3DLAC what’s that? Well let me tell you all about it…..
Sticky Situation
How often do you start a print off and have the confidence to walk away before that first later is down? Be honest, maybe 20% of the time? I level my bed obsessively. I use a feeler gauge to set the gap then use the contactless probe to measure the heights, adjusting manually until I am as close to perfect as I can be, however, I still suffer from adhesion issues occasionally.
Surface?
I mainly print on plain glass. I do plan to get a mirror but so far the glass has served me well. How do I get the confidence to press start and walk away? 3DLAC or more accurately for me 3DLAC PLUS.
3DLAC and 3D LAC PLUS are anti warping sprays designed to be sprayed onto your print surface to help obtain that elusive perfect first layer. Now I know everyone has their own method, be it just get on with it, clean it, hairspray, painters tape, glue stick, etc but for me its 3DLAC.
How and Why
3DLAC works much like hair spray but without all the unnecessary components and odours. Sprayed directly onto the bed from approx. 20Cm away and allowed to dry for 5-10 seconds, a thin layer is all that you need to get your first layer to stick.
Unlike some of the other alternatives, freeing the completed part is easy. Simply allow your bed to cool and the part just pops off! No residue and no hard to clean remnants on the heat bed.
First Layer
We’ve all felt the trepidation of starting a new print. Usually something we’ve brought, a special filament or something we’ve wanted to print for ages, and then you cant get the filament to stick to the surface. You relevel, you clean the print surface and relevel again. Nothing seems to be helping. This can cause real irritation. I used to go down the hair spray route as its quick, easy and cheap. In addition around 60% of the time it worked for me,
A friend of mine introduced me to 3DLAC. I must admit I was a little put off as I did not want to spend this money on a product that was in my mind, effectively hairspray with a 3D printing aimed marketing campaign. How wrong I was! After a rather unsuccessful attempt to print, what should have been an easy component, I gave in and ordered some from Amazon. With prime delivery, I had it 2 days later.
Determined to give it a good honest go, I cleaned my bed with isopropyl alcohol and allowed it to dry before using the 3DLAC. Clean the glass and with 2 squirts of the 3DLAC, by the time the printer was laying the first layer, it was not moving. I was amazed! In-fact I still am by how much extra adhesion this little spray can provide. Now I cannot compare 3DLAC directly to any other specialist products as I have yet to try them. However, when compared to painters tape or hairspray it is a 100% improvement in my eyes.
Where can I buy 3DLAC?
You can buy 3DLAC from their site here or via Amazon
Final thoughts
To sum up, everyone has their own way of doing things. I am now a convert to 3DLAC. As a matter of fact, I won’t start a print without it! Others have their own systems that work for them. If your having adhesion issues I strongly recommend you try the basics first – Clean your bed and level it as best you can. Close enough may be good enough but often isn’t. Failing that get yourself on Amazon and order a can of 3DLAC, you wont regret it!
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I honestly want to give this product 100% but a couple of little factors spoil it for me. The cost and the fact its not on Prime delivery in the UK but i'm informed that's going to change. With regards to the cost, I feel it is reasonable but would like it to be cheaper :) Who wouldn't want something so awesome available at a lower price!? Other than my minor bug bears this is an awesome product.
