hi, this is ryan turner with maker's toolworks. today i going to show you how to make and apply an abs acetone solution to the printbedof your fused filament fabrication based 3d printer, like the mendelmax 2. thisis especially useful for users wishing to print with abs materials but finding thatthey are having difficulty with the first layer of their print adhering to the printbed,or conversly they may be having a level of
how strong is 3d printed abs, warping that occurs. this can help that too.now, there are a couple of users who have found that when they make this solutionmuch too strong and print the first layer way too low, that they can't take the printsoff of the glass -- it simply works to well. so make sure that you don't stray toofar out of the norm, but terrible precision
isn't really necessary here. so there're a couple of supplies that we willneed, first thing being a measuring cup. you've gotta make sure that it's glass or hdpe though,and of course you can use something like a volumetric flask or graduatedcylinder if you'd like to. one cup or a couple hundred mililtres is plenty of capacity formeasuring. the important this is that the material does not dissolve in abs.the second thing you will need is a measuring tape. i have a 16 foot long measuring tapethat is much overkill for this -- just a regular 1 foot or half a meter stick is plenty for this.so in terms of supplies that you will need
for this there are a couple of things.the very first thing that you will need is a bottle, because there is not much sensein just making enough to use once when you're doing this. it takes a little bit of time for the abs to dissolve. so, we like to makea solution in batch, put it in a bottle, and use it until it runs out, which should bea couple of months because this does not take that much. now you can see this bottlethat i am using may not be what you expected, and it's certainly not what i used for makingmy pvac solution before. that's because, once again, it has to be a materialthat is not dissolvable in acetone. so, i'm recycling a rubbing alcohol bottle which ismade out of hdpe. the important thing is
once again that it does not dissolve. thingslike canning jars tend to be problematic, because the seal on top of them dissolvesin abs. so you may have it cranked down all the way, but then knock the bottle over, andthen suddenly you have acetone coming out the side because it has eaten through thatrubber gasket. so, something made out of hdpe, or something made out of glass withand hdpe top is what you want. now the second thing that you will need isabs filament. im using red maker's tool works abs. now you can use things like natural orwhite, but then you cant quite see where the solution is applied. so i find that abright color like red works best. of course the down side to that is that you're goingto have red on wherever you apply it. so if
you spill the stuff it's going to be noticiable.and it may adhere a little bit to the first layer of your prints, so if that's reallya concern then go with clear or white. but for me, i just want to make sure thati can see it's still there; i care about it working. so i'm going with red. then the third that you will need is of courseacetone. you can see i went overkill here and got 1 gallon or 3.75 l worth of acetone,which is much more than i need to fill this little bottle. so you dont have to getthe same size as me -- this only cost me about 20 usd at a home improvement store, but youcan certainly go with a quart size, or quarter litre, or half litre, or whateveryou have available. though i recommend that
you stay in the home improvement quality acetoneand don't sort of stray out of that and go to a department store or to a beauty store,because the acetone that's used to nail polish remover tends to be much more expensive andyou tend to get a lot less for your money. we dont need the purity and we dontneed the additives and stabilizers, what have you; we just want pure straight-up acetone.cheapest here is best. going along those same lines, getting lab quality acetone reallyisn't necessary; we dont care for that sort of precision. so, with all of these things on hand, let'sgo ahead and start making the solution. it takes a little while for the abs to get dissolved,so the sooner you get started, the
better.so, let's get started. work in a well ventilated area, preferably outside. we recommend wearingnitrile gloves and using eye protection to prevent exposure to spilled acetone. first, take your acetone, and pour 250 mlor 1 cup into your measuring cup. be sure to put the top on your acetone after. then,pour the 250 ml of acetone into your bottle. soon thereafter make certain that you replaceteh cap to prevent any sort of evaporation. take your filament spool and measure out 30cm or 12 in of 3 mm abs filament. snap or cut the filament free and tend to your spaghettimonster of a filament spool thereafter.
snap the filament into a few smaller piecesto make it more managable. then uncap the bottle, and then drop the pieces into thebottle. replace the cap on the bottle and shake repeatedly. alternative you can leaveit overnight, but we're impatient. once there is no indication of solid filamentbeing present, you're ready to apply the solution. using a folded up sheet of paper towel, coverthe bottle and simply tip over once. once is really enough. then, whipe overthe printbed and watch as the acetone dissolves and you're left with a foggy coating of abson top. note that if you cover the same area multiple times, all that ends uphapening is that you take the old stuff off and put new stuff on, so you dont end up doingan additional layer, you just whipe it
away and then reapply it.that's really all there is to it! generally after every print, it should be visually obviousthat some of the coating has been removed, so you will want to reapply the solution to the bed.also note that we recommend users apply the abs solution on top of pet or window tintfilm instead of directly to glass to avoid issues of over-adhesion.once again, i'm ryan with maker's tool works,
and this has been making and applying abs acetone solution.if you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below, or visit our website at mtw.io; thismonth we launched a new web forum, and we're
always available in our webchat and supportticket system to answer any of your questions.
