Comment by axegon_ | Hacker News Reader

Comment by axegon_ | Hacker News Reader

One thing to note when it comes to resin casting and cnc is the 3d printing evolution since 2015. The amount of detail you can get from an inexpensive 3d printer these days is astonishing and it seems like less far less messy than a cnc. Not that long ago I got a resin-based 3d printer and I was blown away by the prescision. That said, for me at least, there is a big problem in that entire field - the third point - "Mastering CAD and CAM". To put it lightly I really suck at it. I am using Blender(100% linux user) and having to switch between layout modeling and sculpting(etc.) often puts me in a Hulk mode rage. I can't find a pattern in the menus or modes and everything I try to do ends up being 2 hours of googling and youtube tutorials. Which I reckon is me being too used to cli-tools and hardly ever going outside the cli world(if it weren't for browsers and the modern web which cannot work without js, I'd have probably removed my desktop environment altogether).

> Which I reckon is me being too used to cli-tools and hardly ever going outside the cli world

You might get some mileage out of OpenSCAD if you can define your object parametrically (I used it to make a Switch controller middle-bit.) Or there's stuff like https://github.com/fogleman/sdf which I've used to make resin-printed buttons for my mother.

(I also cannot get the hang of Blender despite dipping into it for a couple of weeks every year since about 2013.)

> https://github.com/fogleman/sdf

Holy crap, why have I not seen this before?!?!!? I was even planning to start coding something like this myself. This is awesome! Thanks!!!!

I'm liking Onshape for CAD. There's a learning curve, but it seems logical in a geometric puzzle-solving sense.

I read a bit about resin-based 3D printing (stereolithography). The amount of detail looks impressive but it sounds expensive and messy due to the toxic chemicals and fumes. How do you deal with that?

Messy yes, fumes yes, but the printers themselves are now less expensive than a decent FDM (filament) printer and the resin itself is relatively inexpensive as well.

Very much depends what type of resin you use. The one I use has practically no odor and is water washable. In addition, there is an air filter(which is annoyingly sold separately) for that printer so even less of an issue. I was initially planning to shove it in the basement but after a few prints I figured it doesn't make a lot of sense.

What printer and resin are you using?

Elegoo mars pro 2 with their own resin [1]

[1] https://www.elegoo.com/collections/resin/products/elegoo-wat...

I understand you use open source, but Fusion 360 really is a game changer. The CAD to CAM workflows are easy and intuitive once you learn the basics. Blender is designed to be a lot of things to a lot of people and I can see how that would be extremely frustrating. Yes Fusion isn’t cheap, but it’s very worthwhile IMO.

Autodesk is unfortunately doing exactly what one can expect Autodesk to do. As soon as Fusion 360 meets a milestone they add new ways to monetize their users. TBH I can't recommend it for anyone outside US jurisdiction because of how the company is managed.

No, I'm not full on RMS here, if there's a proprietary software that I could use and I can use it under linux, god speed. Sadly adobe and autodesk are reluctant to add more support, despite the demand.

Unfortunately 3D printing can only go so far and some things must be CNC milled.

With something like a FormLabs Form 2, 3D printing can go really far. And, with a Form 2, you will be printing parts from the get go and not dorking around with the printer all the time.

My biggest problem is still when I want to do something in Stainless Steel. I really wish I had some way to deal with Stainless without needing a gigantic machine.

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