36" Northern Pike - 3D Printed Cuda Clone (It Flies & STL's are Posted!)

[EDinCT]

I saw this thread a couple weeks ago and it caught my eye. I never thought you could 3D print a plane! Anyway, I was looking for a new project I decided to give it a shot. I don't have S3D so I spent a good bit of time tweaking Cura settings to be able to print this thin wall stuff.. What a major PIA!! I will tell you one thing- I learned a lot about slicer settings! I have quite a pile of parts that have some issue or another:

Anyway- I practiced on both PLA and PETG, but I really wanted to use PETG since I think it may hold up a little better. So I settled on 3DSolutech see through blue. After a ton of tuning, I have Cura putting out what I thought were pretty good prints. The middle wing section Is put together:

I still need to print the outer wing sections and the fuse. While at work today I started wondering what would happen if I tried the PETG G-codes that are on thingiverse. I thought for sure they wouldn't work since they were made for a Prusa and my 3d printer is home made... but I figured it would be fun to try it just for fun.
All I can say is WOW. I am seeing the best prints yet using those files. So much so that I think I need to break down and get S3D. I really like how the bottom few layers are thicker. I wish I could do that with Cura

My hats off to Localfiend. This has been a crazy fun project.

 

[chris398mx]

I saw this thread a couple weeks ago and it caught my eye. I never thought you could 3D print a plane! Anyway, I was looking for a new project I decided to give it a shot. I don't have S3D so I spent a good bit of time tweaking Cura settings to be able to print this thin wall stuff.. What a major PIA!! I will tell you one thing- I learned a lot about slicer settings! I have quite a pile of parts that have some issue or another:
View attachment 188879
Anyway- I practiced on both PLA and PETG, but I really wanted to use PETG since I think it may hold up a little better. So I settled on 3DSolutech see through blue. After a ton of tuning, I have Cura putting out what I thought were pretty good prints. The middle wing section Is put together:
View attachment 188880
I still need to print the outer wing sections and the fuse. While at work today I started wondering what would happen if I tried the PETG G-codes that are on thingiverse. I thought for sure they wouldn't work since they were made for a Prusa and my 3d printer is home made... but I figured it would be fun to try it just for fun.
All I can say is WOW. I am seeing the best prints yet using those files. So much so that I think I need to break down and get S3D. I really like how the bottom few layers are thicker. I wish I could do that with Cura
View attachment 188881
My hats off to Localfiend. This has been a crazy fun project.

Just so you know, you can print thicker at the bottom using CURA, it is just more of a pain. You have to add an eraser block and change the "modify settings for overlap and change the wall thickness count. you can do it it is just a lot more of a pain.

 

[Norix]

@EDinCT is there a chance you can share your cura setting with me?
Thank you

 

[TheGreatest_06]

Hey everyone,

This plane recently caught my eye on thingiverse and thought I would give it a shot. Awesome job on the design Localfiend. I just have to say printing thinwall is a lot harder than previously anticipated but I have learned a lot. I have finally dialed in the retraction settings for the internal structure but I seem to have a problem with the walls themselves. There are gaps on one side of the print but I'm not sure what is causing it. I have attached pictures below. I also already have already dialed in eesteps and dried the filament in a dehydrator at 126 degrees for 5 hours. Neither of these seem to cause a difference. I also tried increasing my flow by an extra 5 percent but that also didn't change anything. Any help would be greatly appreaciated. Please let me know if you need more info.

The filament I'm using is 3D Solutech's clear pla

These are also the key settings I'm using

Layer height: 0.24
Line width=0.4
Wall thickness=0.4
Wall line count=1
Top/Bottom thickness =0
Infill=0
Printing Temp= 205
Bed Temp=60
Speed=50mm/s
Retraction Distance=5.0mm
Retraction Speed=45.0 mm/s
Retraction Extra Prime Amount=0.1
Print Cooling=30%
Union Overlapping holes= unchecked
merged mesh overlap= 0
Surface mode= normal
Slicing tolerance= exclusive
Combing= off
Flow=105%

 

[TheGreatest_06]

@EDinCT is there a chance you can share your cura setting with me?
Thank you

I have attached my CURA settings I use above if they are of any help. I am also using a direct drive extruder which helps with cleaner retractions a lot.

 

[SSgt Duramax]

I was having that problem, but only after layer change, as it it was under extruding on a new layer. What ended up helping for me was forcing a retract after layer change. I can look at my slicer settings when I get home.

The transprent is a bit harder for me to get right.

 

[TheGreatest_06]

I was having that problem, but only after layer change, as it it was under extruding on a new layer. What ended up helping for me was forcing a retract after layer change. I can look at my slicer settings when I get home.

The transprent is a bit harder for me to get right.

Thanks for the sugestion. I tried it out and it did seem to kinda help. I reprinted the piece but the gaps are still present. Is there anything else you did to solve the problem? Thanks

 

[SSgt Duramax]

Thanks for the sugestion. I tried it out and it did seem to kinda help. I reprinted the piece but the gaps are still present. Is there anything else you did to solve the problem? Thanks

Have you calibrated your e steps? That can cause under extrusion. You might crank the temp to 210-220 and lower the print speed a tad too. What kind of filament are you using?

Your settings look similar to mine. Also make sure nothing is binding causing under extrusion. My stock filament hanger was binding up a touch causing me some issues too.

