Hairspray as bed prep?

3D Fabrication
#1

I realize this is not on for DMS printers. I’m asking about use on my personal Prusa knock-off.

I’ve read a number of articles advocating this. Does anyone here have any experience with it’s use?

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#2

What’s your bed surface now? And what material are you trying to print?

Hairspray was a good solution for awhile when printing on glass but nowadays many of the bed surface plates don’t require anything more than an occasional cleaning with dish soap and then rubbing alcohol.

If you’re printing on glass with PLA that also doesn’t need anything besides a clean plate.

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#3

I use a textured PEI bed for my printers at home and have never had an issue that a quick wipe of isopropyl doesn’t fix. I only print PETG and PLA though.

I’ve read that Garolite is better but I don’t know where to source that so haven’t tried it.

#4

I used to use hairspray printing ABS on glass a long time ago. I found an ABS slurry worked a bit better at the time. These days I’d go with the magnetic flexible removable option for sure.

#5

Is that PET tape that y’all are using on the polyprinters? Seems like a much simpler option compared to the magnetic adhesive pads.

#6

Some times on my prusa large PLA prints warp so I rub a glue stick on the bed to improve adhesion. Comes off with water when finished.

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#7

I’ll echo what others have already said: The solution you’re looking for depends heavily on the print surface. Since it’s a Prusa knockoff, we don’t know whether it’s a glass bed, PEI sheet, or removable steel sheet surface. Some solutions will work better on certain surfaces vs. others, but on a purely intuitive basis here’s my informal ranking of which solutions I’d try first vs. last:

  1. Painter’s Tape (Simple to try, simple to tear down)
  2. Glue Stick (Again, because it’s simple)
  3. Hairspray (I’d recommend doing a bit more research on print surfaces and materials first)
  4. ABS Juice (ONLY if you’re having problems with ABS Prints curling up. ABS Scraps dissolved in Acetone)

In all cases, a thorough wipedown with Isopropyl alcohol should help clean up the resulting mess. Again, it would be helpful if you tell us more about the material you’re printing, and the surface you’re printing it on.