DoESLiverpool
Reprint the top section of the DoES Tower
The very top of the DoES Tower is bearing the scars of too many trips to events. We should print a replacement for it.
The design files are in https://github.com/DoESLiverpool/st-johns-beacon
This evening I noticed that there is also a big crack near the base. Wondering whether we should reprint this section too, or whether it could be patched with clear epoxy?
From: Adrian McEwen @.> Sent: Monday, July 8, 2024 12:01:23 pm To: DoESLiverpool/somebody-should @.> Cc: Subscribed @.***> Subject: [DoESLiverpool/somebody-should] Reprint the top section of the DoES Tower (Issue #1923)
The very top of the DoES Tower is bearing the scars of too many trips to events. We should print a replacement for it.
The design files are in https://github.com/DoESLiverpool/st-johns-beacon
— Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHubhttps://github.com/DoESLiverpool/somebody-should/issues/1923, or unsubscribehttps://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/ADBVRUBHSVL2KSLFVM3FPHLZLJWQBAVCNFSM6AAAAABKQSY4Y2VHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43ASLTON2WKOZSGM4TKMZRHA4TKNA. You are receiving this because you are subscribed to this thread.Message ID: @.***>
Can anyone remember what filament we used to print the parts in the past? It wasn't just pure white, but something to approximate to concrete.
Or can anyone find a suitable alternative? Then we can get some and get things reprinted before Makefest season starts 😁
I'm guessing this was the original material. This isn't a selling site though - I think Faberdashery went out of business a long time ago.
This might be similar but I'm not sure we'd be able to get an exact colour match.
Ah, yes; good old Faberdashery.
That 3Djake link is for 1.75mm filament though. 3DGBIre have this one in matte off-white which looks similar (and I think the matte is a useful option), or this light grey (though that's not matte)
As you mentioned t'other week @JackiePease, I suspect we'll need to reprint it all in the end to get a match
Ah, yes; good old Faberdashery.
That 3Djake link is for 1.75mm filament though. 3DGBIre have this one in matte off-white which looks similar (and I think the matte is a useful option), or this light grey (though that's not matte)
As you mentioned t'other week @JackiePease, I suspect we'll need to reprint it all in the end to get a match
@amcewen could you give a rough estimate in Kg, of how much we'd need for the complete model? I can then order the 3DGBIre stuff if nobody objects.
I don't know how much it'll take. @huffeec and I weighed up the colours and plumped for the matte off-white. I needed to pay for the filament MCQN Ltd has been using recently, so we've ordered 1.5kg of that to start with.
The filament ordered by @amcewen has arrived. I've labelled it and put it on the desk to the left of the printers. Whoever starts printing, it would be a good idea to write down the settings used here, so we can try to get a uniform print for the different sections. It would probably be best to start with the "very top" section and the base section that are most damaged.[ We can probably give the old one its last outing at Wirral MakeFest before reprinting for Liverpool. Does anything need to be changed/improved?
I've kicked off a print of the top piece (the RCT - Chimney.stl). Did a test of it to just beyond the bridging (printed it upside down so we didn't need to worry about support for the 90° overhang) and it seemed okay (the bridging wasn't totally perfect but was pretty good), so I've restarted it to run the full print.
Sliced it at 0.06mm layer thickness, and have been printing it at 200°C (for better bridging)
Parts printed:
- [x] RCT - Tower Base 1
- [x] RCT - Tower Base 2
- [x] RCT - Tower Base 3
- [x] RCT - Chimney
- [x] RCT - Roof
- [ ] RCT - Cornice
Thanks to some careful filament juggling from @huffeec the Roof printed okay.
The RCT - Tower Base 2 is on the printer at the moment. If we're lucky we'll be able to get that and the Base 3 and the Cornice from the remaining 750g spool.
If we hadn't had a failed print of Base 1 then it would have all easily come from two 750g spools, printed at 0.06mm layer height with 30% infill.
The tower part that was printing yesterday failed because the bed slipped sideways after about 10mm. I haven't restarted it because it might be best to do that while someone can keep an eye on it.
Are you certain it was the bed that slipped? Do we know what caused it? A quick look at the printer and the x axis belt is quite loose, could it have jumped?
There isn't a huge amount of spare filament so it would be good to understand how it failed before we start another big job.
The glass bed on the printer was 2-3mm out of position, but I don't know what it was like before the print started.
From: huffeec @.> Sent: 01 June 2025 12:02 To: DoESLiverpool/somebody-should @.> Cc: Jackie Pease @.>; Mention @.> Subject: Re: [DoESLiverpool/somebody-should] Reprint the top section of the DoES Tower (Issue #1923)
[https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/4748179?s=20&v=4]huffeec left a comment (DoESLiverpool/somebody-should#1923)https://github.com/DoESLiverpool/somebody-should/issues/1923#issuecomment-2927113654
Are you certain it was the bed that slipped? Do we know what caused it? A quick look at the printer and the x axis belt is quite loose, could it have jumped?
There isn't a huge amount of spare filament so it would be good to understand how it failed before we start another big job.
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The bed (now) seems very secure. I'm going to print the parts for #2045 on the same printer, with them pushed over to the sides of the bed to see if we encounter any issues before we try the final part again.
Tower Base 2 is (according to Cura) 237g; Tower Base 3 is 187g; and the Cornice is 164g. So there's probably enough filament left for another attempt on the Cornice but there likely wouldn't be for a third attempt.
In case it's relevant - when I moved the printer bed back to position, after removing the failed print, it did seem pretty secure and I was surprised it might have moved
From: Adrian McEwen @.> Sent: Monday, June 2, 2025 11:36:24 AM To: DoESLiverpool/somebody-should @.> Cc: Jackie Pease @.>; Mention @.> Subject: Re: [DoESLiverpool/somebody-should] Reprint the top section of the DoES Tower (Issue #1923)
[https://avatars.githubusercontent.com/u/108468?s=20&v=4]amcewen left a comment (DoESLiverpool/somebody-should#1923)https://github.com/DoESLiverpool/somebody-should/issues/1923#issuecomment-2929952001
The bed (now) seems very secure. I'm going to print the parts for #2045https://github.com/DoESLiverpool/somebody-should/issues/2045 on the same printer, with them pushed over to the sides of the bed to see if we encounter any issues before we try the final part again.
Tower Base 2 is (according to Cura) 237g; Tower Base 3 is 187g; and the Cornice is 164g. So there's probably enough filament left for another attempt on the Cornice but there likely wouldn't be for a third attempt.
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The blue duck, printed on the left-hand side of the bed printed without any issues. Currently printing the red duck on the right-hand side of the bed to see how that fares.
The red duck, printed on the right-hand side of the bed without any problems. I'm printing off a yellow duck on the right-hand side too.
All the new bits got printed and the tower was looking good - unfortunately while waiting to be taken back to DoES, it took a big swipe from a table that was being moved, and was damaged. We need to evaluate which bits need to be repaired/replaced - definitely the blue ring above the lights.
I've unpacked the tower. The translucent ring that the letters are attached to is broken, and there are only 24 letters (I haven't plugged it in so don't know which ones are missing yet).
I put the non-broken parts back in place - the down lights should still work. The broken bits are on the same shelf.
I'll check if we have any translucent filament another time.