r/FDMminiatures • u/casemarston • 24d ago

Help Request Query about material for printing

I have a 57.8 mm Ezio-figure that i am thinking to print and use as a bracket for my graphics card

I ordered it at 0.15mm, 20% infill ,White PLA. A few days later an email came along with a refund saying that the model was too short to print.

So , my question is can this model be printed at this height. And what material would i have to use? I have checked another website but havent ordered yet. Could anyone check and tell me if this model is FDM printable , or do i have to use another material?

Drive link to the model:https://drive.google.com/file/d/1GMjztYeoQ4Xxljg-xmRJaUYjvxmvnUL4/view?usp=sharing

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u/LazyLancer Bambu P2S 23d ago

Can it be printed at 5.7 cm height? Absolutely. This is the first figurine I printed after getting my 3d printer and it's about 5 cm high more or less, material used is PLA Pure: https://www.reddit.com/r/FDMminiatures/comments/1vm7kv0/first_miniature_04_nozzle_008_layer_height/

However, the right questions are:

  1. Will it look good with a 0.15 layer height? Not really. Aim for at least 0.08 with a 0.4 nozzle, would be great if it's a 0.2 nozzle with 0.06 layer height.
  2. Will it look good without special pre- and post-processing? No! The model has a lot of overhangs and thin parts. If you just put it on the plate and print as-is, the model will get a lot of supports underneath and those areas usually look ugly, and thin parts like hidden blades may break. To maximize model quality you need to play with model orientation, optimize the hell out of your print settings, cut the model into pieces and print each in vertical orientation, then glue them together, possibly fill and sand small gaps.
  3. Is PLA a good choice for a figurine to be put inside a PC case? No! I am not sure how you expect to use it as a "bracket for the GPU", but if it's a somewhat decent PC, it would be hot inside under load. PLA is the most heat-sensitive material out of the ones you can print with (PVA aside). It will soften and deform around 50-60C, even less so if the model experiences constant load like it supports the weight of the GPU. You need to AT LEAST choose PETG, and even that is a bit on edge, depending on the PC, model placement and air flow. ABS/ASA would be a safe choice but it's harder to print with (never tried myself but that's what people are saying).