I need an azimuth adjuster for my iexos100. Instead of paying $100 for it, I bought a open box Monoprice cadet for $60, filament for $20 and already have my files to print. I saved $20 and have something to build rings, scopes, dovetails etc. Astrophotography is expensive and this was the biggest and greatest investment to save money in the long run. I searched astrophotography and 3d and got this video. I hadvalreadybsubscribed to your channel but this made me love you even more. Thanks!
Definitely! À 3D printer is one of the best thing I have purchased (already more than 10 years ago) . We are in a hobby where the smallest part that could be no more than a poor plastic box is sold $$$. I can't enumerate here the number of things I have 3D printed that completely changed the game for my setups. Adjustable feet, voltage regulator boxes, remote controllers, adapters, footprints, bahtinov masks, knobs, Pi's cases, solar filters adapters, .... I even designed a whole system with rings and motorized focus for highly portable setups. And the best thing.. The Sol'Ex, which is absolutely stunning. Every time for a tiny fraction of a filament spool cost. Just two things I think one must be aware of : -You unleash 3D printing power only if you design you own parts. The magic of 3D printing is that you will make the part that suit YOUR needs. Of course you will find parts on the net. But to really take advantage of it, I highly recommend learning to design parts. Because when you design parts, you think ahead of how the part will print, what kind of efforts it will have to face, etc etc.. And it's not always a one step process. We often have to adjust some dimensions for a perfect fit, and unless you have the original CAD file, working with stl files is really a pain. - Don't expect 3D printing to replace optical parts. Even with high accuracy printers, even with tough materials like Nylon Carbon, dimensional accuracies are not reliable enough to enter the sub arcesecond world we sometime drown in. You will never get parallel faces, or concentric stuff for instance like you will get with a lathe. These two things said, 3D print is one thing I highly recommend, not only for Astronomy. I couldn't live without today, it is no more than the best tool I ever purchased. If I had to purchase all the things I made with it, that would have cost me like 10 times more than what I spent for a 3D printer.
Agreed!!! Also, great points made. The other point I would add is that is that once you learn 3d modeling, you can also send designs out to be machined if using another material is possible. Of course there are different rules when machining additively vs subtractively, but if you really need it... you can do it!
Hi Chad, Today I have printed my first AP gear. A small bracket that will connect the new Crayford focuser of my 6 inch Newtonian to a Nema 11 motor, controlled over Arduino by the NINA that you helped me install on my MELE Quieter 2, that I bought based on your insights. This for sure is the first of many items that I will print on cloudy nights like tonight here in Israel. I already have several designs I am working on. Thank you for everything. If you enjoy making videos, please keep doing this, you are very good at it. Thanks!
Outstanding video! For someone just starting out in both astronomy and 3D printing odds-and-end parts that are needed, this shortens the learning curve by so much that it turns my head. Thank you so much!
This is possibly one of the most comprehensive introductory overviews of 3D Printing I’ve ever seen. The detailed explanation is accessible and easy to grasp. Nice work!
Thanks! I really tried to cover what i felt was needed at the start (which is a lot), but not too much that could start to muddy the waters... So no Z-offset discussion, etc, etc.
I really tried to make it include everything I wanted to know (initially). There is ALWAYS more to know, but I too think it is about as good as I could have gotten it... or at least pretty close. :) Thanks!!!
I have 2 3D Printing. I have FDM and Resin (for 1/160 scale railroad trains). I got a little idea from you so I'm having fun with my 3d prints for my Roll Off Roof Observatory.
I just bought my first 3D printer about a month ago. I got an Ender 3 V2 used with alot of upgrades already added. It has taken some time to learn and calibrate the printer but I have had several successful prints. I bought my printer specifically for use in my Astrophotography hobby and I am very excited to put these 2 together. I also recently started autonomizing my Astrophotography setup, and can not THANK YOU enough for your videos on the Mele quieter and NINA. I very happy to see you back creating content. I very much look forward to seeing your videos on both of these hobbies!!
