! Your new construct floor is connected, all the things is correctly calibrated and also you’re now prepared to begin efficiently printing.

Ultimate Printing & Upkeep Ideas

• Re-leveling your construct platform is really helpful when fine-tuning printing with a brand new resin.
• The next components outdoors of LayerLock SLA’s management are nonetheless crucial for mattress adhesion success:
  • Utilizing the right resin profile settings
  • Ensuring the pigments/dye of the resin haven’t settled to the underside earlier than printing
    • Instance: It is best follow to frequently stir/shake reasonably priced resins earlier than printing so all of the dyes/pigments are distributed evenly. If left settled on the backside, the sunshine won’t shine by means of that means no profitable curing will happen. Chances are you’ll must stir the vat of resin once more after a specific amount of hours, relying on the model you have chosen.
  • Having correct drainage holes on prints
  • Making certain your FEP movie is not too loosely or tightly connected to the vat
  • Having a calibrated Z top / leveled construct platform
    • A leveled construct platform could be troublesome to attain if the resin 3D printer has thick tape across the LCD show. With the LCD display beneath the best level of the thick tape, this may trigger an excessive amount of of a spot between the LCD display and FEP sheet.
  • Printing in an surroundings that’s room temperature (ideally inside 68°F – 77°F)
    • Something decrease than 50°F or larger than 100°F extremely will increase the possibilities for mattress adhesion and curing points.
• Frivolously sanding your LayerLock SLA Construct Floor is really helpful for first-time use and both after each 5L of resin printed or every time mattress adhesion is noticeably misplaced.
  • Keep in mind to put on a masks whereas sanding to keep away from inhaling any particles.
• As with different construct surfaces, watch out when utilizing sharp objects to take away prints from the construct floor to keep away from unintentional knicks, scratches, and grooves on the floor.
• Clear the floor with 90%+ IPA isopropyl alcohol after each sanding.
• Wipe the floor and construct platform clear of any resin if switching between materials/colours.
• Keep away from soaking the construct platform with LayerLock SLA connected in any solvent for lengthy intervals of time.
  • There is a risk that solvents could erode the adhesive on the again of the LayerLock SLA construct sheet, thus lowering the adhesive’s lifespan.
  • Wiping the floor with a light-weight quantity of IPA won’t be an issue.

As all the time, MatterHackers has your again.

With this information underneath your belt, we do not count on you to run into any issues; however when you do, please don’t hesitate to contact a MatterHackers Technician at assist@matterhackers.com or by cellphone at (949) 613-5838. We’re right here to assist!