printing.md

Print the plastic parts

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Set your printer settings {pagestep}

Almost all station parts can be printed out of PLA filament on most RepRap-style printers{qty:1}.

We recommend the following printer settings:

Setting	Value
Material	PLA
Material Temperature	Recommended by the PLA brand
Layer height	0.2mm or less
Infill	Printer default or more
Brim	Recommended for all parts
Slice gap closing radius	0.001mm

Test whether your printer can print the pieces for this station or other open-source designs. Download and print the leg test file. This will only use about 5 grams of PLA{qty: 5g}.

The result should look like this (this has been printed with a brim):

As a general rule, strength is more important than surface finish, so very thin layers (less than 0.15mm or so) are unlikely to result in a station that performs any better, though it may approve the appearance.

Printing {pagestep}

Now you have tested your 3D printer and filament{qty: 200g, note:"Of any colour you want"} you can print the following parts:

• Actuator assembly tools ([nut tool]{output,qty:1}, [band tool]{output,qty:1}, and [band tool cover]{output,qty:1}): actuator_assembly_tools.stl{previewpage}
• [Focusing assembly]{output,qty:1}: focusing-assembly.stl{previewpage}
• [Actuator Foot]{output,qty:1}: z_foot.stl{previewpage}
• [Thumbwheel]{output,qty:1}: thumbwheel.stl{previewpage}
• [Pi camera platform]{output,qty:1}: camera-platform.stl{previewpage}
• [Lens spacer]{output,qty:1}: lens-spacer.stl{previewpage} - This must be printed in black{qty: 50g}!
• [Illumination base]{output,qty:1}: illumination-base.stl{previewpage} - This must be printed with supports
• [Illumination slider]{output,qty:1}: illumination-slider.stl{previewpage}
• [Illumination thumbscrew]{output,qty:1}: illumination-thumbscrew.stl{previewpage}
• [Illumination arm]{output,qty:1}: led-arm.stl{previewpage} - This must be printed with supports
• [Hinge pin]{output,qty:1}: arm-pin.stl{previewpage}
• [LED cover]{output,qty:1}: led-cover.stl{previewpage}
• [Standoff-S]{output,qty:4}: standoff-S.stl{previewpage}
• [Standoff-M]{output,qty:4}: standoff-M.stl{previewpage}
• [Foot-M]{output,qty:4}: foot-M.stl{previewpage}
• [Spacer-S]{output,qty:4}: spacer-4mm.stl{previewpage}
• [Spacer-M]{output,qty:2}: spacer-11mm.stl{previewpage}

You can download all the STLs as a single zipfile (plates are not included).

Clean-up of printed parts {pagestep}

!! Be careful when removing brim: To avoid injury, first remove the bulk of the brim without a knife. Remove the remaining brim with a peeling action as described below.

Carefully remove the printing brim from all parts. To remove brim:

1. Use precision wire cutters{qty: 1} to remove most of the brim from the part.
2. Clean up the remaining brim with a utility knife{qty: 1, note: "Not a scalpel!"}:
   • Hold the knife in your dominant hand with 4 fingers curled around the handle, leaving your thumb free.
   • Hold the part in your other hand, as far away from the surface, to be cut as possible.
   • Support the part with the thumb of your dominant hand.
   • Place the blade on the surface to be cut, and carefully close your dominant hand, moving the blade, under control, towards your thumb.