I don't know what printer you have, but there is tons of info in this thread.

https://forum.flitetest.com/index.php?threads/ender-3-v2-for-beginners.69443/

Edit: nevermind, I reread. Looks like others are having better luck with that filament around 220 degrees. You may try that. I have the best luck with E Sun filament and some of the matterhackers house brand stuff. I had a rough time printing with the transparent. It seems to like a higher temp.

 

[TheGreatest_06]

Raising the temperature to 218 degrees did the trick. I also increased the flow to 110 and decreased layer height to 2.0. Although retractions are slightly worse, I think raising the retraction distance and speed should fix it. Thanks for your help.

Have you calibrated your e steps? That can cause under extrusion. You might crank the temp to 210-220 and lower the print speed a tad too. What kind of filament are you using?

Your settings look similar to mine. Also make sure nothing is binding causing under extrusion. My stock filament hanger was binding up a touch causing me some issues too.

I don't know what printer you have, but there is tons of info in this thread.

https://forum.flitetest.com/index.php?threads/ender-3-v2-for-beginners.69443/

Edit: nevermind, I reread. Looks like others are having better luck with that filament around 220 degrees. You may try that. I have the best luck with E Sun filament and some of the matterhackers house brand stuff. I had a rough time printing with the transparent. It seems to like a higher temp.

 

[SSgt Duramax]

Raising the temperature to 218 degrees did the trick. I also increased the flow to 110 and decreased layer height to 2.0. Although retractions are slightly worse, I think raising the retraction distance and speed should fix it. Thanks for your help.

I'm glad you got to the bottom of it (mostly). The clear stuff is testy with me. I printed mine transparent purple, but my trouble parts I had to go back and print out of eSUN and they look fantastic. I just feel like it is a waste to reprint the entire plane.

 

[TheGreatest_06]

I might have to try esun if I ever crash (which I probably will). If you have flown the plane, do you have any tips on throwing the plane itself? I have flown rc planes before but all of them can either be launched by holding the wing or they having landing gear. I saw a couple of tips reading through the thread but I'm mostly concerned about slicing my hand when I throw it.

 

[Baron VonHelton]

No fishing??!!

 

[TheGreatest_06]

Not sure what you mean

 

[Baron VonHelton]

Not sure what you mean

i used to fish for Northern Pike in US & Canada.

 

[Norix]

Hi all,
Need help, I am trying to print this awesome plane but do not have luck...
Tried so many different options and settings and I can not say that I am doing great,
I am not experienced in printing, just have basic knowledge,
Attached few photos of my best print and I am sure you will see what is wrong at first glance, at the moment I have "burned" 0.5kg of PLA.
The most thing I am worried about is that I can not get inner structure stick to the walls, mostly is printed but not attached.
Can someone suggest what could be wrong with my settings?
Printer is anycubic i3 mega, slicer is cura, mainly going for settings mentioned here.
Thank you.

 

[TheGreatest_06]

i used to fish for Northern Pike in US & Canada.

Oh I get it. Lol

 

[TheGreatest_06]

Hi all,
Need help, I am trying to print this awesome plane but do not have luck...
Tried so many different options and settings and I can not say that I am doing great,
I am not experienced in printing, just have basic knowledge,
Attached few photos of my best print and I am sure you will see what is wrong at first glance, at the moment I have "burned" 0.5kg of PLA.
The most thing I am worried about is that I can not get inner structure stick to the walls, mostly is printed but not attached.
Can someone suggest what could be wrong with my settings?
Printer is anycubic i3 mega, slicer is cura, mainly going for settings mentioned here.
Thank you.

Would you be able to post some of the CURA settings that you are using? For me personally, when I first started experimenting, I faced the same issues. The key thing that gave me cleaner retractions was switching over to a direct drive extruder. The picture below is when using a bowden style vs direct drive. Since filament is a lot closer to the nozzle in a direct drive extruder, it will help you get much more cleaner retractions over a bowden style setup that you probably have in a stock anycubic i3 mega. I have an ender 3 but I changed it to a direct drive extruder and that has worked for me. You could still probably tune your stock printer till you get good results. I would suggest going to thingvierse and searching up printable direct drive extruder mounts for anycubic i3 mega and maybe you can find a design that works. I also used CNC kitchen's video on 3D printing airplanes to help me get a baseline for my profile in CURA. You might want to check it out as it has a lot of helpful info.

 

[TheGreatest_06]

I'm also having the same problem with the internal structure not binding to the wall for that exact same part. Try printing any of the other wing sections. It is not happening to any of the other ones I've printed

 

[Norix]

Would you be able to post some of the CURA settings that you are using? For me personally, when I first started experimenting, I faced the same issues. The key thing that gave me cleaner retractions was switching over to a direct drive extruder. The picture below is when using a bowden style vs direct drive. Since filament is a lot closer to the nozzle in a direct drive extruder, it will help you get much more cleaner retractions over a bowden style setup that you probably have in a stock anycubic i3 mega. I have an ender 3 but I changed it to a direct drive extruder and that has worked for me. You could still probably tune your stock printer till you get good results. I would suggest going to thingvierse and searching up printable direct drive extruder mounts for anycubic i3 mega and maybe you can find a design that works. I also used CNC kitchen's video on 3D printing airplanes to help me get a baseline for my profile in CURA. You might want to check it out as it has a lot of helpful info.

Thank you for your tips, I am going to try it.

 

[Norix]

I'm also having the same problem with the internal structure not binding to the wall for that exact same part. Try printing any of the other wing sections. It is not happening to any of the other ones I've printed

Printed almost entire left side of wing results are same in all of them...