Full Color Sandstone test prints

Discussion in 'My Shapeways Order Arrived' started by Kaetemi, Nov 22, 2011.

  1. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    Let's start out with a comparison of the new Shapeways Full Color Sandstone with the old variation, and a similar product from a different vendor.

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    Can you guess which one is which?
    On the left we have the old FCS, in the center are prints from another company, and on the right is the new FCS.
    Please note that for some reason the new FCS color palettes were printed sideways, which is why you see more printing lines there.

    Old FCS:
    + Pro: Good black, good strength
    - Con: Poor white, dark colors, sometimes blurred colors, sensitive surface
    Other vendor:
    + Pro: Good white, strong surface
    - Con: Poor black, inconsistently applied gloss-y surface coating
    New FCS:
    + Pro: Good white and black, brightly vivid colors, strong surface
    - Con: Poor surface finish in a specific case

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    Check out that contrast!

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    The new FCS is lying on top, if you didn't notice from the great quality. :)

    Now, the only killing issue that occurred in this specific test. The surface which, I assume, was resting on the table, while the print was drying from it's finishing process, has random blobs of stuff and other dust on it. This is something you should take into account, as a designer, as it's not possible to have it floating around to dry. It seems to be an issue only when your resting area is large and flat, if you put an extruded border on the plane it will not be a noticeable issue.

    Here follows, uncensored, all detailed pictures from the entire test range with relevant comments where needed.

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    The stuff clearly visible above.
    Below, same item, other side, no issue of course.

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    (Splitting across posts due to image count limit.)
     
    Last edited: Nov 24, 2011
  2. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    And some other panels, each time front/back. High resolution linked.

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    Next post will be a series of pictures of the set of items that will be tortured (yes, there's more), then a series of organic shapes (some nsfw included too, because we can). :D
     
  3. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    More pictures!
    Another comparison, I'm sure you can guess which one is the new FCS.

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    And yes, of course, you can get a good amount of detail in!

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    (Splitting posts due to image count limit.)
     
  4. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    Following items will be tortured (strength, water, fire, etc) and experimented (polishing, etc) on, videos of that will be available soon!

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    In the one below, you can clearly see aliasing occurring when your textures are way too large for them to handle.

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    Did I mention bright colors yet?

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    Last edited: Nov 22, 2011
  5. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    The pictures don't lie.

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    Exactly.
     
    Last edited: Nov 22, 2011
  6. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    And now for some organic shapes.

    Another keychain again! This one will be tested as well to see how long they hold out in normal usage.

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    The one I had in old FCS ended up like this after long use and many random experiments.

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    Glossy hair, indeed. ;)
     
    Last edited: Nov 22, 2011
  7. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    This post may be NSFW.

    Two prints, were in a different orientation in the file, but the print operator went ahead and printed them both in the same orientation.

    So, anyways, one of the prints has these nasty blobs on it as well for some reason, the other one is perfectly fine. Probably some of the processing stuff landed on it during drying, I assume.

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    Also notice the odd dark layer that sometimes tends to show up across a print.

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    No issue with the second one, as you can see

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    Layers are actually not too visible, but the item does feel very rough. Will do something about that, though, in a later post!

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    Layers may be more visible depending on your point of view, though. Bottom or top inside the printer makes a difference too, but not much you can control about that, right.

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    Subtle color variations are showing up really nicely, compared to the old FCS.
     
  8. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    First test, comparing how well suited the different variations of Dremel's abrasive buffs are for polishing.
    This was tested using the Dremel SpeedClic 511S and 512S accessories.

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    (video will be attached later)

    As you can see, the 511S ones easily grind their way trough the item, while the 512S remains nicely on the surface without doing any serious damage to details.

    On the old Full Color Sandstone, it was possible to get a rather shiny result using the fine version, this seems not much different on the new FCS. It is slightly more difficult to get a shiny looking surface, though, as this was likely caused by the wax being spread out as well.

    Using the 512S (320 grid) you can easily get rid of the harsh layering, and unpleasant surface feel, while still keeping the roughness, and not losing any detail.

