micron size printing

[erkan 0]

I want to print cones in a micron size. Base diameter is about 0.4mm and top diameter is smaller than 0.15mm which is impossible with a 0.4mm nozzle... is there any chance to write these with any improvements? Or with any other fff/fdm printer?

[illuminarti 17]

Probably not, no.

 

[zumfab 3]

The main problem with FDM, sorry, FFF is that the smaller you go, the slower it gets. With those kinds of resolutions, any print will take long and large prints will take incredible amounts of time.

It is one of the reasons or maybe even the main reason I see the technology as pretty much a dead end street when it comes to perfectly finished parts - inherently that is never realistically going to happen. If that roughness is not an issue for whatever reason, it is actually a cheap and quick way of getting things done. Until technologies that are more precise become cheaper, faster or produce structurally better parts, FDM will have a future.

 

[gr5 1,292]

Maybe you can do this. For one thing, print the cones sideways - on a wall. This way they are at least high resolution in the Z axis of UM2 direction. Also consider making a smaller nozzle - maybe .2mm. This will help a lot. You can fill the nozzle hole with solder and drill it out smaller. You should have an expert machinist do this.

 

[gr5 1,292]

Are you making lots of cones?

You could print a flat base and then touch filament to the base and move Z up to make a thin string with cone shaped base. You would have to experiment with speeds and distances and such.

 

[erkan 0]

yes i will make lots of cones. and the time is not important for me... The quality is the most important thing.

Questions: Can i change the original nozzle with a new one? like 0.2mm or smaller?

I also wanted to touch the base and move Z up but dont know how to do it for 100 times or more... probably the nozzle will crash with the cone next to the one its printing... i need a with a small outer diameter... I havent seen anything like that but a nozzle with 0.2 inner and 0.3 outer diameter and 1 cm long like a cylinder would be useful...

Btw i think ultimaker 2 is the best option for making these small cones but is there any other options for this kind of printing?

Help me please

 

[gr5 1,292]

is there any other options for this kind of printing?

 

If I needed to make a surface with lots of these cones in a grid or pattern then I think it would be much easier to use a CNC machine to make a mold from aluminum. Each cone could be made with a drill bit. Then heat it up to 150C and pour on some melted PLA and let it cool.

But if you really need to print it you need to learn how to modify gcode. You might be able to do it without modifying the machine. gcode is extremely simple - you just tell the nozzle where to move to and the extruder how much to move. It even has a "sleep" like gcode to say wait here for 200ms or whatever time length. Then experiment with different movement speeds and so on. You don't need cura at all.

If you need to modify the nozzle you will need a machinist. I would recommend purchasing a second nozzle - I think it's about 50 or 100 euros - they are for sale on the UM website. Then I would have a machinist modify it to the dimensions you need.

Remember that the smaller the nozzle diameter, the more likely you will get clogs.

Also you should print much cooler to avoid clogs. I recommend 180C to 200C max with a .2mm or smaller nozzle.

But again you might be able to get the cone shape you need with existing hardware - but you need to experiment. And print very cool - 180C or cooler.

Here are all the gcodes although you only need 2 or 3 of them I think:

great reference:

http://reprap.org/wiki/G-code

scroll way down to the gcodes on this page:

https://github.com/ErikZalm/Marlin/