Utility Ship

Here at colorFabb we regularly have interns hard at work in the print lab, creating awesome things. As you may remember, Stephan Schürmann designed and printed a bike during his internship here (and is now about to ship his very own Blackbelt 3D printer!). Earlier this year Niels van Valburg made the FLEX_Link chair. And former current co-worker Jos Deelen worked on the early concepts of the biofoam spool during his internship here. Our current intern is Mike Baetsen and to get him more acquainted with 3D printing and designing he printed the Utility Ship, originally designed by Petersripol:

Original design: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2192118

As you can see, we put it in the lobby of our new building right away! Mike used the Ultimaker 2 and 2+ for this print (or various prints, if you will) with various settings. Several items on the boat he designed himself using SolidWorks.

3D printing has always been a great tool for model work and this once again proofs that the best results can be achieved with a variety of materials.

The materials (all colorFabb’s, of course), where:

  • PLA/PHA Standard White for the hull
  • PETG Economy Red
  • woodFill for the deck
  • PLA Economy Black

Mike mentions that he wanted to use a variety of materials (two kinds of PLA, our PETG and a special filament) to see how well they work on the Ultimaker printers as well and of course for the aesthetical aspect.

As showcased in the lobby, together with the Subaru and Chevy engines, printed by Korneel Bullens.

 

 

About the materials

PLA/PHA Standard White

And what a standard it is! We started with this modified grade of PLA almost 5 years ago and this filament remains one of our biggest hits. The unique blend of PLA with PHA make it a fantastic filament to print with on a wide variety of printers.

PLA Economy

About a year ago we listened to you – our users – and brought a more economic version of PLA to the market. This new grade of PLA, with an added impact modifier, has been in huge demand from the moment of release. We developed this new PLA, separate from our lauded PLA/PHA, as a filament for large volume users. Because it’s made with the same processing technology used for other premium colorFabb products, this PLA Economy filament is just as reliable. PLA Economy is available on 2.2kg spools only, delivering a whopping 740 meters of 1.75mm filament and 270 meters of 2.85mm filament.

PETG Economy

Not long after PLA Economy we released PETG Economy this summer. This is our first PETG and has already found a large group of devoted users. colorFabb’s Economy line is developed for users who need a lot of filament. By adding a specifically sourced PETG to our portfolio we are adding more functionality and diversity to our range of filaments.

woodFill

What can be said about woodFill that has not been said already? woodFill was launched exactly 4 years ago this month during the London 3D Print Show and was our first special filament. Other natural filled special filaments have followed, like bambooFill (which we discontinued earlier this year) and corkFill. Our woodFill has been a hit from day one due to easy processing and its fantastic looks. Added bonus is that your print room smells like a wood shop when printing with woodFill.

 

Eager to try our filaments? At the time of writing we are in the middle of our Black Friday discount. Click here for the details. Basically: you get a 25% discount on all filaments! Use discount code BLACKFRIDAY when shopping online.

Sale lasts until Monday November 27th.

 

Looking for a new printer? The desktop 3D printers in our portfolio ship with a 10% discount during the Black Friday campaign. No discount code needed – we already lowered the price! Of course you get a free spool of filament with every printer and for selected European countries we offer free shipping!

 

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Can’t choose? Check out our catalogue:

Acorn Planter

To stay in the autumn theme we have printed an acorn planter. Designed by and printed on the Makerbot with corkFill.

Design: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:292854

Printed on the Makerbot Replicator+ using the Experimental Extruder with the 0.6mm brass nozzle. “Sow a seed within a seed with the Acorn Planter.”

Recently we have been testing a lot with the brand new Experimental Extruder. The Makerbot Experimental Extruder was recently announced and allows for more experimenting on the existing Makerbot printers. Over the course of several months, we participated in a beta-test program that included a select group of MakerBot’s Thingiverse power users. During this time the new Experimental Extruder was tested using a range of colorFabb specialty materials – including the corkFill, copperFill, bronzeFill, and woodFill.

After woodFill was launched exactly 4 years ago this week during the London 3D Print Show and was our first special filament we saw the need for more biofilled filaments. Other natural filled special filaments have followed, like bambooFill (which we discontinued earlier this year) and corkFill. corkFill has been a hit from the moment we launched due to easy processing and its fantastic looks.

As it happens, corkFill is on sale now. Click here to get corkFill with a 15% discount (for a limited time only).

 

Poly Cup

Low Poly designs have been 3D print favorites for many years. And with good reason: Nice and clean designs that allow for great prints. Designers like Flowalistik specialize in low poly designs. For today’s print we used the Low Poly Cup by HummusBird.

Design: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2548981

Printed on the Makerbot Replicator+ using the Experimental Extruder with the 0.6mm nozzle. We used corkFill and woodFill and combined it with our transparent PLA. Simply use the change filament routine during print to conveniently switch between materials during print.

