Hi All! Just have another Noobish question today. Can anyone tell me what 3D printer type is best for printing character models (i.e. Superhero busts, statues etc.) created in Zbrush? I would greatly appreciate any and all info and advice. Thanks!
As far as consumer grade desktop printers, probably an SLA printer–especially for printing miniatures. Resin based printers are better at fine detail. You can get decent results with an FDM printer though, as long as you’re printing large enough and willing to do some (or a lot of) post-print refining. The latter has the benefit of generally being cheaper and more accessible, with larger print areas, and somewhat less of an environmental/health hazard if you’re concerned about that.
You’d probably get the best results using a service with super high end printers and materials available, like Shapeways.
Thank you, Spyndel! This is really helpful!
One other note. I wont recommend any specific printer or brand (do your research), but be aware that any money you save by buying a cheap printer is going to cost you increased trial and error and troubleshooting, which is going to be a thing with any printer, but increases drastically with how far you deviate from established brands with higher end, but pricey printers. It can become crippling. Consider saving your money until you can afford something with a proven track record.
Hmmm…Yes, I see what you mean. I’ll follow the advice then on just going to a professional service for now. Thanks again!
Don’t let me put you off it entirely. There’s plenty to be said for having a home printer as both a learning experience and being able to rapidly produce things from Zbrush. Just temper your expectations, and realize that a desktop 3d printer is a part of creating an end result character piece, but not the end result in itself. No 3d printer of any quality will reproduce all the fine detail Zbrush is capable of creating, and all complex characters will probably require some sort of multi-part assembly and/or refinement.
I just wanted to make you aware of the inverse relationship between cost and troubleshooting–pricier printers tend to work more reliably with less (but not zero) trial and error.
No worries friend! Any advice that saves me money is welcome advice, lol. A home printer would be pushing it a bit for me presently anyway. I’m committed to making my own characters into 3D statues and figures no matter what, so the more I can learn going in, the better!
what’s up with environmental/health hazard you’re talking about. You mean the wastes of resins or compounds that are emitted while printing?
@ nebular
Power consumption doesn’t render any 3d printer particularly green, but yes I was referring specifically to the fumes, and hardened resins from SLA printers. It’s nasty stuff. You want to use them in a well ventilated area, and definitely do not want to occupy the room while printing. The environmental impact of waste resin which eventually hardens is also probably not great.
Depending on the material used (PLA likely to be better than ABS for example), FDM printers can be less toxic in terms of emissions, and the material can be biodegradable.
It’s a matter of degree (as opposed to safe vs unsafe), though, and dependent on print temps and material used.
Ah ok, I see. Thanks for explantation. I will investigate it more - it’s my hot topic right now.
Unfortunately, there’s not a ton of great research out yet–these products are in their infancy. Just keep in mind that companies that make/sell them are not credible sources of information. What are they gonna say–“don’t buy our product, we have no idea whether it will give you cancer in 20 years, and it was reckless of us to rush a product into consumer hands for profit without having any idea of its environmental impact?”. That’s not how the world works, unfortunately.
There have been some studies that focus on the various materials used in FDM printers (as mentioned above, PLA likely much better than others, but can still be problematic with high nozzle temps).
Furthermore, there’s a ton of really reckless advice and behavior in the 3d print community for refinement and finishing work. You’ll find a lot of people advising various spraypaints and primers at various stages, and these things are generally horrible. Nothing with a solvent in it is good for you, and care should be taken to minimize personal and environmental expousure.
Why can’t anything be simple, right? Believe me, I know.
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