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Thread: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

  1. #1

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    Oct 2020
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    Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    Hi all,

    As I want to print a 45mm recessed lens board, now I’m also thinking to print all of my lens boards with a 3D printer.

    What is the best material to print? ABS, PETG, etc ?

  2. #2
    Peter De Smidt's Avatar
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    Re: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    If you have access to the various materials, you might try printing a lens board with each and comparing. My guess is that ABS would be the most durable. Make sure to test for opacity.
    “You often feel tired, not because you've done too much, but because you've done too little of what sparks a light in you.”
    ― Alexander Den Heijer, Nothing You Don't Already Know

  3. #3
    Tin Can's Avatar
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    Re: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    I guess this article may be pertinent to 3D printing

    I am not the I

    I DESIGNED MY OWN 3D PRINTED LENS HOODS BECAUSE NIKON’S SUCK
    Tin Can

  4. #4

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    Mar 2019
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    Re: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    I had a Sinar lens board 3D-printed in PLA by which is supposed to be a bit stronger than PETG according to the eBay-supplier. It's an exact match 100% to the Sinar boards in every way but the lens board flexes outwards in the middle when I lock it onto the front standard - even without a lens mounted. I even doubt it would be light proof. No more plastic lens boards for me!

  5. #5

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    Re: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    I use PLA. Its just fine, as long as you print at 100% density (solid plastic, no air spaces). Not all black filament is opaque unless you print solid.

  6. #6
    Drew Bedo's Avatar
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    Re: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    I do not have ay expertise with 3D priting or design.

    The characteristics that seem important in my mind are opacity and rigidity.

    Please let us all know how this works out fior you.
    Drew Bedo
    www.quietlightphoto.com
    http://www.artsyhome.com/author/drew-bedo




    There are only three types of mounting flanges; too big, too small and wrong thread!

  7. #7
    Bill
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    Re: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    I have had success with black PETG at 30% infill -- the majority of my lens boards are such.

  8. #8

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    St. Simons Island, Georgia
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    Re: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    This raises the question of what’s the best 3D printer for home use. I suppose it should take several types of materials.

  9. #9

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    Re: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    Another vote for PETG. PLA will be slightly easier to print, and harder-- but it's also a bit more brittle, and more likely to melt if left in a car in the summer.

    PETG will have a slight amount of flexibility, but is very tough, and can take higher temps without deforming.

    ABS tends to shrink, which means you need to print slightly over-size, and keep a constant temperature throughout the print, or as it cools unevenly, it will shrink unevenly, and curl. It also stinks worse than the others when printing. A good ABS print is a great print, but it's far more difficult to print well than the other two.

    I printed a lens board more for test purposes, but it's more than solid enough to hold my Caltar-S II 210mm f/5.6 lens.

    As for opacity, the black PETG filaments are usually opaque. I think I printed mine at 0.2mm layer height, 30% infill.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails IMG_1880.jpg  

  10. #10

    Re: Best material to 3D print lens boards etc

    Yet another vote for PETG. I printed mine as Grat, and added a layer of flat black paint on the inside of the board prevent internal reflections. Printed plastic can be pretty shiny.

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