Resin printers

Author	Message
circuit Senior Member Joined: 10/01/2016 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 214	Posted: 09:22am 17 Dec 2020         zeitfest said   Anyone used a resin printer? ie where resin is photopolymerised into a solid. Yes; stereo photolithography is the term.  A bath of photopolymerisable resin sits over an LCD matrix which shadow-masks an ultra-violet light source.  As sequential "frames" are exposed, a platform rises vertically with the resin bath, bringing the printed object into existence.   The advantage is far greater resolution and surface smoothness than can be achieved with fused deposition printing.  The downside is that it is slightly messy to clean up the thing afterwards.  The printed object needs to be washed with isopropyl alcohol to remove unpolymerised resin and then post-cured to increase the level of polymerisation to gain full strength.  I have a machine that washes and post-cures.   Another advantage is that this enables metal objects to be cast.  The object can be fabricated in a burn-out resin and then treated like a conventional wax pattern for investment casting.   What precisely do you wish to know?