Surface Mode: 'Surface'/'Both' inner supports...

[RichWP 0]

Hello,

 

Is there a way to get supports to print on the inside of a solid model with no infill (or Surface mode: Surface/both)?  I know that I can slice a model with zero infill, and the supports will be created externally, but not to support internal overhangs...

 

I have some complex models that I need to print hollow.  Being able to precisely control the number of perimeters (at any scale) is very desirable for me (so hollowing the model in MeshMixer works, but generally does not give me the results I'm looking for).

 

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

Rich.

 

[rc-pilot 0]

Hi I have the same problem is there an answer to this issue. I have a surface and a infill area that I need to print in the same print.  I have tried surface on both but the surface Is very broken up but the infill is perfect? If I use surface only my surface is perfect,  but I have no infill, therefore no strength where I need it.  How do I get both to work. My drawings wall thickness is 0.4mm and my infill is set to 10%.

 

Thanks Frank 

 

 

 

[gr5 2,004]

Could you show a sketch of what you want?  I don't understand your description.

 

- If your surface is "broken up" it sounds like you are describing "pillowing".  Google that on this forum (you can tell google to only search this site using "site:" as in "site:ultimaker.com")

 

- You can use a second mesh (second STL) to change infill density (zero infill is a density of zero) in select areas of your model.

 

- There are many other ways to do what I *think* you *might* be trying to say but I'm not sure what you are trying to say.  For example for the original poster I would model the supports in cad.

[rc-pilot 0]

Hi I have the same problem is there an answer to this issue. I have a surface and a infill area that I need to print in the same print.  I have tried surface on both but the surface Is very broken up but the infill is perfect? If I use surface only my surface is perfect,  but I have no infill, therefore no strength where I need it.  How do I get both to work. My drawings wall thickness is 0.4mm and my infill is set to 10%.

 

Thanks Frank 

 

Hi the best way to describe what I am trying to achieve is best in the pictures attached. 

On the first picture the left is a thin wall fuselage drawn at 0.4 mm to be printed on my ender 5pro printer with a 0.4mm nozzle the left image is printed perfectly with the surface mode selected in special modes this is what I am needing for the outer skin (Surface) The right image in the first picture is showing the infill I need In the Square boxes that are left empty in the the left hand image of the first picture. Where they should be infilled. If I put surface mode to both in special mode then I get the correct infill but the other 2 pictures show the result of fuselage Surface which is full of gaps when printing with the both mode selected.  I can get a perfect surface  print or a perfect infill print. What I can’t seem to get is is the 2 together In one print. If I print same part with A wall thickness of 0.8mm I do not get this problem but that is defeating the object  I am trying to achieve.
I apologise for not being so clear in my earlier post  I hope this is clearer.

Thanks Frank

[gr5 2,004]

This explains so much!!!!!

 

I never heard of "surface" mode before.  It used to be called "spiralize" or "Joris" modes or you can just remove infill and top/bottom.  Anyway now I know.  Just played with this.

 

Okay first thing - the "broken up" areas - are those the same way in PREVIEW mode?

if yes: then try checking "print thin walls" or if that doesn't help then reduce the line width a bit - line width of 0.3 works okay with 0.4 nozzle.  Try different line widths until the "broken up" goes away.

if no: then that's probably underextrusion - try printing at half speed.

 

I wouldn't use surface mode: both.  I'd disable that.  I'd just model exactly what I want.  Play with "print thin walls" and "line width" to get nice walls.  There's also another version of cura here that is much better with thin walls:

https://github.com/smartavionics/Cura/releases

[gr5 2,004]

By the way - you might want to add some diagonals to give that part much more strength.

[rc-pilot 0]

GR5 thank you for your reply it is much appreciated.

I have tried  a few of the ideas you have mentioned a few that I have not tried I will try them tomorrow and see what results I get. I understand where you are going with the 0.3mm but not tried it. I will let you know the outcome of more tests 

I sincerely appreciate you looking in the issue and taking the time to find  some answers for me.  I get great results from my printer and am now starting to push the boundaries, to get thinner and stronger prints for model gliders and aircraft in general.

 

best regards Frank 👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[rc-pilot 0]

Meant to say that the area to be infilled where you said to use diagonal for strength the ones in the pictures were test prints and I just used a 3 % infill. My reckoning was any type of infill to try get it to all work together. 
 

many thanks again Frank 

[rc-pilot 0]

On 2/15/2021 at 10:24 PM, rc-pilot said:

Meant to say that the area to be infilled where you said to use diagonal for strength the ones in the pictures were test prints and I just used a 3 % infill. My reckoning was any type of infill to try get it to all work together. 
 

many thanks again Frank 

 

Update still have small issues, but there is a great Improvement using the 0.3mm setting. I also tried a 0.5 setting and that has given even better results so far. For my immediate project the 0.5 will suffice but I will be updating this project after it has proved it’s worth then I will try perfect the 0.3mm setting size 

 

Thanks for the tips and help gr5 👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[Taco_Bob 1]

I want this feature too!

I'm not sure why infill is needed everywhere!  It isn't.  Most of a part's strength is derived from the shell, not all of that loose, low extrusion infill.

In many parts, this technique could drastically reduce material waste and time required to print.

I have found some ways of doing this but it's not perfect.  I can open a model in 3D builder or Fusion 360 and hollow it out.  Then if Cura is set to draw supports everywhere it will generate internal supports.  Adding a tiny (´0.8mm or more) hole in the shell to connect external and internal geometry helps too sometimes.  However, by shelling the model in these other apps, lets say, to 0.8mm thickness, it's not x-y planar thickness.  If it's a 45° slope for instance, the 0.8mm is at 45°, therefore the x-y thickness is greater than 0.8mm an for some reason, Cura will convert that to 2mm (5 lines) and proceed with infill inside the wall, which is far more than it should as I would have expected 3 lines tops.  (See picts) This is counter productive.  Also, when I "shell" a model in other programs, for some reason, Cura might only do a single layer on elevated bottom surfaces and leave gaps in the model because of complex geometry.

So here's the request.
If Cura could offer internal supports instead of global infill, Cura's already typical "shelling" that is done through normal wall thickness and top/bottom thickness settings would work perfectly, greatly improve print times, reducing filament usage and eliminating appearances of infill-wall interfaces on the exterior of the part.  

 

In other words, what we want:

Load a solid model.

Use normal shell settings.

Select internal supports instead of infill.

Viola!

 

We need this feature or plugin! PLEASE ADD THIS CAPABILITY!

Thanks!