Great! Calibration is key, but once you understand it, it’s really not bad. Printing is very rewarding for sure. I’ll definitely pepper in some 3D content here and there. :) That printer you have us a workhorse! Gets it done!
It's actually not mine ut just an example. You can get it from the Thingiverse website. Search that site for "ZWO ASI Camera Cable Tidy". I'm not sure what diameter it is. Also, there are several other options if you search the same site generically for "ZWO ASI Cable Management" or similar. There are also many of these for sale on Etsy in all sorts of styles should you rather go that route.
They are great printers. You can get everything to work if you’ve got the time. :-) I’m sort of on the fence though. I do think buying a better model that cost more would make life easier for some period of time. But I have learned so much about the actual workings of the printer by having to deal with some of the very basic issues related to leveling, first layer, you name it. I didn’t like fighting with it… But I don’t know that I would trade that experience for anything because I’m so much more prepared at this point for issues. But yeah, there were a lot of days where I thought about Prusa and Bambu.
@@PatriotAstro I’ve found Prusa a much better experience for first timers. I won’t recommend anything else after having my own frustrations with other brands. Over 365 days in print time stress free since I made the switch :)
Wow, my Ender max arrived 2 days ago and my first prototype of a vixen dovetail bar was printed today. Looking forward to some suggestions of what to ‘Astro-print’.
So much out there! Some practical, some without utility (but fun). Glad you started with a larger print bed. I’m certain this is the biggest reason people end up with more than one printer over time!
I have watched many printer videos and this is easily equal to the best for giving an overview. Having the topic points box is great for holding all the tech talk together. BTW, using float glass(the common stuff) as a base should give a smooth surface.
Thanks! I use glass on my 5Plus because it is a larger bed and nearly impossible to level otherwise. My 5S1 is PEI and 'seems' to be fine since it is smaller.
Thanks! I had to draw the line somewhere but opted to go deeper into the hardware parts since most of my audience is used to taking lots of mechanical pieces a d putting them together to accomplish tasks (astro of course). Maybe I’ll cover calibration etc later…
Great topic to cover. My 3D printer (ender) has been a real boon to my scope setup. I've been able to create my own custom designs and print them. Good advice on the entry costs. The ~$500 is a significant investment but the return can be quickly recovered. I've created some clips for my house windows roller blinds which would have cost me $24 each. I was able to use one that hadn't failed and use it to create the replacement on Sketchup. For Astro, I've created accessories also including a Bahtinov mask specific for scope tube. The activity may seem daunting but actually with some time and patience, it's very accessible and rewarding. S!
Agreed on all points! After learning to print consistently, moving on to mastering 3D design is where you get all of the additional value and can really put your printer to work!
3D printing is amazing for unicorn parts. Things which are so specific that they would never be manufactured commercially. I've made adapters for my mini pc to a dovetail, universal filter cases, rings to allow my to mount my Tair 3 to cheap tube rings and an adapter to hold my astro camera with cheap tube rings. That's just stuff I've designed myself! I think though that 3D printers can be a bit like speed boats. It's nice to own a 3D printer, it's better to be friends with someone who owns one lol
LOL. There have been time where I have loved my printer based on what I designed and printed… and times where I hated it and wanted to sub-out a build. But I guess that goes similarly for my telescopes too! :)
There is a good video about this on the CNC Kitchen channel. The test showed decent performance at -20C. Let me try to paste the link here... which may or may not work. :) ruclips.net/video/w0JVXvSSEWs/видео.html
Why not just begin with learning to design your own 3D objects and let it print? If you like it and go the next step and try to convince your wife… 😉☺️
I'm curious about that dew shield. How did you get that rectangular notch at the bottom to print? It seems like the top of the notch has nothing to support it. Did you need support structure there?
I did use tree supports to support the notch at the bottom and the inner edge that grabs onto the front bump-out on the telescope. I tried to minimize the support requirement as much as possible though which is why I have all of the 45° angles on several of the overhangs and underhangs.
