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3D Touch Printer

Overview
This printer has been pulled from service.

The 3D Touch (formerly the BFB 3000 Plus) printer is a legacy printer from 3DSystems/Cubify. The manuals and specifications can be seen here on the Cubify site, but for reference:

  • Print envelope: 230x275x210mm (9x10.75x8.25in)
  • Z-Axis resolution modes: .125mm (High) / .25 (Medium) / .5 (Low)
  • Number of extruders: 2
  • Compatible filament materials: ABS, PLA, Others (TBD)

Basic Operation

Before using the printer you must go through the Basic Training. It takes less than 30 minutes, so no excuses.
  1. Obtain a properly formed STL file
  2. Load into the BXB Axon proprietary software (Windows only)
  3. Set build parameters (material, resolution, fill, etc)
  4. Generate "BFB" build file in Axon
  5. Load BFB file onto USB flash drive
  6. Power on or Wake printer
  7. Insert flash drive into printer
  8. Select "Print" from touchscreen menu
  9. Select the BFB file
  10. Start print
  11. Once print is cooled enough, remove from printbed
  12. Report any issues/questions to Resource Managers
Detailed instructions are provided in the training, which focuses mainly on proper use of the software to get good results.

Material choices

The printer can print in either:

ABS
+Stuff Legos are made out of. Tough.
+Higher melting point
+Longer lifespan
- Prone to warping or deforming when not printed on a heated bed
- Smellier when printing
- Not food-safe


PLA
+Biodegradable
+Smells kind of like popcorn when printed
+Food safe, within reason
+Shinier
+Faster print times
- Less Sturdy
- Lower melting temp (eg summertime heat can deform)

We have both kinds of filament on-hand, and the software can easily be configured (with a simple drop-down selection) to use either kind for a specific print.

Print examples

This section will be expanded to show pictures of how different print options affect the resulting print quality.

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