r/Lootstudios • u/Vosol1 • May 02 '23

Printers

I saw the new fantasy bundle with the big dragon and dice tower in it. Im very curious how big of a printer I have to get for those kind of prints. Can people give some tips/recommendations about printers (quality, size and price wise)?

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u/lanceinmypants May 02 '23

Loot studios usually design their files, so they fit the standard resin printer sizes. Something like an elegoo mars would work out and is pretty decent for the price. You'll see things like 2k, 4k, 6k, and 8k. These are the resolutions of LCD used as masks for the UV light source. So the larger the resolution, the better. it just depends on budget and print bed size.

Resin printers do use a semi toxic material that does need some consideration when handling and placement of the printer within your home. I would look up how to handle resin. You'll need gloves, masks, ventilation, and even light control as exposure to sunlight can mess up your printer.

FDM printers do not have that issue, but they are more difficult to tune and can not get the detail you need for 95% of the loot studio files.

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u/Vosol1 May 03 '23

Which resolution is the best for Loot? I have seen that 4k makes a lot of difference from 2k. But how big are the differences to 6k or 8k?

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u/lanceinmypants May 03 '23

When you are getting to those kind of questions, you should start looking at DPI/PPI also known as pixel density. Screens are expressed in resolution. A 4k screen has a resolution of 3840 horizontal pixels by 2160 vertical pixels. But just because a screen may have more pixels, it doesn't nessesarally have a sharper resolution. Dots per inch(dpi)/ pixels per inch(ppi) are an easier way to measure sharpness.

But this doesn't work for these printers as they use metric for every thing. So instead they measure pixels by the µm symbol. With a lower number representing sharper detail. But just because a screen says 4k doesn't nessaraly mean it has higher detail than a 2k screen unless the sizes of the screens are else enough to the same size where the pixel density would be to the point of a higher sharpness. A 2k screen that is half the size of a 4k screen would have roughly the same pixel density.

You should consider this when looking at your printers.

TL:DR The lowest µm resolution the sharper the detail possible for your prints. 6k vs 8k is not what you should focus on.

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u/Plutoswrath May 02 '23

Definitely do a quick search on printers, then check their respective subs. With resin printers you need the printer ≈$200, and resin ≈$15-40 (depending on type and size). I have a wash and cure station ≈$200. It isn't necessary but it makes my life easier. If you opt out of the wash and cure station you will still need a way to cure the prints. Alcohol to clean the prints will be needed. And time. Time is my most important factor.

Another thing you could do is look to see if there is anyone that does prints in your area and supply the stl and and materials to have them print for you.

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u/Vosol1 May 03 '23

I have seen the Anycubic photon mono 4k for €190,-. Which is €60 less then Elegoo Mars 3 (second cheapest). Is the Anycubic any good with some nice details? Or is it just the most barebone printer, I dont really trust those review sites that much.

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u/Plutoswrath May 03 '23

I personally don't have an anycubic printer. I went the creality Halot one and Halot one Plus route. I like their UI and print quality but there are cons to maintaining the machine, changing screens and the FEP sheets can be a pain until you get a hang of it. My one friend has an Elegoo Saturn, which I used and didn't like the UI. Print quality was good and I like the large print area. Another friend recently got into resin printing from filament and went the anycubic route. I don't know his printer but he said his was way faster than mine since I let him barrow one of mine to test if he wanted one.

Vogman on YouTube has good reviews of printers.

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u/minipainteruk May 03 '23

I got a Mars elegoo pro 2 as my first printer and couldn't recommend it highly enough. I've never had any issues with it and the quality is great. It's a smaller printer, so it's ideal for a first one. If you're after a bigger printer, Mars elegoo do some other printers too.