Would a 3d printed set of rings be strong and stiff enough for a guide scope? I've always wanted to have a better mount for my sw 9x50 scope that's able to mount close to my triplet. I don't want a generic adjustable set of guide scope rings.
Current advice in 3D printing world is to buy a Bamboo labs printer, they are fast and take a lot of the guesswork out of calibration (which you completely ignored in you video and is the greatest source of frustration for beginners). The more expensive one is enclosed and filtered which makes it idea for ABS/ASA which are the two best materials to print with for Astro applications.
The Bambu labs machines are definitely nice and at the price point where I would expect them to print the way most people have had them print. They do have their occasional issues like all other printers out there, but I do agree if you spend that much you should get something that works without a lot of fighting. At $200 or less you’re probably getting a base machine and are going to have to learn how to manually do some stuff, at $300 you should get auto leveling and a few other upgrades. Once you start to push in to $400-$500 You should be getting more upgrades and higher quality components and maybe coreXY, and then you start to continue to push into the bambu labs territory where you should get all of that plus an enclosure, etc. So I definitely don’t disagree, I just think the entry point can come in a lot lower and you can still have success. It’s just that you will need to understand how it all works for sure. On calibration, I specifically left that out. I wanted to talk about the components, and really give people an introduction so that they could do some research. I’ve considered making a second video which would be what to do when you actually get a machine. My assumption at this point was, I wasn’t going into calibration or X offset or anything like that. But point taken for sure.
I own a C11 XLT and have seen someone make an adapter for a mpcc 3 Baader coma corrector to replace the secondary mirror and this create a cheap Hyperstar.... I'd love someone to give it a go on a 3d printer and share some results 😅
@11:42 the red area is not showing that the angle is too steep. It's warning that the angle is too shallow. The earlier part of the curve is steeper, meaning that successive layers building from the bottom up have a better foundation below them as successive layers are added. As the bottom layer angle decreases towards zero (horizontal), there is an increasing likelihood that the layers will not adequately adhere and the print may fail altogether. One solution is to have the slicer software create temporary sacrificial support pillars that are printed along with the part, but are then broken off after printing is complete to leave just the part itself.
Yeah, I misspoke and said steep instead of shallow and missed that in the edit as well. :( But you are right, I could use supports but chose was not to so I could save both material and more importantly to me, print time. Since it’s functional in this manner, I don’t mind not having supports. There are times when you just can’t avoid it, of course.
I need an azimuth adjuster for my iexos100. Instead of paying $100 for it, I bought a open box Monoprice cadet for $60, filament for $20 and already have my files to print. I saved $20 and have something to build rings, scopes, dovetails etc. Astrophotography is expensive and this was the biggest and greatest investment to save money in the long run. I searched astrophotography and 3d and got this video. I hadvalreadybsubscribed to your channel but this made me love you even more. Thanks!
Definitely!
À 3D printer is one of the best thing I have purchased (already more than 10 years ago) .
We are in a hobby where the smallest part that could be no more than a poor plastic box is sold $$$.
I can't enumerate here the number of things I have 3D printed that completely changed the game for my setups.
Adjustable feet, voltage regulator boxes, remote controllers, adapters, footprints, bahtinov masks, knobs, Pi's cases, solar filters adapters, .... I even designed a whole system with rings and motorized focus for highly portable setups.
And the best thing.. The Sol'Ex, which is absolutely stunning.
Every time for a tiny fraction of a filament spool cost.
Just two things I think one must be aware of :
-You unleash 3D printing power only if you design you own parts. The magic of 3D printing is that you will make the part that suit YOUR needs. Of course you will find parts on the net. But to really take advantage of it, I highly recommend learning to design parts. Because when you design parts, you think ahead of how the part will print, what kind of efforts it will have to face, etc etc.. And it's not always a one step process. We often have to adjust some dimensions for a perfect fit, and unless you have the original CAD file, working with stl files is really a pain.