The Makerbot Experimental Extruder was recently announced and allows for more experimenting on the existing Makerbot printers. Over the course of several months, we participated in a beta-test program that included a select group of MakerBot’s Thingiverse power users. During this time the new Experimental Extruder was tested using a range of colorFabb specialty materials – including the corkFill, copperFill, bronzeFill, and woodFill.

woodFill was launched exactly 4 years ago this week during the London 3D Print Show and was our first special filament. Other natural filled special filaments have followed, like bambooFill (which we discontinued earlier this year) and corkFill. Our woodFill has been a hit from day one due to easy processing and its fantastic looks. Added bonus is that your print room smells like a wood shop when printing with woodFill.

As it happens, corkFill is on sale now. Click here to get corkFill with a 15% discount (for a limited time only).

It is not said often enough, but the transparent and translucent colors we offer in our PLA range offer stunning results. You can choose from Red, Green, Yellow, Orange and Violet. All these filaments ship from stock!

Use of 3D Printing in Investment Casting

Last year we learned that 3D printing was used to drastically shorten time and costs in investment casting. Dutch company CIREX B.V. is an expert in investment casting and is exploring the added value 3D printing can bring to their process together with colorFabb.

We partnered with CIREX to better understand how PLA/PHA performs as a material for patterns. We have written exensively about this filament before. Traditionally investment casting uses wax patterns. These patterns are made using metal molds, making the tooling is an expensive process and can take several weeks.

For small series, or one off products creating a mold is not a cost effective solution for foundry companies. 3D printing on the other hand presents several advantages enabling foundries to make single parts or even small series.

Instead of investing in tooling, foundry companies can choose to 3D print their patterns in a material suited for investment casting. ColorFabb PLA/PHA Natural is a material uniquily suited for investment casting. It’s an easy printing material capable of creating complex shapes with great smooth surface finish and will work with most desktop and industrial type FFF 3D printing machines.

The material decomposes at 600C and ensures a clean burnout leaving behind a clean mold ready for casting.

Almost a year ago we highlighted US based Spectra3D’s work in investment casting, using the Stacker S4 and our signature PLA/PHA. Jerry LePore, CEO of Spectra3D explains why he chose PLA/PHA: “We chose Colorafab natural PLA because it contains no color pigments, prints great and burns out really clean from the mold.” You can read the full blog here.

Cut down on development time

Skipping the tooling development step saves a huge amount of time. Typically this could shorten the time to a first metal casted part by 3-4 weeks. Not being dependent on a third party mold supplier also reduces risk in time sensitive projects.

A wax tree with the printed models

3D printing also allows for faster design iterations, a first printed pattern could already be made in several hours depending on the size of the part. This makes it possible to iterate on the design multiple times even within a single day.

The material cost of printed patterns is around €30,- p/kg. Parts are generally printed with the least amount of material needed, which saves print time and material.

Checking out the burnout of PLA/PHA Natural, breaking the mold to inspect pattern for residue. Patterns printed on the Stacker S4, 0.2mm layer height at 20% infill.

 

3D Printer & Material combination

The Stacker 3D printer was used for this test case. It prints incredibly reliable with PLA/PHA and is able to print parts accurate and consistent. Printing with multiple nozzles cuts down on series production time, 2x faster for the Stacker S2 and 4x faster for the Stacker S4 compared to a single nozzle FFF 3D printer.

The Stacker S2 and S4 can be set-up for small series production, or single large part printing. Mounting up to 4 toolheads on the x-carriage gives the user higher output, but reduces the build volume. The alternative is to mount only a single toolhead and take advantage of the entire buildvolume of the S2 or S4.

Products larger then the build volume of the Stacker can be split into multple parts and assembled after printing. Using pins align the parts is a good method to ensure the assembled model is accurate.

The Stacker S2 and its larger sibling the Stacker S4 is an industrial grade FFF 3D printer. Multiple print heads and a large build volume make it a versatile printer. Small series production or large scale prototyping are no problem for the Stacker printers! This US based printer is very reliable and is a perfect match for any professional looking for serious 3D printing. You can find the full product specifications on our dedicated Stacker page.

For Stacker the term “industrial grade” is not a hollow marketing term. It means their printers are designed for extra long service life, extremely low maintenance and that the printer will maintain its positional accuracy throughout its life cycle. This printer has been designed to be used in a professional environment, be it for large prototypes or small series production.

colorFabb is proud partner of Stacker and official distributor for the EMEA region. At colorFabb we have been extensively testing with both the S2 and S4 in our print lab with our entire range of filaments.

 

About CIREX

The history of the current CIREX starts in 1947. In the physics laboratory of Philips in Eindhoven, an experimental wax model foundry was set up. From these beginnings CIREX has developed as a development partner and producer of high-quality precision castings in steel, produced according to the “lost wax” process. CIREX has built up a good reputation and recognition among international customers.

You can find more information about CIREX’ rich history on their website.

 

colorFabb Case Studies

This blog is a first in a new series of how colorFabb filaments are used in different industries – some old, some new. We will collect these case studies as downloadable PDFs on our website: Click here.

