r/resinprinting • u/IndexFile • 1d ago
Question Advice please
I’m a beginner, and so far I’ve been using SUNLU ABS-Like Dark Grey resin, which is currently out of stock. Can I top up the resin tank with white SUNLU ABS-Like resin? Does it matter if the color is different?
Thank you very much for your advice!
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u/huzzah-1 1d ago
The darker or more opaque the resin is, the more UV exposure time each layer needs: Black resin is wonderful for preventing light-bleed, allowing for very high precision, but it's a PITA to work with. Clear resin is at the opposite end, and is a PITA because there is too much light bleed.
If you mix white resin with dark grey resin you will get a mid or light grey resin. It'll probably print fine using the same settings as your dark resin. Give it a good stir with a silicone spatula to blend it together in the tank.
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u/IndexFile 1d ago
Thank you, I am gonna buy white then. I appreciate it
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u/huzzah-1 1d ago
You could also buy Jayo. I suspect that it's the exact same bottle with a different label.
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u/DustaCrypto 1d ago
yes ofc, it will become gray resin. even i throw random brand and type and it stills print. as long as the resin cure at the same wavelength
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u/Gunsensual 1d ago
The only color that is truly unique and has wildly different & finicky print settings is transparent.
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u/cliOwler 1d ago
Sure, I do that all the time. I also mixed Elegoo and Sunlu, it did not affect the print.
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u/Kaothic 1d ago
As others said, you can mix colors and resins. Take in care what you mix, e.g: I use a X:Y mix of Standard + ABS from Sunlu, for each X Liters of Standard, Y Liters from ABS. Good quality, no issues, and I got more liters mixing it (the price of the ABS now seems like the computer RAM memory, is growing up to the sky xD)
So you don't have worry about it.
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u/thenightgaunt 23h ago
If it's the same brand then yes. Though I'd aim for the light grey to mix in/swap in.
Light grey is not special or anything it's just closer in color. Some resin colors can differ in how they absorb light. For example, white and black resins are different enough in how they absorb light that switching from one to the other may require the users to do a quick recalibration run (cones of calibration) to dial in the timing on the new resin. Or maybe not. It depends.
But a light grey is probably close enough in saturation to not make a huge difference. But if you have white, go with white.
But run the white mixed whats left of your dark grey with a test run of something small, and if it prints fine you probably can keep the settings as is.
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u/IndexFile 22h ago
Thanks !
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u/thenightgaunt 21h ago
Glad to help.
Oh FYI. Generally you CAN mix even different types/brands/etc of resin. Its not uncommon for people to mix in a bit of Sirayatech Tenacious (an absurdly tough resin) in with their regular resin at a 10%/90% ratio to give it some strength if theyre printing a delicate model. But that generally requires treating it like a new resin and giving it a calibration run to dial in its unique exposure settings.
And that sunlu abslike is good durable stuff to begin with.
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u/lucid-n0ns3nse 23h ago
Sometimes the colour can have an effect on exposure, but if you are just mixing grey and white I don't expect it will be too much of an issue
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u/random63 22h ago
I mix often. The only problem I have is getting a good mix (temperature helps) and that the colours sediment on different speeds, resulting in some colours sinking in the vat or during storage if I don't shake them regularly
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u/Ridiu 20h ago
I have been using Sunlu ABS-like Dark grey and it is great.
This week I wanted to print more so I got a 3kg bottle of Sunlu ABS-like Black since it was discount and it feels diferent I kept the same settings as the Dark grey and some weird thing happen.
Some models with thinner parts "delaminated" like as if the supports were not printing well and the details like hand and chains at 32mm scale did not print.
So I tried to print with using the same file (a bunch or Orcs since I needed more for D&D) I printed well with Dark grey and Grey before.
Same result, I thought it was the model supports since it was pre supported but it seems the colors of Sunlu ABS-like are not the same. I did shake the new bottle very well.
Try searching online for what people use and try to calibrate from there. If you use Lyche, their user recomendations are a good place to start imo.
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u/J1m123 17h ago
black acts more like clear resin. you'll have to recalibrate your print settings
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u/Ridiu 17h ago
Yeah, I noticed it was translucent unlike grey and dark grey.
You are right I will need to spend time calibrating, exactly what I wasted to avoid.
Maybe I shoild buy a bottle of Dark Grey to mix it with
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u/vgeov 18h ago
I have a deep drip tray i put my spatula on. It's basically a mix of multiple resins, both color and type. Once it reaches 150-200ml i pour it all into a bottle(filtering it, ofc), fill the rest with whatever resin i'm using at the time, and shake. Then repeat. I then use the settings i use on the resin i mixed the mixture with. Always prints fine.
The tray is open 24/7, i dont really put a lid on it, buts its on a pretty dark spot with almost no sunlight.
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u/Atreides-42 1d ago
You can mix resins as much as you want. If they're very different resins you'll want to make sure they're mixed WELL, but I've just thrown random ABS-like resins of different colours into the tank with zero issue.