1 Topic by RURC (edited by RURC 2018-03-06 18:06:22)

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Topic: Just got the Wanhao D7

Hello all.

First lets get this out of the way. My son and I are tech guys. We have been FDM printing for 6 years, mostly from a original RepRap. You know the one, made with all thread and 3d printed parts from another RepRap runner. We have built and rebuilt and modded C-Me-CNC delta printers. Dual and quad heads. Our RepRap now has 3 heads. My son is far more technical about these than I am but I am more mechanical then he is on them. Together we make a great pair.

So my son un-boxed the D7 yesterday (a newer 1.5 version) and set it up in our little area. He watched several YouTube videos for the set up. In the end the D7 was not working and he was frustrated by the time I got home from work. I did the usual "Did you do this", "Did you do that". I started looking on line for help. I came across a FaceBook group called:

"Wanhao D7 Duplicator Resin Printer Community & Support"

I cant say how wonderful and helpful this group was. It was off the chart how fast and exact their help was. The gentleman that runs it is named Earl Miller. He personally got on line and helped up within minutes.

He runs a web site also called, http://wanhaouniversity.com/. If you need help with your D7 this is the place to hit. Dont waste time with other downloads including the ones direct from Wanhao.  Download their versions of the firmware and the Creative Workshop. They are perfectly configured for the D7. After loading and going through the PDF they supplied for quick start we were accurately running within 25 minutes.

It was late last night so we were dry running it. But today my son will be printing Benchey and MakersMuse torture tests. When this is done I will post photos of the first prints with no changes to the set up as we got it from Wanhao University.

I am expecting great things from this little printer and so far my excitement is still very high.

Again I cant thank Earl enough. IF you are getting the D7 or already have on Look up his FB group and his web site.

Vintage RepRap
C-Me-CNC Delta
Wanhao D7 DLP

2 Reply by carl_m1968

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

RURC wrote:

Hello all.

First lets get this out of the way. My son and I are tech guys. We have been FDM printing for 6 years, mostly from a original RepRap. You know the one, made with all thread and 3d printed parts from another RepRap runner. We have built and rebuilt and modded C-Me-CNC delta printers. Dual and quad heads. Our RepRap now has 3 heads. My son is far more technical about these than I am but I am more mechanical then he is on them. Together we make a great pair.

So my son un-boxed the D7 yesterday (a newer 1.5 version) and set it up in our little area. He watched several YouTube videos for the set up. In the end the D7 was not working and he was frustrated by the time I got home from work. I did the usual "Did you do this", "Did you do that". I started looking on line for help. I came across a FaceBook group called:

"Wanhao D& Duplicator Resin Printer Community & Support"

I cant say how wonderful and helpful this group was. It was off the chart how fast and exact their help was. The gentleman that runs it is named Earl Miller. He personally got on line and helped up within minutes.

He runs a web site also called, http://wanhaouniversity.com/. If you need help with your D7 this is the place to hit. Dont waste time with other downloads including the ones direct from Wanhao.  Download their versions of the firmware and the Creative Workshop. They are perfectly configured for the D7. After loading and going through the PDF they supplied for quick start we were accurately running within 25 minutes.

It was late last night so we were dry running it. But today my son will be printing Benchey and MakersMuse torture tests. When this is done I will post photos of the first prints with no changes to the set up as we got it from Wanhao University.

I am expecting great things from this little printer and so far my excitement is still very high.

Again I cant thank Earl enough. IF you are getting the D7 or already have on Look up his FB group and his web site.

Just make sure you have plenty of alcohol to wash the excess resin off the print and you also should have a UV curing oven as the printer does not cure the print fully. But I am sure you know most of this if you have been looking into SLA.

Printing since 2009 and still love it!
Anycubic 4MAX best $225 ever invested.
Voxelabs Proxima SLA. 6 inch 2k Mono LCD.
Anycubic Predator, massive Delta machine. 450 x 370 print envelope.

3 Reply by RURC

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

carl_m1968

We are all set on that front. Bought a gallon of 99% isopropal alcohol. Then we made a UV curing station.

Vintage RepRap
C-Me-CNC Delta
Wanhao D7 DLP

4 Reply by yizhou.he (edited by yizhou.he 2018-03-06 21:21:37)

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

I love FaceBook group too. But I'm on MonoPrice Maker Select V2 and Plus group. People are active, nice, and helpful. They show off their printing products, ideas and ask questions every day with New post almost every 10 minutes. People that are rude or personal attack get kicked.

I think major downside of FaceBook group is kind of difficult to post long post/guides and edit them. I like this site (soliforum) have powerful edit function, it is very easy to write up long post and update it later. It is also easy to organize and reference.

