Whats everyones thoughts on the new carbon fiber build surfaces?
They look nice, a bit pricey but you likley get what you pay for.
I wonder how the adhesion and release is aswell as the weight.
I know i can use glue or hair spray, but for pla or petg do i still need it?
Also how is the surface finish on parts?
I was actually about to post a similar question. Having had two glass plates shatter last month, I’d be interested in these as an alternative. The things I’d like to know are:
I too would be curious what the mesh would look like for a few of them for comparison to say creality glass.
I just sent one of each to one of our partners in Quebec for a YouTube review. It should be detailed and posted within a week.
On top of this, We are making our own video!
PJ will be also commenting on this post soon. The key benefit of the product is not destroying the glass when using materials such as Nylon. It also provides a smooth finish like mirror/glass without any chance of breaking the surface during the removal of prints. PJ literally uses a hammer and spatula on the surface without issue.
This is the real deal.
Right on @chris . No questions about it being legit, just curiosity as i havent really seen/heard of useing carbon fiber build plates. Definitely makes sense that it wont be damaged in ways like glass.
The author behind this forum post found a video of someone whos been useing a CFRP pannel for awhile and it looks mint.
@chris it may be tricky to properly get a view, but a side by side comparison of the surface finish on a part to something like glass would be nice. Either for the video, and or on the store page. Since from my hobbyist perspective id be choosing this mostly due to either a saftey point, or i like the finish it produces.
I am curious of the idea. Carbon finer has ok heat properties and depending on what the binder is it might be free of warping. It could be flat or not at all that depends on who makes it and if they are laying on on a flat surface or not so flat surface.
@chris are these direct heat? It is absolutely possible to have the bed be the heat element and not be reliant on a stick on resistive heater. My guess is there is a heater stuck on the back. Is this correct?
It will all come down to the manufacturer. If the company making them has been unable to make a flat bed at this point why expect it to be different? If a third party pick up one there is no reason why it can’t be flat and true.
It makes me wonder what an unperforated (PCB type) epoxy glass board would do? It is likely a CF plate will be epoxy based so the only difference is no carbon fibre but glass fiber. They are cheap, 12x12 is 15$ last I bought one.
Maybe one of you extermenty types might try one, easy enough to slap a element on the back.
So I’ve been using these carbon fiber build plates for about 5 months now with bad temps up to a 120 with no problems printing nylon, nylon carbon fiber, and ultem CF. I will never go back to any other build surface. I have also printed P LA and TPU on it works like a charm you do have to use glue stick or some type of adhesive.
Do you need the glue to get the print to stick or to get the print to release?
That’s an intriguing idea. A single-sided board, laid copper-side down, would have the copper assisting in heat distribution and I’ve had some PCBs who’s backs are like a sheet of glass. It might be worth a try.
This is what im most curious about.
Well, I just bought a 300x300mm single-sided PCB from MG Chemicals. It is absolutely NOT flat. You can just tell by looking at it, without taking any measurements.
Oh that is disappointing! I am sorry. It seemed like it might work quite well…
It’s definitely a glass-epoxy based board. Oh well. as I think waaay back on it, back when I used to make printed circuit boards, it was a “problem” back then too. Mind you electronic components don’t really care about the curvature and it’s not like we were using robots to populate them. I could see THAT being a problem, but then again, they probably clamp the edges of the boards down for the pick-and-place machines. I must confess I’ve only ever watched the tool head and not how the board was being held. Anyway. I’ll put it to use eventually.
Well interesting. I wonder if a GFP panels would be better they can be had in smooth surfaces too. It is more complex as they are typically full sheets and quite thin perhaps there is thicker to be had? just an academic thought now…
It also makes me wonder what would have happened if I had bought a double-sided PCB.
Experiment time: I’ve just put the PCB, on the printer’s bed and heated it.
It occurs to me that the copper is probably glued to the fibreglass base with a melted glue (ie. the glue goes on hot), which of course, will heat the copper. As it cools and the glue solidifies, the copper will shrink more than the fibreglass causing the copper side to be concave.
Well, that shoots that idea down in flames. I’ve heated the bed to 110C and there is no change in the curvature of the PCB.
Oh well…
I’d echo LEGOManiac’s question: How does it do with CF material? Do certain materials tend to stick too well on it? Or does it have the opposite problem and need glue to stick properly?
My current PEI bed sticks too well to PETG and PC (no glue) and just right for PLA. I like using no glue/sprays/slurries as it makes printing simple and clean.
After receiving a gift card (thanks again), I ordered a carbon fibre build plate, so I’ll let everyone know, probably Wednesday, how it goes. I’m off for my second Covid shot tomorrow, and since the first one essentially produced a Flu in fast-forward, I’m expecting to be out of commission on Tuesday.
3DPC video is up.
Just filling up the extra 20 characters here now.
So, my Carbon Fiber build surface arrived. Here are my initial thoughts:
It’s thick. Really thick. It’s straining my clips to the max.
The surface seems to heat fairly evenly, but I do find that I have to set the bed temperature 10C above my target. In the photo below, the bed is set at 60C. Mind you, it’s tough to get an accurate reading since it’s such a reflective surface and, frankly, I’m not sure quite what setting to use on the FLIR i7 camera. I went with semi-matte.
As for adhesion, I’ve only tried PLA, so far. On larger, multi-part prints, the edges of the print started lifting, so there are certainly adhesion issues, and yes, I cleaned it with isopropyl alcohol first. I ended up aborting the batch shown below and am printing them one-at-a-time which is just as well since I need to adjust hole sizes. In the middle of the build plate, I haven’t had any problems, but then again, on this printer, printing out to the edges has always been a problem.
The surface finish of the parts is almost like glass, but the pattern of the build plate is slightly visible.
The filament for this test is 3DPC Value PLA in Orange.
