Printing large flat panels vertically instead of horizontally?
I have to print some panels that are 15mm thick (it varies - one edge is not as thick) and are about 120mm x 200mm.
I was thinking that I can only fit one or two on a print bed at a time. It occurred to me, though, that if I set the slicer to include a brim, maybe these are thick enough I could orient them vertically and maybe fit 4 or even more of them on the bed at a time. It would take longer to print, but it would be fewer print cycles, which is easier for me to handle. The panels would be big enough that I don't have to worry about delaying or slowing the printer for each layer to give filament time to cool and set between layers.
Is there any advantage to printing something like this vertically? And are there drawbacks I have to be aware of if I do that?
RE: Printing large flat panels vertically instead of horizontally?
Will there be any downside to having the layer lines oriented across the short side of the panels when they're put to use? If that's a problem, you might get away with chamfering the edges and orient them on a 45 degree lean to get the best of both worlds - multiples to a bed with slightly longer layers
RE:
Will you be printing these on a CoreXY printer or on a bed slinger? If the printer keeps pushing the bed around, I would be a bit concerned about mechanical vibrations of the prints -- reducing surface quality or even shaking them loose from the bed. But even then you could probably get away with it if you orient the long axis in the Y direction.
Otherwise, Geoff's point regarding reduced stability of the printed parts due to the layer orientation is valid. But I assume this will be for your vent cover application, where the parts do not experience much mechanical stress? Then this would not be a concern.
If you want to print interlocking features to join multiple panels together, that might be more difficult in the vertical orientation? It may be undesirable to print with supports in that area, since it will make it more difficult to get a snug fit of the interlocks.
RE: Printing large flat panels vertically instead of horizontally?
If you have a print failure then usually the whole batch is lost, unless printing each part separately but then you will have take into an account collisions with the print head/printer elements.
See my GitHub and printables.com for some 3d stuff that you may like.
RE: Printing large flat panels vertically instead of horizontally?
Will there be any downside to having the layer lines oriented across the short side of the panels when they're put to use? If that's a problem, you might get away with chamfering the edges and orient them on a 45 degree lean to get the best of both worlds - multiples to a bed with slightly longer layers
No problem with layer lines in this usage. I did think of that, but didn't mention it, to see if it was brought up as an issue. I probably should have mentioned it.
The panel is not so big I have to put it down diagonally, but I have thought of that. But I could only fit one per print that way.
Will you be printing these on a CoreXY printer or on a bed slinger? If the printer keeps pushing the bed around, I would be a bit concerned about mechanical vibrations of the prints -- reducing surface quality or even shaking them loose from the bed. But even then you could probably get away with it if you orient the long axis in the Y direction.
On a Mk3.5S, (or Mks3.5? Forget the order of all the letters and numbers!) so a bed slinger. I had not thought about the vibration issue. I did have something similar in the past. For pottery molds, I often need a "needle" to push into the mold to make a hole for various reasons. Usually those are less than 1/2" in diameter. On the first ones I printed, I got wavy messes once the height of the needle was about the height of the other objects being printed in that print session. I found it was a filament cooling issue, so whenever I print one of those now, I add an extra one, as a spare I might need later, but also because if I print 2, the filament on the top layer on one dries with the other is printing. I haven't had issues with printing those due to vibration, but that doesn't mean I won't have issues with these - so that's a good point. I was figuring on using a brim so I was hoping that would help with bed adhesion.
Otherwise, Geoff's point regarding reduced stability of the printed parts due to the layer orientation is valid. But I assume this will be for your vent cover application, where the parts do not experience much mechanical stress? Then this would not be a concern.
There is some stress involved, but not much. I have some printed 4" diameter ducts that attach. One has a 45° downturn for a vent flapper door to fit on it, the other is for attaching a flexible duct to it. But the weight involved is not much and I've designed the system to include some thicker parts to handle that. Still, it's a good point and worth thinking about.
If you want to print interlocking features to join multiple panels together, that might be more difficult in the vertical orientation? It may be undesirable to print with supports in that area, since it will make it more difficult to get a snug fit of the interlocks.
I have thought of that, but I'm lucky that the design I printed means I have 2 "layers" to the parts, a 10mm "main" part, and a 5mm one that I use for fitting them together. While I'm not counting on glue to hold them together while I place them and while fastening them to the cinder blocks (it's for a foundation vent), I'm not counting on glue to help handle stress - that fastening and securing is done with screws. So I use that 5mm layer to extend some parts and leave gaps in others where they'll fit together. Luckily, these designs work so I could print them vertically if I wanted, but I can also print them horizontally with no need for supports.
If you have a print failure then usually the whole batch is lost, unless printing each part separately but then you will have take into an account collisions with the print head/printer elements.
Good point about if something goes wrong - and I suspect that it'll take a few vertical prints to work out what I'm doing, so it's probably better to just do them horizontally.
This was just an idea - a "What if...?" and I like to post things like that because often someone brings up points I had not considered or ideas to make something work in a way I had never thought of.
I think, with experimentation, for some parts, this would work, but from reading responses already made here, I think I'm better off just printing the parts flat.
RE: Printing large flat panels vertically instead of horizontally?
I have a Core One and routines print things like that vertically. It's no different than a temperature tower. I don't print multiples unless it's something short enough that I can complete the entire object before starting the next. I think layer adhesion is better, though I could be wrong.
RE: Printing large flat panels vertically instead of horizontally?
I've been printing a lot of Lithophanes recently which are essentially tall panels but thin (like between 1 - 5mm). I usually print 2 or 3 at a time but as sequential prints. That way if one fails the rest of them have a chance of succeeding.