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Gonna make myself some Hats for my Fans!

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That's a radical idea! :thup:

That would be awesome, just swap the grill to whichever you choose!
 
I love it!

I've been looking for something like this for my Enthoo Primo grills. I found mild steel in the pattern I want but have to buy a 1x2 meter sheet. For a piece the size I need it would be reasonably priced.. but being 10 times as much as I need makes a little expensive. ;)

Could 4.5-5.5mm hexagonal pattern with 1-2mm edges be printed in a panel 153x496x2mm thick panel? That is the biggest panel. Next is 136x266mm.
 
Okay...
Been without internet at home since Friday when I got home from work so I haven't been able to update the progress.

Initial results of snap-in grill:

The long-term reliability of the plastic tabs used to hold the grill in place is just not there with PLA. The part either wears down or snaps after repeated (50+) assembly/disassembly cycles.

This required a re-design, which I've been bouncing around in the old noggin for a couple days while taking some time to play PoE and read and watch TV.

I find if I put the issue on the back burner for a while (figuratively speaking) I can then go back and view it with a fresh perspective.

I've done that and I think I have a good solution which will permanently solve the reliability problem as well as make attaching the grill to the cover far easier.

It will, however, increase the thickness of the "face" from 3mm to 7mm.

I will be mocking up the prototype this evening and printing it out to perform further testing.

I have no pics of the improved design since I'm at work so I will have to show the prototype when it's done being printed.

Sorry for the delay in responding. I hope to have internet access when I get home today, but that is not a certainty. (The cable guy is supposed to show up at 4:30 today)

My "build area" is only 28.5 x 15.3 x 15.5 cm in size so I can only do 140mmx240mm builds at most
 
Dafuq?! My post went away!

*sigh*

fuggit here's the post again

I made a slot-load design
vq3HEuO.jpg

Here's the cover and grill
AB8sowM.jpg

Here's the assembled cover/grill

Keep in mind the opening on the cover is 120mm while the grill is 118mm. I did that so I can see how it lines up when inserted into the cover through the slot.

3XhD65s.jpg

The inner frame of a 120mm fan is only 116mm wide. I measured it with a caliper on the Akasa Viper Fans, 2 different corsair fans, and my spare Noctua 120mm

The final cover will have an opening of 118mm so it perfectly matches the grill and doesn't impede air flow.
 
I completed the prints tonight. 2 Black covers and 2 red grills. I also re-used the blue grill prototype print since it fits fine in the black covers. The flash on my camera makes them appear a bit more shiney than they look sitting in front of me
fKX3rYB.jpg

VGlcDnm.jpg
 
My "build area" is only 28.5 x 15.3 x 15.5 cm in size so I can only do 140mmx240mm builds at most
Is it possible to join sections of honeycomb together to look like one big piece? Like make 4 pieces 153x124mm to make 153x496mm grill?

I completed the prints tonight. 2 Black covers and 2 red grills. I also re-used the blue grill prototype print since it fits fine in the black covers. The flash on my camera makes them appear a bit more shiney than they look sitting in front of me.
Looking very nice indeed. :thup:

Are there any threads discussing how to design, program and print 3D projects?
 
When the FlashForge Creator X arrives tomorrow, I'm gonna mod my design for "Moo-colored" ones...

Why?

I like meat. That's why.
 
And

cPcWVBX.jpg

This is my first ever ,ulti-color print attempt. I consider it a failure, tbh, but not by much...

I learned a lot from it.

NEVER, EVER use glass plate and hairspray when printing fan covers oriented face down. The damn thing was so shiney I tooka wire brush to it to scuff it up...BEFORE I took these pics...and I still can't take a snap of it with the flash because it'll frikkin blind you with the reflection, lol

Never use translucent blue in a fan cover. It actually kinda sucks as a color. Translucent green, paired with a silver/light gray would be nice as it looks like a circuit board...the Translucent blue came with the Creator X and the light Blue came with the Replicator 2 so I used them because I have only 1 spool of black, yellow, red, green(lime), white, and white ABS

Never, ever attempt to re-position your clamp holding your glass pane to the build plate while in the middle of a print. the glas WILL shift, ruining your print causing you to get frustrated and remove the mess from the build plate carelessly, which WILL lead to the painter's tape tearing so you have to use hairspray to hold your print to the build plate, whjich WILL make it shiny, like a diamond.

That said...I am sure I will get better at it as I tweak the process a bit more.
 
Nice design.
Thanks for the detailed data. Hope to have a 3D printer someday. The more I can learn the better.
 
I like that design notarat :thup:

But I'm confused on the hairspray part...
Did you accidentally spray hairspray on the hats??
 
I like that design notarat :thup:

But I'm confused on the hairspray part...
Did you accidentally spray hairspray on the hats??

When you're using glass sheets clamped to a heated build plate the parts don't stick to it well.

There are a couple ways to correct that...buying a roll of expensive Kapton tape and re-applying it after every 2-3 prints, or buy some Aquanet hairspray, spray on a coat (which makes the parts stick to the build plate very well) then rinse it off after printing an item then reapply.

Hairspray costs like $2.99 for 11oz cans whereas the kapton tape costs considerably more.
 
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