Can't seem to get the right cut
Hi Everyone,
I have been trying to cut some hexagonal tiles in half for a board game (gloomhaven) terrain set that I am trying to print, but I can't seem to be able to cut the file with enough precision to get the top piece to be entirely flat where it would like on the heat bed.
Below is what the original file looks like. As you can see, it is hollow in the middle. This was causing my prints to sag and making the top layers come out wrong and lacking definition. So, I decided to split it in half in order to avoid that, as well as the fact that they would print up in half the time.
The issue is that I can't make a precise enough cut. I have figured out that I need to cut it at 5.58, but even then, the bottom of the top piece is not entirely flat. I think I need to keep editing to the 3rd decimal point (eg. 5.585), but prusaslicer does not appear to allow me to get that granular.
It might be difficult to see in the below image, but if you look closely, you can still see the outline of a hex on the bottom of his piece. That side is where the top piece is supposed to be laying on the bed, thus I want it to be completely flat.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Please save your project as a .3mf file
Files > Save Project as
Zip the .3mf and post it here. It will contain both your part and your settings for us to diagnose.
Cheerio,
RE: Can't seem to get the right cut
Have a look at your layer height settings. If you are printing with 0,15mm layers, the stock setting would be 0,2mm for the first layer and then 0,15mm for all layers after that. You need to take that into account when calculating the position of the cut.
Say you modeled this so that the top of those struts should be at exactly 9mm. What would that mean for the slicer? after the first layer (0,2mm), you still have 8,8mm to print. Divided by 0,15mm, that means 58,6666... layers. You can't print 2/3 of a layer, so the printer will actually do 59 layers, amounting to a total height of 8,85mm. Add the first layer and you get a total of 9,05mm for the struts - that's the point where you would want to make the cut.
To be honest, I'd do that in CAD and design the part so it consists of the platform part and the separate top part, maybe with some kind of clip-on mechanism. That's surely the easier way to get this to print properly.
RE: Can't seem to get the right cut
@jesse-4
PrusaSlicer will allow you to get that precise, sometimes it will not show the precise value, however it will take and hold that value.
This is a cut I made for this post, then used the measure tool to demonstrate.
Sometimes it's difficult to drag the Slice plane Gizmo to the exact placement you need for a cut, in that event you would use the Cut position: dialogue and enter the position manually, you can use the dialog box to walk the slice plane into position by watching the Plane. As you type in fractional decimal places, a white line forms around the shapes on the layer the slice plane will cut on, you don't even have to hit Enter the slice plane adjusts as you type in the numbers. I'll use the bunny model from the gallery as an example, since we all know the the bottom of that model is a mess, and it should be flat.
look at the numbers in the Cut position: Z: dialog box as the plane advances, I used larger numbers to demonstrate, but you can put 20 decimal places in there for
very, very fine control, and walk that plane to exactly where it needs to be using the white outlines as a guide.
And Finally, I can see its going to be a flat cut.
You can do the same with your model. If your still not sure or having trouble with it, do as Diem suggests,
Files > Save Project as .3mf
Zip the .3mf and post it here. It will contain both your part and your settings for us to diagnose.
Keep in mind This forums file server will not allow you to post a project file that is not zip compressed.
Good luck
RE: Can't seem to get the right cut
You can also try other cutting software, such as Easy Cut Studio. the trial verison may be downloaded from
https://www.easycutstudio.com/download.html
and see it that helps.