- Don't expect 3D printing to replace optical parts. Even with high accuracy printers, even with tough materials like Nylon Carbon, dimensional accuracies are not reliable enough to enter the sub arcesecond world we sometime drown in. You will never get parallel faces, or concentric stuff for instance like you will get with a lathe.
These two things said, 3D print is one thing I highly recommend, not only for Astronomy. I couldn't live without today, it is no more than the best tool I ever purchased. If I had to purchase all the things I made with it, that would have cost me like 10 times more than what I spent for a 3D printer.
Agreed!!! Also, great points made. The other point I would add is that is that once you learn 3d modeling, you can also send designs out to be machined if using another material is possible. Of course there are different rules when machining additively vs subtractively, but if you really need it... you can do it!
Hi Chad,
Today I have printed my first AP gear.
A small bracket that will connect the new Crayford focuser of my 6 inch Newtonian to a Nema 11 motor, controlled over Arduino by the NINA that you helped me install on my MELE Quieter 2, that I bought based on your insights.
This for sure is the first of many items that I will print on cloudy nights like tonight here in Israel.
I already have several designs I am working on.
Thank you for everything.
If you enjoy making videos, please keep doing this, you are very good at it.
Thanks!
Yes, yes, yes!!! Thanks!
Outstanding video! For someone just starting out in both astronomy and 3D printing odds-and-end parts that are needed, this shortens the learning curve by so much that it turns my head. Thank you so much!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Welcome back Chad, it's really great to see you back.
Thanks!!!
Well done!
Thanks!
This is possibly one of the most comprehensive introductory overviews of 3D Printing I’ve ever seen. The detailed explanation is accessible and easy to grasp. Nice work!
Thanks! I really tried to cover what i felt was needed at the start (which is a lot), but not too much that could start to muddy the waters... So no Z-offset discussion, etc, etc.
The algorithm has finally worked at combining my interests! Subscribed!
It’s rare but the stars align on occasion! A conjunction of your interests we may say.
Hi Ender 3 S1 Pro owner with klipper firmware here thanks for showing people what 3D printing is capable of doing in the astrophotography world
Glad to do it! It’s just such a natural combo with Astro.
Hi Chad, this is the best introductory video of 3d printing I've seen. Thank you!
I really tried to make it include everything I wanted to know (initially). There is ALWAYS more to know, but I too think it is about as good as I could have gotten it... or at least pretty close. :) Thanks!!!
Great to have you back Chad!
Thanks!!!
Very clear and logical presentation. The graphics were superb. Excellent intro and perspective of 3D printing. Thank you!
I have 2 3D Printing. I have FDM and Resin (for 1/160 scale railroad trains).
I got a little idea from you so I'm having fun with my 3d prints for my Roll Off Roof Observatory.
I saw the email, thanks for sharing. Custom functional prints are the best way to get quick value from a 3d printer!
I just bought my first 3D printer about a month ago. I got an Ender 3 V2 used with alot of upgrades already added. It has taken some time to learn and calibrate the printer but I have had several successful prints.
I bought my printer specifically for use in my Astrophotography hobby and I am very excited to put these 2 together.
I also recently started autonomizing my Astrophotography setup, and can not THANK YOU enough for your videos on the Mele quieter and NINA. I very happy to see you back creating content. I very much look forward to seeing your videos on both of these hobbies!!
Great! Calibration is key, but once you understand it, it’s really not bad. Printing is very rewarding for sure. I’ll definitely pepper in some 3D content here and there. :) That printer you have us a workhorse! Gets it done!
