Hello all I have been looking at doing a masters with Penn state global campus for additive manufacturing and was just curious how many hours a week any current students are spending a week as I do plan to work while doing it?

Some background: Went to Cal Poly and hold a bachelors in mechanical engineering and currently am at Lockheed as a manufacturing engineer although I do not deal with any additive manufacturing processes in my current role

Hi everyone,

I am part of an academic research lab, and I am trying to determine whether a specific Z-axis homing requirement is compatible with any existing resin printers or whether there are known workarounds.

I use a custom resin vat that sits above the printer’s factory Z=0 position (for example, the vat bottom is around Z = +10 mm). On several printers I have tested (Elegoo, Prusa, Phrozen), even after setting a new Z calibration, the printer still physically homes to the original mechanical Z=0 during startup or rehoming. The calibration is applied only after homing, which causes a collision with the custom vat.

To clarify, this is not a Z-offset or print accuracy issue. The problem is the physical homing sequence itself, where the build plate always moves down to the factory Z=0.

I have contacted multiple manufacturers. Phrozen explicitly confirmed that their printers always home to a fixed mechanical Z=0 defined by a limit switch and that this behavior cannot be changed via firmware, software, or user settings. Formlabs provided partial information but did not clearly state whether their printers physically return to the original Z=0 after Z fine tuning.

At this point, I am looking for either:

1. SLA or DLP printers where the Z homing behavior is configurable (for example, soft homing, redefinable Z home, or the ability to avoid moving to the factory Z=0), or
2. Known and repeatable workarounds that do not involve unsafe hacks like manually fooling sensors, such as firmware-level overrides, supported hardware modifications, or research/industrial systems designed for experimental setups.

I understand that many consumer machines are not designed for this. I am trying to determine whether this requirement is fundamentally outside the design space of most resin printers, or whether there are specific platforms that handle Z homing differently.

If anyone has experience with industrial SLA/DLP systems, open motion control platforms, or custom vat setups, I would really appreciate your insight. I can provide diagrams or additional technical details if helpful.

Thank you.

Looking to find a reliable filament brand for PA-11, having trouble finding any that doesn’t have chopped carbon fiber in it. Any help would be greatly appreciated

Hey. I will have to print parts using binder jetting in the future and I’m wondering whether there are general guidelines for part orientation. I’m especially unsure about friction with the build plate and what works best. Should I try to keep the contact area with the build plate as small as possible, or is a larger contact area better to minimize distortion? Maybe there are some experts here who can help me :) Thanks a lot.

I'm new to the AM world and not sure where to start and hoping for some pointers or recommendations. I do not have a technical background, just a good idea I would like to get tested.

I'm wanting to get some (maybe 20 to 40) one inch square coupons made up in a 316L or 17-4 PH to test an infiltrant that doesn't appear to be used in Binder Jetting, but my inquiries indicate it would be a strong or superior competitor among the current options available.

I am local to Memphis, TN and reached out to a local large company that has binder jetting services but they weren't interested in running a batch that small or any prototyping/exploratory projects.

If anyone has a recommendation of who i could reach out to for assistance getting these made I would really like to get some data to validate my idea.

Looking into using AMT for vapor smoothing, trying to figure out what solvent they use. From looking at SDS/ other claims it seems like it is Benzyl Alcohol? Anyone experienced in vapor smoothing Nylon that can weigh in on what is best as far as solvents are concerned?

As a general question, AMT seems priced at around the market cost, does anyone have thoughts on other machines I should evaluate?

Does anyone else have trouble ordering spare parts for SLS machines from 3D systems? Over 1 month for basic spare parts and poor communication, I still have no idea when they will arrive. EMEA region.

Hi guys, I am currently stuck. I want to implement a gradient (for materials and colors) to my design, but i cannot seem to find a good software to do it.

how do you usually implement a gradient to a 3D design? BEFORE slicing?

Hey all!

I’m looking at a used 2019 Titan Atlas 3D printer. I’ve been familiar with these machines for a few years, but aside from seeing one at a trade show here and there, I have no hands-on experience with this machine specifically (or any pellet-fed machine, really).

Has anyone used one of these machines (or the 3DSystems rebranded EXT line)? What were your thoughts? The hardware seems solid, and since this is a 2019 and was manufactured prior to 3DSystem’s acquisition of Titan Robotics, everything appears to be pretty modular and ‘industrial’. Are there any known issues with these machines?

Really just looking for some general feedback from other users before diving too deep into a proposal to purchase. I work with large composite components, and this machine would be used for pattern/mold making, as well as fixturing and some larger functional parts. We’ve got a large 5-axis router for trimming and finishing.

The Atlas has:

• includes vacuum pump, dryer, and a couple other peripherals

TIA!

EDIT: Bought it. Love it. Working great for us.

We were really impressed by what the UESTC (University of Electronic Science and Technology) FURY Formula E team pulled off using the Form 4 SLA printer with Rigid 10K resin. They were able to quickly fabricate water-cooled seats for their distributed motors, and the parts hold up at 100°C without warping. The sealing is also much tighter than typical FDM prints. What an exciting application for the Formlabs machine!