Cool vid thanks. It'd be interesting to see if you could fill the print lines with bondo and sand down the surface so it's flatter. It would be a lot of work if you're always printing different words but if you make an alphabet it could be worth it.
I have not tried bondo, but I have played with wood filler. In the end I kind of like the 3D printer “look” after all, a lot of my antique woodtype has scratches and nicks for its patina so it’s similar.
Pretty cool that this worked so well. I was worried as well that the press just crushes the plastic. (I guess it will deform slightly over time, but this is not something you want to make 1000 impressions from, or you just remake the plate if it deforms too much.) With a better 3D printer, or even sending the 3D files to an industrial printing service, you could probably get really great results for custom designs. The only thing that is kinda limiting is that you can't really get extremely sharp corners or tiny details/fonts printed. But for larger posters/fonts, this is usually less of an issue. One thing i will try is to play a bit with the slicer software that makes the toolpath for the 3D printer. You can set how it will fill out the top surface, and there is even an "ironing" function that drags just the hot printer nozzle over the top surface again, to fill in all the little voids and get a more even and consitent surface. Some flat-sanding after the printing might help as well. Another idea would be to print the design inverted, so the face of the letters are sticking down on the print bed of the printer. This would probably help to keep everything even and flat as well. Might have to add some draft angles and break-away supports, to build up the block on top of the lettering. Gives me tons of ideas to play with and experiment... 😅
Pressure is certainly a key. Try rubbing the paper with a wooden spoon or even carefully striking it with a hammer. I also have found that oil based inks work better to adhere to the PLA, however that does cause a hiccup on cleaning it thoroughly.
Good to see lead type won't be being replaced anytime soon! ;)
Well I hope not, but it’s awfully cool to pair it with something easily replicated with modern tools.
Cool vid thanks.
It'd be interesting to see if you could fill the print lines with bondo and sand down the surface so it's flatter. It would be a lot of work if you're always printing different words but if you make an alphabet it could be worth it.
I have not tried bondo, but I have played with wood filler. In the end I kind of like the 3D printer “look” after all, a lot of my antique woodtype has scratches and nicks for its patina so it’s similar.
Pretty cool that this worked so well. I was worried as well that the press just crushes the plastic. (I guess it will deform slightly over time, but this is not something you want to make 1000 impressions from, or you just remake the plate if it deforms too much.) With a better 3D printer, or even sending the 3D files to an industrial printing service, you could probably get really great results for custom designs. The only thing that is kinda limiting is that you can't really get extremely sharp corners or tiny details/fonts printed. But for larger posters/fonts, this is usually less of an issue.
One thing i will try is to play a bit with the slicer software that makes the toolpath for the 3D printer. You can set how it will fill out the top surface, and there is even an "ironing" function that drags just the hot printer nozzle over the top surface again, to fill in all the little voids and get a more even and consitent surface. Some flat-sanding after the printing might help as well. Another idea would be to print the design inverted, so the face of the letters are sticking down on the print bed of the printer. This would probably help to keep everything even and flat as well. Might have to add some draft angles and break-away supports, to build up the block on top of the lettering. Gives me tons of ideas to play with and experiment... 😅
These are great ideas! I’ve played with a few different options let me know how your experiments work.
Love these videos!
Thanks Jamison!
I've been trying to do 3D printed stamps, but not with the best results, so it's really cool to see that it works
well for letterpress! 👏
Pressure is certainly a key. Try rubbing the paper with a wooden spoon or even carefully striking it with a hammer. I also have found that oil based inks work better to adhere to the PLA, however that does cause a hiccup on cleaning it thoroughly.
May I ask whats the thickness/weight of the paper?
I use all sorts of paper. In this particular film I was printing on 110# cotton.