3D PRINTING & ELECTRONICS VIRTUAL TOUR
3D printing labs give makers a space to learn, explore ideas, test designs and solve for real-life problems using technologies that are quickly becoming an industry standard. This is just one of the many reasons why high schools, colleges and universities all over the world are investing in this endeavor.
Click, Drag, and Zoom to Explore the 360° Virtual Tour
-
x2 Weller Soldering stations
-
Helping hands
-
wire cutters, flush cutters, snippers, etc.
-
Various voltmeters
-
Magnification lamps
-
Screwdrivers and precision bits
-
Variable Power Supplies
-
Tektronix Oscilloscopes
-
Hot Air Rework Station
Currently we have x2 Prusa MK3s’s. Both of them are very powerful machines.
Official Documentation is located HERE.
How do I use them?
In order to use a 3D printer you need a slicing software, at the makerspace we have a few computers with said software, PrusaSlicer is the software we mainly use for each printer, you can find it HERE.
The process to get 3d printing is to get a 3d model file of some sort (mainly STL or 3MF). Either by downloading or creating your own.
Huge databases of 3d files exist and are worth checking out. Thingiverse is a place to start!
The next step is to load up the model file in PrusaSlicer and “Slice” it. This turns the 3d model into mechanical movement commands that the 3d printer will make in order to make this digital file a physical object.
The program then will allow you save the new file it has generated or you can simply send it to the printer with the G button next to the extract button on the bottom right. If you want to use an sd card, extract the file, put it on the SD Card and plug it into the side of the LCD screen on the Prusa, click the knob to view the menu and select print from SD card! It should start after it finishes heating up and you should be good to go!
We have a modified CR-10 (KR-330) that runs Klipper firmware instead of the typical marlin firmware 3D printers usually use. It is our large FDM printer that can print a maximum size of 12 in by 12 in, or 300mm by 300mm (X/Y), as well as a Z axis of 16in/400mm.
It is up and running however it is still unfinished, you can still use it if you need to. We recommend using this printer for larger models, however you can still print smaller parts if you wish.
We have done some various modifications to it:
- Added an upgraded bed sheet
- Added Bed Leveling hardware with a BL-touch
- Reworked the extruder to use a Petsfang with a direct-drive knock-off bondtech BMG (quality is close if not the exact same as the original)
- Added a BTT tft35 touch screen
- Upgraded firmware to Klipper instead of marlin.
- Added various 3d printed additions mainly on the extruder
This is the first ever 3D printer that the Forge has ever owned. Even though it’s a simple DIY acrylic 3D printer with the famous Free Rick sticker on its frame, it is still true to its job. There’s not many features that come with it, other than a probe for auto bed leveling. Even though it’s old, outdated and probably not recommended for advanced use, it’s a legacy to the forge and to the people who modified and repaired it.
SLA (stereolithography) or Vat Polymerization was the first invention of the 3D printer. Instead of pushing filament through a hot nozzle, it uses a UV laser/screen to cure liquid resin into a solid object. Prusa is mostly known for their original I3 design of printer, but they design their own version of an SLA. Enter the SL1S, it is one of the best 3d printers we have at the forge in terms of speed and quality! Its friend the CW1S is used for cleaning, drying and curing the finished product that comes out of the SL1S.
