industrialdesigner-uk

I specialise in industrial products, and industrial vehicles. So mainly big stuff, but I also get to design smaller ancilary components such as switches, interior trim details, lights, mirrors etc... My intention is to use the UM2 for prototyping/developing ergonomic hand controls (scale i:i) for example. and perhaps ocasionally a scale model of one of the big products, like an excavator concept, for example. As a hobby I love motorbikes and I like to design and improve details on my own bikes so the UM2 will get roped in to prototype bits and pieces before I start cutting aluminium. Because I am new to this 3D printing thing, I am practicing on my hobby stuff at the moment rather than using it as part of my professional services. Once I get to a point where I am confident about whether I can produce parts reliably and on time, I can offer it as part of my design service. Lets see how it go's. How about you? What stuff do you hope to do with a UM2 ?

Hi folks, I'm pretty new the art of 3D printing, but i've been working as an Industrial Designer for nearly 25 years.....I think I can see some of the issues here and I have a few thoughts on the subject. I agree with the idea internal guide feature....looks like a great idea. Should be fairly easy to integrate into the current geometry and certainly worth trying out, however i'm looking at the 'pinch and drive' mechanism and thinking that it would work better if the white plastic tensioner had a built in bearing so that the filament didn't have to overcome the friction on that side of the material as it moved through the drive. I could imagine that the combination of the clamping pressure and the friction together with the softer filament could also be a challenge (?) I have also had lots of occasions where the filament (normal PLA) has been grinded down by the drive wheel, if there is a build up of pressure at the nozzle end, creating such a deep groove in the filament that it gets grounded and can't be moved through the drive any more...not good.....It therefore got me thinking that if the knurled drive wheel was a larger diameter that would be much less of a problem. I also have an issue with the detail of how the filament is guided into the drive unit....It isn't really guided at all and I have had a problem where on slightly brittle PLA filament ending up snapping apart at the entrance to the drive unit if the filament reel gets locked up too much as it's unwinding....If there was a nice curved guide feature on the entrance to the drive unit it would help to eliminate damage to the filament. Just some extra thoughts.....I hope i'm not gate crashing the discussion. Cheers, David

Thanks for that advice. Yes, I think i've touched on that issue just the other day. It's quite logical to expect some flow issues if there is cross contamination of materials routing through the same tiny nozzle. The differing melting temperatures would signal what you have said. Though, how much of a problem it can be can only be realised through experience....that's what I hope to gain from the forum....Thanks again.. Hey, Thirty6.......Seems like there is a bond that builds between user and printer due to the 'learning/tweaking' experience. I like the thought of that, I just don't want a too steep learning curve on this one because I can't afford too much time.....but hey, I quite like the challenge. Hi Skint. I bought my UM2 direct from Ultimaker. I think that is the most cost effective way, here in the UK, but that wasn't my prime motive really. I met Sander van Geelen and some of the team at a trade show at the NEC last autumn and thought that they were a great bunch of people, so it was natural to go straight to them when I decided to order one. When I was reseaching about which machine to go for I came to the conclusion that even the higher priced machines out there needed to be 'mastered' through learning the process and learning how the machine worked. The combination of the clean design of the UM2 and the great enthusiasm and knowlege for the product and process reflected by the guys at Ultimaker sold it for me. Good luck with your decision...

Hi, Thanks Ian.....wise words. I create my models in SolidWorks and export them in STL format for Cura import. There seems to be a few different export options for STL, but I have'nt used STL much in the past, so i'm not playing around with those settings at the moment. The files seem to import ok and Cura does it's thing without me needing to consider tweeking anything (so far). All of that stuff seems to be pretty ok at the moment. The tricky things i'm experiencing so far is getting the material to flow reliably through the nozzle. In fact the very first loading up of material caused an immediate blockage. I ended up having to strip the head assembly down and pull what appeared to be bits of material that must have been left in there when the factory did it's test print. I have since read that there are more simple ways of unclogging nozzles, and I am doing that procedure now with success. I just wish I did'nt have to mess about de-clogging after every other print. I have observed the starvation of flow through the nozzle mid print which is also rather frustrating. It seems to be when I use either the Black PLA or the Black ABS (both from Ultimaker)...it might be just coincedence but it got me wondering if this batch of material had got a defect...i.e some sort of dirt in it that blocks off the nozzle. I've also been having a new issue start up this week....warping/material lifting off the glass bed. The first few prints came off great but warping is becoming an issue. I've tried plain, untreated glass which worked fine to begin with and then tried using the glue stick provided in the kit, but that does'nt seem to improve things any. hmm... there's more to this game than meets the eye.. :geek:

Thanks for the info GR5 ! Think i'm going to need it.

Hi folks, I'm not new to the world of design, but I am new to the art of 3D printing and have hit the ground running with a new Ultimaker 2. I hope to do this lovely machine justice as I put it to work in my design studio here in the UK. I can see that there is quite a bit to consider when preparing a model for the printer in order to get the best results, aside from any fine tuning or material choices....I hope to learn from experienced users and eventually I might be able to help others once I have the experience myself. Regards, David