[DaveMakesStuff] makes use of 3D printed take a look at tubes for vegetation and comparable functions, and he’s shared find out how to make them on a 3D printer, full with completely different fashions every optimized for various nozzle sizes.
It’s not too arduous to get clear-looking prints in spiral vase mode by utilizing a clear filament, however the actual worth in his design is that it comes out reliably watertight, with an extra-strong base and rim.
How is that this completed when utilizing spiral vase mode, which extrudes solely a single wall perimeter? By utilizing fancy geometry on the half, which makes the nozzle comply with a high-density path that turns again onto itself a number of instances, in idea just a little like a switchback path. The result’s extra-dense areas on each the rim and the underside of the tubes. This helps make them not solely watertight, however far stronger than a single wall.
This method is harking back to an earlier technique we noticed of enhancing the power of vase mode prints by modeling skinny slots into an object. After slicing, the mannequin nonetheless consists of a single unbroken spiral extrusion. However in apply, the extruded plastic types what resemble structural ribs. Why? As a result of these technically-adjacent extruded strains are so shut to 1 one other that they find yourself sticking collectively. One thing comparable is being executed right here by [DaveMakesStuff] to make sure that the underside and high of the tubes are additional sturdy.
You possibly can see a brief video (embedded beneath) that showcases the tubes, in addition to some modular 3D-printable racks that [DaveMakesStuff] additionally makes. And do you have to need some tips about getting higher transparency out of your 3D prints, the necessities boil right down to printing with clear filament, barely hotter, and with a barely greater extrusion charge.