| I followed that guide (it is excellent, if a little outdated) to get really good results. I should really write up and share my experiences, there is so much to learn. In brief: * It's an excellent method of producing very precise parts with fantastic mechanical properties (the next step up is aluminum, but you don't need it in most cases). * It is much more difficult than just throwing something at a 3d printer. * It is not comparable with 3d printing at all. I use both methods: FDM printing for most stuff, resin casting for parts that need to be strong, dimensionally precise, or nice. * Yes, you can use your resin printer to produce originals or master molds, but you will have two problems: 1) precision, 2) silicone cure inhibition. * Tips for those in the EU: Sika Biresin F50 is fantastic, Rencast 5146 is slightly worse (higher viscosity), but works very well, too. Both are relatively easily available. For silicones, BLUESIL RTV 3450 is unbeatable. * For desktop CNC machines, there are good options now: Makera Carvera (either the full model or the "Air" scaled down version) are really nice and precise machines. Software is crappy, but hopefully will get better. I had a Nomad 3, but switched to Carvera. * Don't buy a cheap CNC. There is simply no way to produce a desktop CNC with good precision for less than, say USD $2000. You will be disappointed. Perhaps if one day a Bambu Lab arrives with experienced engineers and a lot of money, they could mass-produce something cheaper, but right now this is roughly the cutoff. * Autodesk Fusion, much as I hate it and the company behind it, is pretty much the only game in town if you want integrated CAD+CAM. Again, I hate the software with a passion, but there is simply nothing else that is as well integrated, works well, and is reasonably priced. * Achievable precision: ±20μm is doable with a little care, things get difficult below that. This is roughly 10x better than what you can get from FDM 3d printing. Note also that this is the limit of what most people can measure: your calipers have an error of ±20μm if they are good. I also noticed that the 3d-printing crowd often has no idea what precision means, so you'll see crazy numbers thrown around. * Mechanical properties of produced parts are way better than what you can get from FDM printing. I laugh at those "strong filament with carbon fiber" youtube videos. |
Not just not comparable, but totally opposite. Subtractive vs Additive. CNC is like chiseling the David out of single block of stone by removing bits. 3d printing is starting with nothing and adding material.