Pretty much what the title says. I did the online course and tried my hand at it but came out with a failed print. Rather not try the same thing hoping for a different result considering the clean up time and whole process. If someone is cool to schedule a time they can help me I would greatly appreciate that. I’m free Weekdays after 5pm. You could reach me at 972-213-8747 or just drop a comment here.
Hope yall are having a great day.
Do you have the files you tried printing? And pictures of the failed print?
It might not be a bad attempt on your part. Someone yesterday reported issues with that printer.
https://talk.dallasmakerspace.org/t/elegoo-mars-3-vertical-axis-is-loose-6-20-23/100057/2
Actually the issue was with the Mars 3, not the Mars Pro. But I noticed the Mars Pro looks like it has a cut in the FEP so it probably needs the FEP replaced. I’d offer to give you a tutorial but I’m also a newbie with resin printing… 4/4 failed prints so far lol
Did you have one of the failure modes listed in the training in the “Troubleshooting Common Problems” section?
The first 3 prints failed because the print stuck to the FEP sheet. I think it was due to the wobbly vertical axis on the Mars 3.
The 4th print was on the Saturn 2, and it failed halfway through because of too short of an exposure time.
The next guy printed successfully on the Saturn 2 and increased the exposure time from 2.5 to 3.0 seconds per layer. I’ll try those settings on Friday and hopefully my print will be successful. I think the FEP is starting to get cloudy so that’s why increasing the exposure time helped. So far I’ve learned a lot from the failed prints!
You may want to try increasing the exposure on the bottom layers also. That should help with stiction on the plate.
Yes I also increased the bottom exposure time to 35 seconds
Hey! I’m glad the increased exposure time worked out for you! What resin were you using?
I’m going to change out the FEP on the Mars 3 either today or Sunday. You are right, it’s not in great shape. It gets gouged by the hard plastic scrapers being used to remove bits that are stuck to it. The best thing to do when there’s a failed print is to do the “clean” cycle. Just put a piece of paper in the corner of the tank and run it. It does a full exposure. When it’s done you lift the paper and you’ll get a thin sheet of resin that has all the little bits that were floating around and the bits already stuck to the FEP all now as one piece. No scraping required. Hopefully. 
Also, we should be getting new clean Isopropyl Alcohol later next week! Once it arrives I’ll be cleaning out the washing stations so they should be able to properly clean your prints. And I’ll be giving all the vats a good clean as well, so that might help with some of the clouding. I’ve also been rearraigning the resin area so I hope when it’s finished it will make the whole process easier. More to come soon!
And feel free to reach out if you have any questions. Happy printing!
I’m using 45 to 90 seconds depending on the resin, and 5 bottom layers (except for wax).
Reducing the lifting speed to 80 or 90 is a huge help. For really finicky parts, moving them away from dead center of the build plate also seems to help; the FEP isn’t deflecting as much on the edges.
Thanks for doing this. IMO it would help to have two wash tanks for each “solution” (alcohol and water); the first one is the gross rinse that gets off most of the crud. It would just be dunk and swish the basket - no wash station required just a tub that’s sealed during storage. That one gets filthy fast. The second tank would be the “clean rinse” that could be agitated in the washing station. I do this at home and it helps a lot.
Your very welcome! And thanks for sharing your experience! I totally agree with you! In fact that’s the plan. I’m hoping that we’ll be able to set up a dedicated cleaning table (likely stainless steel for easy cleaning) in the open space on the orange wall with the 1st “gross” rinse basins there. Then off to the wash and curing zone which is where the stations are at currently. I think I may try to recycle the IPA in Phrozen wash vat for a first rinse, but it may be just to contaminated. Either way, even if we start with fresh in both areas, the 1st rinse area will help keep the actual wash machines clean for a really long time, and that means better final prints. I hope to have a much more user friendly resin area soon. We’ll get there!