So nice to have you and your videos back. Always top quality. 🎉
Thank you! 😃
Very interesting video again Chad, I don't own a 3D printer (yet) but it's tempting
:) It is tempting for sure. Enough rainy days in a row and I was happy to have something else to do! :)
Thanks for your video, wished you poster the ZWO cable ring?? PLEASE
It's actually not mine ut just an example. You can get it from the Thingiverse website. Search that site for "ZWO ASI Camera Cable Tidy". I'm not sure what diameter it is. Also, there are several other options if you search the same site generically for "ZWO ASI Cable Management" or similar. There are also many of these for sale on Etsy in all sorts of styles should you rather go that route.
@@PatriotAstro P.S Like your channel very MUCH!!!! Glad your back!!!!
Great subject. I spent few years printings adapters and extrnsions to the telescope and camera
Very cool!
Huge plug for Prusa printers!!! If you're on the fence, I can't recommend them enough! (yes, even over bambu labs)
They are great printers. You can get everything to work if you’ve got the time. :-) I’m sort of on the fence though. I do think buying a better model that cost more would make life easier for some period of time. But I have learned so much about the actual workings of the printer by having to deal with some of the very basic issues related to leveling, first layer, you name it. I didn’t like fighting with it… But I don’t know that I would trade that experience for anything because I’m so much more prepared at this point for issues. But yeah, there were a lot of days where I thought about Prusa and Bambu.
@@PatriotAstro I’ve found Prusa a much better experience for first timers. I won’t recommend anything else after having my own frustrations with other brands. Over 365 days in print time stress free since I made the switch :)
@@GadiantonsRobber stress-free 3-D printing… Now that’s something I can get behind. :-)
Wow, my Ender max arrived 2 days ago and my first prototype of a vixen dovetail bar was printed today. Looking forward to some suggestions of what to ‘Astro-print’.
So much out there! Some practical, some without utility (but fun). Glad you started with a larger print bed. I’m certain this is the biggest reason people end up with more than one printer over time!
Just when I thought I had everything i needed for Astrophotography. Thanks Chad!😂
Sorry!! (…but we both know that wasn’t true) LOL
Interestingly enough, I recently bought a 3d printer for this exact purpose - glad to see you are back and glad to see you are doing this!
Great to hear!
I have watched many printer videos and this is easily equal to the best for giving an overview. Having the topic points box is great for holding all the tech talk together. BTW, using float glass(the common stuff) as a base should give a smooth surface.
Thanks! I use glass on my 5Plus because it is a larger bed and nearly impossible to level otherwise. My 5S1 is PEI and 'seems' to be fine since it is smaller.
Outstanding video! Welcome back! I would love to have the .stl file for your C-8 Dew shield..looks fantastic!
Definitely. Send me an email and I'll get it over to you. I'll also try to post my stuff at 'some' point.
@@PatriotAstro Hi Chad email sent thank you! Pablo Lewin
You covered all the intro points very well. Excellent.
Thanks! I had to draw the line somewhere but opted to go deeper into the hardware parts since most of my audience is used to taking lots of mechanical pieces a d putting them together to accomplish tasks (astro of course). Maybe I’ll cover calibration etc later…
Great topic to cover. My 3D printer (ender) has been a real boon to my scope setup. I've been able to create my own custom designs and print them.
Good advice on the entry costs. The ~$500 is a significant investment but the return can be quickly recovered. I've created some clips for my house windows roller blinds which would have cost me $24 each. I was able to use one that hadn't failed and use it to create the replacement on Sketchup. For Astro, I've created accessories also including a Bahtinov mask specific for scope tube.
The activity may seem daunting but actually with some time and patience, it's very accessible and rewarding.
S!
Agreed on all points! After learning to print consistently, moving on to mastering 3D design is where you get all of the additional value and can really put your printer to work!
3D printing is amazing for unicorn parts. Things which are so specific that they would never be manufactured commercially.
I've made adapters for my mini pc to a dovetail, universal filter cases, rings to allow my to mount my Tair 3 to cheap tube rings and an adapter to hold my astro camera with cheap tube rings. That's just stuff I've designed myself!
