Resin printing uses the SLA, MSLA, or DLP process to create 3D objects out of a UV (ultraviolet) photopolymer.
The majority of consumer resin printers use MSLA (masked stereolithography).
The majority of consumers use resin printing to create miniatures, game pieces, lithographs, and other trinkets.
The engineering side of resin printing allows for commercial prototypes and complex objects made from flexible, ceramic, and high-temperature resins.
Consumer resin printers cost $200-2,000 depending on the machine quality, build volume, and resolution. Budget resin is typically $25-40 per kilogram, while engineering resins are often $40-150 per kilogram.
An entire setup for a small resin printer typically starts around $300, while a medium printer setup will be $500 at minimum. The addition of a wash & cure or ultrasonic cleaner will be one of the most expensive add-ons.
Consumables include the screen, FEP, resin, gloves, and solvents such as IPA. The LCD screen can last up to 2,000 printing hours. The FEP can last a few hundred hours but substantially less when damaged.
Entire Small Resin Printer Setup | $300-500 |
Entire Medium Resin Printer Setup | $400-800 |
Small Resin Printers | $200-500 |
Medium Resin Printers | $300-700 |
Large Resin Printers | $700-2,000 |
Budget Resin | $25-40/kg |
Engineering Resin | $40-150/kg |
Replacement Screens | $40-150 |
Replacement FEP or PFA | $5 |
These are some of the basic items needed for resin printing.
These are some of the useful items for resin printing.
Resin prints have uncured resin on them after being pulled off the build plate. This resin can be removed manually or automatically.
Uncured resin can be removed manually by squirting IPA on prints, dunking the prints in containers like a pickle jar, or dabbing with a paper towel.
Cleaning automatically has a higher initial cost but reduces labor and the risk of skin exposure. Automatic cleaning of resin prints is typically performed with a wash and cure machine or an ultrasonic cleaner. In either case, the print should be cleaned until it is no longer tacky.
IPA (plus other cleaners like Mean Green) can be used to remove uncured resin from prints. The IPA can be reused multiple times until it becomes saturated with resin. The IPA can then be evaporated or recycled.
If cost is not an issue then evaporating contaminated IPA is the easiest thing to do. Just place the IPA outside in direct sunlight so that it will evaporate faster and the resin will cure. The cured resin can be disposed of as regular trash. Do not pour uncured resin down the drain.
IPA saturated with resin can be cured then manually filtered with a coffee filter. This eliminates resin debris but the process is imperfect. Distillation will recycle the IPA into a pure form, but it does have safety risks.
The ideal temperature range for most budget resin is 20-30°C. Some manufacturers recommend printing only above 25°C, especially for engineering resins.
When resin is too cold it will not cure properly, so a heat source is needed. The heat source can be a heat pad, ceramic heater, space heater, or even non-UV lights like sodium bulbs.
When resin is too warm (40-50°C), the supports and resin part can lose rigidity and fail. Higher temperatures can also reduce the life of electronics such as the screen.
These are some of the top-rated small resin printers that have been released within the past year. There are constantly new models being released by these companies, often improving on the resolution and quality of life features. The MSLA printers with a higher resolution are ideal for tight tolerances, jewelry casting, commercial items, and those with splash cash.
$200
XY Resolution: 0.035 mm
Volume: 143x89x165 mm
$200
XY Resolution: 0.018 mm
Volume: 153x77x175 mm
$350
XY Resolution: 0.022 mm
Volume: 165x72x170 mm
$400
XY Resolution: 0.022 mm
Volume: 165x72x180 mm
Medium MSLA resin printers have the same functionality as their smaller brethren, but their extra size corresponds with the increased price. The main downside to the extra size is that replacement screens will cost more. Medium resin printers excel at printing larger parts and batch printing smaller items.
$250
XY Resolution: 0.034 mm
Volume: 196x122x150 mm
$450
XY Resolution: 0.016 mm
Volume: 223x126x200 mm
$350
XY Resolution: 0.019 mm
Volume: 219x123x250 mm
$600
XY Resolution: 0.028 mm
Volume: 218x123x235 mm
Large MSLA resin printers are still new to the consumer market, and this is the most build volume you be able to have without purchasing an industrial machine or building a custom printer. Larger resin printers are ideal for very large prints and batch printing medium-sized prints.
$800
XY Resolution: 0.043 mm
Volume: 298x164x300 mm
$700
XY Resolution: 0.051 mm
Volume: 278x156x300 mm
$1,500+
XY Resolution: 0.043 mm
Volume: 330x185x400 mm
Consumer DLP resin printers use mirror chips manufactured by Texas Instruments. These DLP printers are more expensive per build volume, but they result in high quality prints and the projector has an estimated lifespan of 20,000 hours.