 

Sintratec

As from today colorFabb enters into the SLS desktop 3D printing market by partnering up with hardware manufacturer Sintratec AG for distribution of Sintratec systems in the Benelux region.

 

colorFabb is now an official business partner for Sintratec AG. Sintratec is a Swiss high-tech company specializing in the development and production of SLS 3D printers. The range includes desktop laser sintering systems which work with high quality polymers. Sintratec’s laser sintering technology allows the production of complex and freeform objects which meet demanding resolution, robustness and temperature standards.

The Sintratec Kit

“The profound knowledge about the 3D Printing industry, the closeness to their customers and especially the passion that colorFabb brings into their daily business have fully convinced us. ColorFabb has tested our machines since 2015 and their decision is a proof of trust for Sintratec. We are proud to have such a well-known market player on board now. As Sintratec goes more and more from local to global we are sure that with colorFabb we have found the right partner for the Benelux region,” says Dominik Solenicki, CEO at Sintratec AG.

The Sintratec S1

“We’ve been following the development of SLS desktop 3D printing with great interest and acquired our first Sintratec S1 at a tradeshow in 2015. We’ve experimented a lot with the Sintratec S1 and have given our engineers the time to truly understand and see the value of this technology. We’re now ready to share our insight and knowledge with our clients. We believe the Sintratec S1 is a unique offering which strengthens our portfolio of 3D printers and professional services.”, says Ruud Rouleaux, CEO at colorFabb

The partnership with Sintratec is in line with colorFabb’s mission statement: Offering added value with high quality material and hardware solutions to meet our customer’s needs by means of interfacing between polymer know how and 3D printing know how.

The Sintratec Kit will be available within a week from colorFabb and the Sintratec S1 will be available later. Inquire with our sales department for more information or a quotation: sales@colorfabb.com

For a full overview of colorFabb’s portfolio of filaments and printers, please have a look at our catalogue.

 

corkFill Experimental Extruder Jig

Makerbot designed a simple jig which makes it easier to swap nozzles on the Experimental Extruder. It also has three slots to store the nozzles, making it easy to keep everything together.


Experimental Extruder Jig
by MakerBot

This model was printed using corkFill filament and the 0.6mm brass nozzle. At 0.2mm layerheight and 200C printing temperature we got a beautifull finish.

The Makerbot Experimental Extruder was recently announced and allows for more experimenting on the existing Makerbot printers. Over the course of several months, we participated in a beta-test program that included a select group of MakerBot’s Thingiverse power users. During this time the new Experimental Extruder was tested using a range of colorFabb specialty materials – including the corkFill, copperFill, bronzeFill, and woodFill.

These new nozzles are the key to printing in this range of materials. We recommend that users use the 0.6 mm brass nozzle for woodFill and corkFill, and the 0.6mm steel nozzle for bronzeFill and copperFill.

 

corkFill was one of our special filaments we launched 2 years ago, after woodFill and bambooFill (the latter one has been discontinued), that allow for a truly special look of any print. The unique look and finish have made this filament a great success ever since and found a large audience of fans ever since launching.

The Fish Vase is another print we recently made with corkFill on the Makerbot Replicator+.

If you have not tried it, you can find the tips and tricks to print with this filament in our handy tutorial.

corkFill is available in our webshop and ships from stock. Incidentally, at the time of writing corkFill is on sale. Get this awesome filament now at a great price!

Making miniature furniture with the Robo C2

Model making has always been a great use for 3D printers all over the world. To all model makers looking to enter 3D printing with an efficient plug&play 3D printer, we present to you the Robo C2 which we used for today’s print in combination with woodFill and corkFill!


28mm Round Table
by Curufin

Making tiny furniture on the Robo C2 is a breeze, combined with colorFabb special materials such as woodFill and corkFill the results look very convincing. One great benefit of these materials is that the final part looks not at all like a plastic part.

Since woodFill and corkFill are PLA based materials the cold build platform of the Robo C2 is not a problem. Printing with a raft works beautifull and parts stay flat and seperate easily.


Miniature Queen Anne Coffee Tables
by PrettySmallThings

woodFill was launched exactly 3 years ago this month during the London 3D Print Show and was our first special filament. Other natural filled special filaments have followed, like bambooFill (which we discontinued earlier this year) and corkFill. Our woodFill has been a hit from day one due to easy processing and its fantastic looks. Added bonus is that your print room smells like a wood shop when printing with woodFill.

 

The Robo C2 retails for €799.00 excl. Tax (€966.79 incl tax) + 1 FREE SPOOL

The Robo C2 compact smart 3D printer with Wi-Fi gives you the freedom to make whatever you can imagine right from your mobile device using the Robo app.
  • Engineered to fit anywhere in your home or workplace
  • Efficient 12.7 x 12.7 x 15.2cm print size
  • 8.9cm built-in color touch screen
  • Class-leading print speed
  • Automatic self-leveling
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