I think though that 3D printers can be a bit like speed boats. It's nice to own a 3D printer, it's better to be friends with someone who owns one lol
LOL. There have been time where I have loved my printer based on what I designed and printed… and times where I hated it and wanted to sub-out a build. But I guess that goes similarly for my telescopes too! :)
I have come to appreciate the temperature range required in astro hardware. How do these materials hold up at -10 C?
There is a good video about this on the CNC Kitchen channel. The test showed decent performance at -20C. Let me try to paste the link here... which may or may not work. :) ruclips.net/video/w0JVXvSSEWs/видео.html
Oh boy...my wife is gonna kill me if I pick up another hobby....
I am truly sorry and take full blame as the accountable party. ;)
Why not just begin with learning to design your own 3D objects and let it print?
If you like it and go the next step and try to convince your wife… 😉☺️
3D printer is the astronomer friend :D
I'm curious about that dew shield. How did you get that rectangular notch at the bottom to print? It seems like the top of the notch has nothing to support it. Did you need support structure there?
I did use tree supports to support the notch at the bottom and the inner edge that grabs onto the front bump-out on the telescope. I tried to minimize the support requirement as much as possible though which is why I have all of the 45° angles on several of the overhangs and underhangs.
Would a 3d printed set of rings be strong and stiff enough for a guide scope? I've always wanted to have a better mount for my sw 9x50 scope that's able to mount close to my triplet. I don't want a generic adjustable set of guide scope rings.
Yes, sure. You'd have to work out the design, but this would be strong enough for sure.
Current advice in 3D printing world is to buy a Bamboo labs printer, they are fast and take a lot of the guesswork out of calibration (which you completely ignored in you video and is the greatest source of frustration for beginners). The more expensive one is enclosed and filtered which makes it idea for ABS/ASA which are the two best materials to print with for Astro applications.
The Bambu labs machines are definitely nice and at the price point where I would expect them to print the way most people have had them print. They do have their occasional issues like all other printers out there, but I do agree if you spend that much you should get something that works without a lot of fighting. At $200 or less you’re probably getting a base machine and are going to have to learn how to manually do some stuff, at $300 you should get auto leveling and a few other upgrades. Once you start to push in to $400-$500 You should be getting more upgrades and higher quality components and maybe coreXY, and then you start to continue to push into the bambu labs territory where you should get all of that plus an enclosure, etc. So I definitely don’t disagree, I just think the entry point can come in a lot lower and you can still have success. It’s just that you will need to understand how it all works for sure. On calibration, I specifically left that out. I wanted to talk about the components, and really give people an introduction so that they could do some research. I’ve considered making a second video which would be what to do when you actually get a machine. My assumption at this point was, I wasn’t going into calibration or X offset or anything like that. But point taken for sure.
I own a C11 XLT and have seen someone make an adapter for a mpcc 3 Baader coma corrector to replace the secondary mirror and this create a cheap Hyperstar....
I'd love someone to give it a go on a 3d printer and share some results 😅
There is at least one 3D printing for astrophotography group on Facebook. You can scrape those posts to see if it’s already been mentioned.
The missing link for AP 😅
It can be! :)
Are the files to print the dew shield available anywhere?
Locate my email address on the about page of this channel and send me a message. I should be able to share the files with you.
Promo_SM
@11:42 the red area is not showing that the angle is too steep. It's warning that the angle is too shallow. The earlier part of the curve is steeper, meaning that successive layers building from the bottom up have a better foundation below them as successive layers are added. As the bottom layer angle decreases towards zero (horizontal), there is an increasing likelihood that the layers will not adequately adhere and the print may fail altogether. One solution is to have the slicer software create temporary sacrificial support pillars that are printed along with the part, but are then broken off after printing is complete to leave just the part itself.
Yeah, I misspoke and said steep instead of shallow and missed that in the edit as well. :( But you are right, I could use supports but chose was not to so I could save both material and more importantly to me, print time. Since it’s functional in this manner, I don’t mind not having supports. There are times when you just can’t avoid it, of course.