$350
XY Resolution: 0.051 mm
Volume: 132x74x150 mm
$350
XY Resolution: 0.051 mm
Volume: 131x73x165 mm
Budget 3D printing resin is affordable ($25-40) and typically brittle. Budget resin properties vary wildly between manufacturers and can come in many different colors. Flexible resin can be mixed with budget resin to grant impact resistance.
Durable resins are moderately flexible, which makes them perfect for miniatures, game pieces, gifts, prototypes, and tooling. These are typically more expensive than budget resins ($40-70) but do not require mixing with flexible resins.
Flexible 3D printing resin is perfect for mixing, rubber-like prototyping, grips, gaskets, molds, and fun squeezable prints. Flexible resins typically have a lower elongation and tensile strength than flexible filaments such as TPU and OBC.
Strong resins have high modulus and strength values. This type of resin is ideal for fixtures, tooling, housings, pressurized components, and rigid prototypes. Strong resins are comparable in properties to filaments such as PLA, PETG, ABS, and PC.
High-temperature 3D printing resins have a high heat deflection temperature (HDT). These resins are ideal for high-temp molds, hot fluids, and components exposed to extreme environments. High-temperature resin can outperform most consumer filament.
For short-term exposure, skin contact with resin is the worst-case scenario. It can often go unnoticed, which is why PPE is important. Resin can cause sensitization, burns, eye damage, organ damage, and harm to unborn & young children.
This may sound scary but it is just another industrial chemical. Children and pregnant women should not be interacting with resin, and proper PPE takes care of the rest. Disposable or reusable nitrile gloves should always be used, and eye & skin protection is highly recommended.
If you get resin on your skin, wash it off with soap and water - do not use a solvent like IPA. Taking a shower after cleaning prints is a best practice and can remove any unnoticed skin exposure.
Inhalation of the VOCs emitted from the resin is another concern. While studies on resin are lacking, the chemicals that go into resin are reasonably studied, but the tricky part is that nearly every resin uses a different combination of chemicals.
Short-term inhalation can be prevented by wearing an organic vapor respirator, which is highly recommended. The combination cartridges are fantastic for sanding as well.
Long-term inhalation can be prevented by placing the printer outside the residence (garage, workshop, shed, etc) or venting the printer out a window.
Ventilation is currently the only method to ensure that you are not exposed to resin fumes long-term.
The easiest method of ventilation is placing the printer outside your residence in a garage, shed, or on a balcony in a grow tent.
If the printer can not be placed outside then the next best option is to use a separate/sealed room and vent the fumes out a window. This is usually done with a cheap enclosure like a grow tent. It is recommended not to do this in bedrooms, common areas, and kitchens.
Filtration of VOCs works by trapping the airborne chemicals inside the pores of activated carbon. However, using activated carbon is not perfect. The exact efficiency can vary with the activated carbon size, surface area, thickness of the media, airspeed, temperature, saturation level, humidity, impregnation, and the chemical to be adsorbed.
Thus, it is recommended that filtration of resin fumes should only be used as mitigation and a secondary defense. Mitigation would be using a small filter in or near the printer while being vented. A secondary defense would be using a typical household air purifier near but outside the room used for resin printing.
A screen protector can be used to safeguard the screen, but this can lower your UV power level.
Instead of pouring resin out with the vat, you can use a tool like a baster to transfer the resin.
Make sure to consistently check the FEP/PFA film for damage, and keep the print clean.
A screen is dying is the exposure test is abnormal, dead pixels are creating holes throughout prints, and a thin layer of resin is curing across the part, supports, or vat.
You can reduce or even eliminate elephant's foot by creating an inward chamfer in CAD, applying compensation in a slicer, or by shrinking the first few layers using UVtools.
Make sure that the ambient temperature is appropriate for the resin you are using. Typically, the ideal range is 20-30°C (68-86°F), but always check the manufacturer's recommendation.
Temperatures that are low will cause failures, and elevated temperatures (40°C+) can reduce resin rigidity.
Make sure that parts are properly supported with thick and dense supports.
This is commonly the result of a bad USB drive.
To increase the likelihood that prints will stick to the build plate, raise the base exposure time, lower your lift speed, add a raft, lightly sand the build plate, and check for build plate defects (like not being flat).
Carefully use the scraper as hard as you can to get the print off.
In the future, use a chamfered raft or flexible build plate to easily remove prints.
In UVtools, you can use raft relief, which should make removing the raft easier.