We’ve shown you already quite a lot of means of postprocessing, some including sanding and polishing, others including filling, sanding, and painting, and even chemical postprocessing. This time, we’ll bathe the models in chemicals again but with a completely different approach. We will try to make 3D-printed parts look like solid metal pieces with a shiny gloss.
Before you try electroplating 3D prints, don’t forget to read our article:
https://blog.prusa3d.com/how-hard-can-electroplating-3d-prints-be_92939/
Music:
Peter Spacey – Grumpy
Ian Post – Dance Club
prusa3d.com
printables.com
source
Hmmmmm…….interesting
“Jessy, we need to electroplate”
No air bubblers? 🤔
Better to cast from a resin print?
Finally, a Prusa video WITH description instead of porn music!
I've been working on this for several months, and I gotta say. As hard as it is, when it works…..it is beutiful.
I wonder if the resin surface needs any kind of etching or adhesive primer for that conductive paint to really stick to.
The airbrush one was a new thing I haven't seen that in many electro plating videos I had seen
Copper sulphate pentahydrate mixed with the sulphuric acid can and will eat and damage qutie a few types of resin, so beware and coat over them with a PU layer before the conductive paint layer.
I've been doing this for over a year now, with reisn prints mostly, so I've the experience to know the issue.
this was the same result i got a couple of years ago. i thought i was just bad at things lol, im happy to see it is just that hard i guess. i found that buildup of gasses influenced surface quality and oxidation, and uneven current across poorly conductive coatings led to vastly uneven plating. upon looking into professional electrochemical processes there are many ways to improve this but none were in my $0 budget at the time. baskets, pumping/stirring electrolyte, ultra sonic agitation, and other methods could be employed to reduce these effects. i may try this again with my new tools. fyi i was able to plate ABS by making an ABS-acetone-graphite paint and by vapor polishing and dusting with graphite too. seeing a magnet stick to a print was cool
This is very interesting!
If you want to know even more (and better imo) about electroplating 3D prints go check HEN3DRIK's youtube channel. He can achieve really good results and has covered a few techniques on his channel
How to coat evenly complex parts (out of the reach areas) with conductive ink? (eg. lattice structures)
Medstudent here: Don't use nickel for jewelry you're gonna wear. A lot of people are allergic to it which is why it is heavily regulated/banned for jewelry or anything that comes into contact with your skins for a long time in the EU. Yes having another layer on top of it will work but once it wears through that you have the same issue
thanks for the warning at the end
Hmmm ok hang on a second, lemme come back to this once I finally learn how to properly sand my prints lol.
Nicely done. Considering the parts that were plated are original and 3D printed, I'd say this is a complete success. You video is the best I've seen on this subject thus far. Thank you…
1:56 I’m noticing that on the gold
version of the ring, some detail seems to be lost on the lettering. Is there any preventing this or improving it post plating?
Where did you buy copper paint and electrodes?
search for HEN3DRIK – Electroplating 3D Prints @hen3drik he will show you how it´s done
That ring looks terrible.
Even if this is a great tutorial, for everybody that wants to try this out, you might wanna check out the channel from HEN3DRIK – Electroplating 3D Prints.
He has some great tutorials in that regard and managed to succesfully electroplate large and complex parts like a lightsaber or the helmet from the Mandalorian
What would happen if you used electrical conducting filament?
I know this video is about the concept of electroplating, but I can't help thinking it would be easier to just make the ring out of metal. 😅
Great video.
Gold leafing 3D prints also works great, I recently made a how-to video on the topic.