What are the different types of 3D printing?
3D printing is an additive manufacturing process that creates 3D objects from digital models by depositing material layer by layer.
There are multiple different types of 3D printing. At uCreate, we have Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) and Stereolithography (SLA) printing.
See the final section of this page for a comparison between FDM and SLA printing.
What is FDM 3D printing?
Fused Deposition Modelling (FDM) printers extrudes molten plastic through a nozzle, layer by layer to form 3D objects. It is the most popular 3D printing method and the majority of the 3D printers available in the uCreate Makerspace are FDM-based 3D printers. Our printers mainly use PLA, but some can use other materials like ABS, nylon and TPU. Refer to the FDM materials guide for further information.
Pros: Fast, large build volume, require little post processing, variety of materials.
Cons: Layer lines may be visible on final print.
What are the components of an FDM printer.
Build plate
The surface on which the 3D printer constructs the 3D print.
Buildplates can be made from different materials and many are flexible. This means they can be easily removed from the printer and flexed to help with removal of 3D prints.
Extruder
The tool that moves, heats, and pushes the filament out of the printer.
Extruders on FDM printers can be either direct-drive or bowden extruder. Direct extruders push filament directly into the nozzle. in a Bowden system, the extruder is mounted on the printer’s frame. It pushes and pulls filament through a long PTFE tube (called a Bowden tube) and into the hot end. uCreate has a mixture of direct-drive and bowden extruder printers.
Nozzle
The small tip with a hole through which melted plastic is pushed onto the buildplate. These come in various sizes. The smaller the nozzle, the higher detail the 3D print.
The standard nozzle size is 0.4mm.
In Ultimaker printers, the nozzle is part of the print-core. An interchangeable housing for swapping out different nozzle sizes easily.
Print head
The mobile housing that contains extruders (in a direct-drive 3D printer) and nozzles.
A print head consists of 2 parts, the cold end and the hot end. The cold end includes the motor and the extruder (in a direct-drive 3D printer), which is responsible for the extrusion and withdrawal of the filament, it belongs to the power part. The hot end includes heat sink, fan, and nozzle, which are responsible for heating and cooling the material.
FDM printers available at uCreate.
The uCreate Makerspace has a range of different FDM printers - with differing nozzles, sizes and settings. They are each best suited to different tasks.
Ultimaker S5/S7
Notable features:
- Self-service.
- 330 x 240 x 300 mm build volume.
- Dual extruder.
- Set-up for PVA (water-soluble) and breakaway supports.
- Various nozzle sizes.
- CURA slicing software
- Compatible with PLA, ABS, nylon and TPU filaments.
Recommended use - Large printing, printing complex models with PVA or breakaway supports.
Bambu Lab X1 Carbon
Key features:
- Self-service.
- 256 x 256 x 256mm build volume.
- Multicolour printing.
- Fast printing.
- Failure detection.
- Bambu Studio slicing software.
- Compatible with PLA filament.
Recommended use: Fast or multi-colour PLA printing.
Raise Pro 3 Plus
Notable features:
- Self-service.
- 300 x 300 x 605mm build volume.
- Dual extruder.
- ideaMaker slicing software
Recommended Use - Extra-large prints.
Prusa i3 Mini+
Notable features:
- uCreate print queue printer.
- 180 x 180 x 180mm build volume.
- Single extruder.
- PrusaSlicer slicing software.
- Compatible with PLA filament.
Recommended Use - Used for white PLA prints from the uCreate print queue.
What is SLA printing?
Stereolithography (SLA) 3D printers consist of a pool of liquid resin (in a tank) that hardens when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light. This tanks sits inside a UV blocking case and the buildplate sinks down into it. A UV laser inside the printer then fires through the resin, hardening it (curing) into a solid on the build plate. This print must then be removed from the buildplate and washed in IPA to remove any uncured resin. This is then placed in a UV curing station to finish the curing process.
SLA printing is available through out online print queue only. To find out more about getting SLA prints from uCreate, please see our SLA print queue.
For more information about SLA printing, see our an introduction to FormLabs knowledge base page.
Pros: High-resolution, watertight, solid objects, transparent.
Cons: Staff use only as it is a slower and expensive, that uses harmful chemicals.
What are the components of an SLA printer.
Buildplate
The surface on which the 3D printer constructs the 3D print.
The buildplate on an SLA printer is usually inverted (see the diagram below). Flexible plate attachments can be added to the buildplate to make part removal easier.
Resin tank and mixer
The resin tank and mixer sit in the base of the 3D printer (on top of the light screen). The tank is filled with the liquid resin and the mixer agitates the resin before printing to ensure an even consistency and that there is no cured resin left in the tank from a previous print.
The base of the tank is transparent and most resin tank bases are flexible.
LED screen
The screen sits underneath the resin tank and shines through the base of the resin tank to cure the resin onto the buildplate.
UV blocking case
The UV blocking case stops the resin inside the printer curing from external light sources. If this was not present, the resin would cure over time through lightening in the room where the printer is kept.
SLA printers available at uCreate.
uCreate's SLA printers are from FormLabs. We have the Form3 and Form4 SLA 3D printers. The Form4 is the updated version of the Form3.
At uCreate the Form3 is used for clear resin and the Form4 is used for grey resin.
To find out more about getting SLA prints from uCreate, please see our SLA print queue.
FDM vs SLA - when should I choose each type of 3D printing?
FDM printing will suit most of your 3D printing needs. However, their are some application where SLA printing will produce a better quality output.
When to use FDM printing:
Rapid prototyping.
Multi-colour printing.
Multi-material printing.
When to use SLA printing:
Complex construction of multiple parts where extreme accuracy is needed.
Waterproof (or solid) parts are required.
Extremely high detail or small scale models (for example, DnD miniatures).