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    While you can still notice the layers, they're less pronounced than before, if you compare with the previous pictures. The surface also feels a lot softer than it was originally. This is sufficient in most cases.

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    (video of polishing will be added later)

    The keychain has been given to a test subject to see how long it holds out in normal usage.

    Also some NSFW comparisons below.

    Polished using 512S on the left, original on the right.

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    As you can see, again, less harsh layering lines, but still a good amount of roughness there. It does give a nice, and natural, effect for the skin surface.

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    Below is one I gave an extra coating with some matte varnish, after polishing. I don't really like that look, though, shows kind of cheap. Some more different coatings will be tried out as well.

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    (video of this one will also be placed here later)

    Next post will contain torture and destruction videos!
     
  9. 28396_deleted
    28396_deleted Member
    Great Thread !

    I like spray coatings - it keeps the models tough and long lasting.
    These bunch of guys survived countless curious hands.. i recommend it.

    PICT0024.JPG


     
  10. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    I'd like to find a reliable way to make the surface look less "sparkly" (as shows in your picture), it looks too much as an afterthought. I'll probably look around for something that fills in the holes of the roughness without showing up too obviously as being a separate layer. There are a few things I have in mind for that, just need to check for some additional alternatives before I blow my budget on more useless things. :)
     
  11. 28396_deleted
    28396_deleted Member
    Actually its "sparkly" because i used flash on my camera, its more or less like this on regular lighting

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  12. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    With the sparkly I mostly refer to the excessive spark that shows from putting gloss on a rough surface, which is an issue depending on lighting conditions, indeed. The problem is that this accentuates the layering even more, which the customer doesn't really like. :)

    Keeping a rough surface like this, looks better with a soft finish than a gloss/matte varnish finish.

    To make the gloss/matte coating finish look good, the roughness should be filled in with something before, so that it looks more consistent, and less cheaply handled.

    I know it's possible to get a perfectly smooth glossy finish by doing:
    - Polish the FCS to get rid of grain
    - Apply a generous amount of CA
    - Polish the CA layer as well, getting back close to the surface
    - (And perhaps add an additional varnish coating, have not tried that yet)
    But the CA is a bit unhandy, so I'd like to find an alternative that suits the needs more easily.
     
    Last edited: Nov 24, 2011
  13. 28396_deleted
    28396_deleted Member
    I agree.

    That other 3d service told me they did a delicate polishing on my model:

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    But i still added some varnish of my own ;)

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    and it is VERY SMOOTH to touch.


     
  14. Alex_ADEdge
    Alex_ADEdge Member
    Interesting results. :)

    Thanks for posting, will be a good future reference.
     
  15. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    The new video with the hammer:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZnLFG6llMA

    And one with the Dremel abrasive buffs for smoothing:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2UCoie1bSE

    Also, I can confirm that the mini-figure keychain has not broken yet after a month of normal usage by my test subject. :)

    It's also relatively waterproof, the colors stay just fine after being thrown into the water for a minute (although the strength may go down a bit while it's wet, I have to test that again).
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2012
  16. stannum
    stannum Well-Known Member
    This is becoming confusing now. (As mentioned in other thread) check the material page and they show a picture of really faded blue (sky blue becomes dirty white), saying that water attacks the ink... but no info if that was before or after the CA, or if the water bath was some seconds or a full day.
     
  17. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    With the old FCS it became white due to the wax on the surface and the water reacting poorly, but you could remove that white by applying heat. I didn't see such thing happening with the new FCS.
    Video here http://youtu.be/QB5CZ7A-0_w, nothing happens.
    Perhaps I should try with a darker object.
     
    Last edited: Jan 2, 2012
  18. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    2 layers of primer + 2 layers of alkyd based varnish

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    dremel polish + 4 layers of primer + 7 layers of acryl based varnish

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  19. Kaetemi
    Kaetemi Member
    dremel polish + 4 layers of primer + 8 layers of acryl based varnish + 1 layer of matte alkyd based varnish

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    PERFECT.
    better picture tomorrow.
     
  20. stannum
    stannum Well-Known Member
    What "primer"? Most of them are opaque.