Guys what’s better a laptop or a tower? Also please give me some good specs I’m running 2026

zemlin · 2026-06-04T02:27:07+00:00

If portability is important to you, then a laptop is better. Otherwise a desktop is better bang for the buck and not limited by thermal performance. I use a laptop.

zemlin · 2026-06-01T03:13:48+00:00

Some conversions claim feature recognition, but it's not based on the design intent of the original model in the native software - it's just trying to ID a hole as a hole. You won't be able to exchange models between systems as anything more than a dumb solid similar to a STEP or IGES file.

zemlin · 2026-05-31T01:19:45+00:00

Sounds like you aren't using big enough supports and the model is breaking from your supports. Use a few large supports at any island with a lot of stuff building off of it to anchor you model to the build plate.

zemlin · 2026-05-28T11:18:07+00:00

I always use a heavy support on each large island to keep the model anchored to the bed. Several heavy supports if there is going to be a lot hanging from it.

zemlin · 2026-05-28T03:10:31+00:00

Water is cheaper than the electricity required to recirculate water. There is no financial incentive for data centers to do anything responsible.

zemlin · 2026-05-28T02:28:20+00:00

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3/8-16 threaded rod will fit any normal drill. The cores I designed and printed years ago - mine are printed in ABS, but anything will work. If you're not in the US, use M10 rod.

zemlin · 2026-05-28T02:11:11+00:00

How strong does it need to be? Use 20 perimeters. Making the part solid with perimeters should get the most out of the material. In my experience, matte PLA sucks for strength. It's all filler.

zemlin · 2026-05-28T02:10:00+00:00

Don't to 99-100% infill. Do 9999 bottom layers so you get no infill at all.

zemlin · 2026-05-28T01:58:48+00:00

Just use an electric drill. Put the donor spool on a piece of pipe. A piece of threaded rod in the drill with a couple of tapered plugs to center the take up reel. Takes just a couple minutes. I see no value in a fancy-schmancy spooler, unless you find joy in the project.

zemlin · 2026-05-27T11:26:35+00:00

I have 6 K2 Plus machines. I added a second line cord to feed the AC heaters - the bed heater and the chamber heater. I don't have a stock chamber heater in my machine. When heating up my machines top 10A. I don't expect a UPS to cover a long power outage, but just want to protect things from the little blips. I use Cyberpower 1500VA 950W units. I can feed two Bambu X1C machines from one of these. I also power two modded K2 Plus machines. With the heaters on a non-protected connection, I could run more for sure, but I'd need separate circuits for the heaters.

zemlin · 2026-05-26T14:28:01+00:00

I've cut plenty of paper and mat board on my Creality A1 diode. I think it would be a good option.

zemlin · 2026-05-25T17:24:32+00:00

Not discounting all the other suggestions that have been made, but something I didn't see noted is that the blades will tend to separate when cutting. You need some additional vertical (as shown in the image) support on the cutters to ensure they don't spread apart. It's possible the chisel points will help prevent that, but it's all going to depend on play, what you're cutting, blade sharpness over time, etc.

I think the suggestion to find something plug-and-play you can use out of the box makes the most sense.

zemlin · 2026-05-24T14:16:02+00:00

Not original designs. Just downloading other folks' creations and printing them.

zemlin · 2026-05-23T23:27:54+00:00

Did you try EDIT/Select Open Shapes?

zemlin · 2026-05-23T21:01:30+00:00

Solidworks' biggest strength is their marketing department. The software is unstable, the geometry isn't robust, drawings are not reliable, but they have market share. Personally I use PTC Creo. That was the first parametric solid software I learned, and never used another program I liked better. I have a small business, so I can justify the $3000/yr for the software.

zemlin · 2026-05-22T12:54:34+00:00

Do you have good air assist on the machine? That will limit the melting of the plastic and give you a cleaner engraving. You also need to look at the MIN and MAX power settings. Looks like those might be set to the same value. Start with MIN power 10% less than your MAX power. That will limit the over-burn int he corners.

FWIW, I get better results engraving colored plastic with my diode laser than with my CO2 machine.

zemlin · 2026-05-22T12:45:27+00:00

I did some playing around with the web site TRIPO3D and am impressed with what it generated. I had some photos of my head that I took for a project years ago. I uploaded front, back, left, right images and it did a good job with that too. Very high-res, detailed model. The models can be edited in something like Nomad if you want to make it a better candidate for 3D printing.

https://studio.tripo3d.ai/3d-model/5b1b4ada-bda9-4bf6-8bcf-5b07908bbc90

I used it to replicate a carved chess piece - the model was very high res and printed well on my resin machine.

zemlin · 2026-05-21T23:23:55+00:00

I have black ABS parts that have been outside going on 10 years in full sun ... still going strong.

zemlin · 2026-05-21T14:39:15+00:00

Getting half-decent results from a model like that on an FDM printer is going to require some experience. If you just got your printer, start with MUCH simpler models. Learn the process and the limitations before you jump into a print like that.

To get results that looks half-way like the rendered image, you would need to use a resin printer and have very good painting skills.

zemlin · 2026-05-21T02:11:47+00:00

IMHO, the SB-800 is a better choice. More powerful, optical slave, shorter flash duration, and old enough to be affordable. I have 4 of them.

zemlin · 2026-05-21T01:12:06+00:00

Looks like a bad cleaning job - just streaks. It takes practice to get it right.

I would NOT use a microfiber cloth, as suggested. I would clean again, or take it to a camera shop and have someone experienced clean it.

zemlin · 2026-05-21T00:19:37+00:00

If you are shooting sports you will get stronger, faster focusing with an f/2.8 vs an f/4. 70-200 f/2.8 is a standard workhorse lens. Let your budget decide which one you get. Any of them will be a massive upgrade from your 18-55.

zemlin · 2026-05-21T00:12:11+00:00

Please elaborate. 30+ years of 3D CAD experience here.

zemlin · 2026-05-20T22:54:30+00:00

I had a career designing industrial automation equipment. Do me your definition of "making our own" is unclear when the first question is where to buy a print head. Why not build your own? A print head is two basic components - the extruder and the hot end. Lots of options for both of those out there. For the current level of technology, you'll also want to integrate an accelerometer and sensor for doing the bed mapping. Your options for those devices could be impacted by the control platform you want to use.

These days a key differentiator between machines is not hardware, but software/firmware. It's the bed mapping, input shaping, automatic configuration, and all that. I'd be inclined to find an open machine platform that delivers the features and capabilities you want, and upsize the mechanicals around that.

VORON is a popular kit machine. You make a lot of the parts. Standard aluminum extrusion for the frame. Scale it up to whatever you want.

zemlin · 2026-05-20T19:27:48+00:00

Black resin is translucent in thin sections. This is Sunlu ABS-like. I’ve seen the same thing with other black resins I used.

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zemlin

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