Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
Post-Processing
Your Prints
13
Friction weld, rivet, sand, paint—arm yourself with
simple tools and finishing techniques to take your 3D
prints to the next level.
W
RITTEN
BY
M
ATTHEW
G
RIFFIN
P
HOTOGRAPHY
BY
A
NDREW
B
AKER
People often claim 3D printers can “make
you anything you can imagine.” Dial up the
digital model you want, hit “Go,” and the ma-
chine hums to work, producing an object ac-
curately and repeatably. But as an astute
eight-year-old pointed out to me when I
handed her two of my favorite printed mod-
els at Maker Faire Bay Area last year, the re-
sults don't always match your intentions.
and business people will have difficulty see-
ing your prototype as a
machine
when it
looks like a toy.
The domain of finishing techniques (i.e., ev-
erything that takes place after printing) is the
craftsman's workshop, where patience, tools,
skills, and experience can transform the raw
products of these machines into fully realiz-
ed models. Like builders of dollhouses and
model trains, many 3D printer jocks appre-
ciate a loving and accurate rendering of a
miniature world.
The results are impressive, but why should
you tackle these craft skills when you could
spend that time printing more plastic ob-
jects?
“That octopus is
red
! A TARDIS is not
sup-
posed
to be yellow!” she wailed, and knocked
my offerings away.
While overall shape and mechanical fit are
valued more highly than surface treatment
in today's desktop 3D printing, it's some-
times worth judging a print by its cover.
I'm reminded of advice I got from a pair of
industrial design professors at Pratt, after I
showed them my print of a fluorescent-
green clockwork mechanism: “It is worth
enormous effort to make prototypes look
like they were created from real-world ma-
terials.” Even the most creative engineers
Makers who have mastered finishing tech-
niques are granted wizard status by fellow
3D practitioners. Take artist Cosmo Wenman,
who creates pieces that accurately mimic
distressed metals and stones, and sculptor
Jason Bakutis, whose sanded, painted, and
polished faux marble and jade prints look
