I saw a 3d printer using plastic pellets instead of filament.
Is this a good idea? Because I never saw anyone doing this.
Seller says “in this way it won’t run out of filament” but I have the impression of imprecise extrusions (machine was fitted with a big 0.8mm nozzle)
there’s this: https://greenboy3d.de
Not cheap though, and I think the first batch hasn’t shipped yet.
the main merit to me would be printing super soft materials that cant even be made into filament reliably becomes possible
Like chocolate? I would love a food safe 3d printer to print chocolate. Just sayin’
https://cocoapress.com/
Very expensive for what’s basically a gimmick. Though I’d probably buy one if I owned a confectionery.
he does say you can do chocolate. apart from the hot end, auger, and mechanical parts it’s all 3d printed though. I guess you could go through the cursed endeavour of setting up an all stainless printer to print all the parts in one of those so called food grade filaments but I don’t trust that much. Or you can just operate off the understanding that we are all saturated in plastic already.
Imagine, if you will, hot glue sticks, only in chocolate.
You won’t need to have the entire printer be stainless, just the hot end/heatblock and heat break.
Then a feed system that drop more sticks in as the next gos down.
The stick can be driven by a food safe silicone rubber wheel. Maybe some sort of squashy tread so you get better contact/traction.
Wouldn’t be able to have super-high retraction, since it’s not a continuous length… but details.
I think one of the existing chocolate printers actually used that design. I was concerned about chocolate pellets in a printed hopper though.
3D printed chocolate nerf blaster?
Chocolate sticks can be printed easily, though.
12-25mm diameter filament.
Use an all metal hot end (stainless steel, preferably,). And slow its feed rate down with a gear reduction.
You wouldn’t even need them to be round if you milled out your own heat block. Just of a consistent cross section.
Looks good, thanks for sharing! If they add Bambu support, I’ll probably buy it.