(Da Vinci 1.0, Jr. 1.0 RAMPS, miniMaker) X4, (Creality CR-10S, CR-10 mini, Ender-3) X4, Anycubic MEGA X4, Anycubic Chrion X1, ADMILAB Gantry X2 (MonoPrice Maker Select V2, Plus, Ultimate)X4--Select mini X1, Anycubic photon X4, Wanhao duplicate D7 X1.
iNSTONE Inventor Pro X2, CTC Dual X2, ANET-A8, Hictop 3DP-11, Solidoodle Press, FLSUN I3 2017X1

5 Reply by carl_m1968 (edited by carl_m1968 2018-03-07 19:46:54)

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

Once you get accustomed to it and get your cure times down, you will want to set up a Raspberry pi with NanoDLP. Being able to push a file to it over wifi and setup over wifi from any web enable device is so much better. Plus you don't need a PC that is dedicated to it either.

Printing since 2009 and still love it!
Anycubic 4MAX best $225 ever invested.
Voxelabs Proxima SLA. 6 inch 2k Mono LCD.
Anycubic Predator, massive Delta machine. 450 x 370 print envelope.

6 Reply by RURC

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

carl_m1968 wrote:

Once you get accustomed to it and get your cure times down, you will want to set up a Raspberry pi with NanoDLP. Being able to push a file to it over wifi and setup over wifi from any web enable device is so much better. Plus you don't need a PC that is dedicated to it either.

We are looking at the Raspberry or the control box from Wnahao. IS thee a strong preferance either way?

Also we have been having a hard time with the 30 micron layer settings. It does the first 6 to 9 layers than it looses cohesion it seems because the rest of the print is stuck on the plastic cover not the build plate. We have been playing with cure times and the like but its the same error every time.

Here is the test print we did at 100 micron. With the small exception of the small area where it seems to have fallen  the print is excellent.

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Vintage RepRap
C-Me-CNC Delta
Wanhao D7 DLP

7 Reply by carl_m1968

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

RURC wrote:
carl_m1968 wrote:

Once you get accustomed to it and get your cure times down, you will want to set up a Raspberry pi with NanoDLP. Being able to push a file to it over wifi and setup over wifi from any web enable device is so much better. Plus you don't need a PC that is dedicated to it either.

We are looking at the Raspberry or the control box from Wnahao. IS thee a strong preferance either way?

Also we have been having a hard time with the 30 micron layer settings. It does the first 6 to 9 layers than it looses cohesion it seems because the rest of the print is stuck on the plastic cover not the build plate. We have been playing with cure times and the like but its the same error every time.

Here is the test print we did at 100 micron. With the small exception of the small area where it seems to have fallen  the print is excellent.

Because these printers do not a tilt on their peel but rely strictly on pulling the part away from the film for the next layer the trick is to orient the part prior to printing so that it presents the smallest cross section possible at all times. This might also require the use of supports and such but it is a necessary evil in the use of SLA printers. In the case of the Benchy it would be better to orient it standing on it's back end or set it at an angle where it is printed entirely on supports.

If your printer came with the build plate that has a bare aluminum surface you might also need to rough it up with a very fine grit sand paper as well. The newer units such as your version should not have these, but who knows if they decide to use old stock or not.

Printing since 2009 and still love it!
Anycubic 4MAX best $225 ever invested.
Voxelabs Proxima SLA. 6 inch 2k Mono LCD.
Anycubic Predator, massive Delta machine. 450 x 370 print envelope.

8 Reply by RURC

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

carl_m1968 wrote:

Because these printers do not a tilt on their peel but rely strictly on pulling the part away from the film for the next layer the trick is to orient the part prior to printing so that it presents the smallest cross section possible at all times. This might also require the use of supports and such but it is a necessary evil in the use of SLA printers. In the case of the Benchy it would be better to orient it standing on it's back end or set it at an angle where it is printed entirely on supports.

If your printer came with the build plate that has a bare aluminum surface you might also need to rough it up with a very fine grit sand paper as well. The newer units such as your version should not have these, but who knows if they decide to use old stock or not.


Interesting. Why is building the Benchy better at an angle? The bottom of the boat is a large flat area that I would think would adhere well to the build plate?

I believe our build plate is either painted or anodized black. I am not sure as my son has been doing most of the running so far.

I do know on the latest item he is trying to print he has tried to do a support structure, but something is just not right.

When you say "very Fine" sand paper are we talking 380 grit or 800 grit fine?

Vintage RepRap
C-Me-CNC Delta
Wanhao D7 DLP

9 Reply by RURC

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

Also Carl,

What are the pros and cons of the Raspberry vs the box controller from Wanhao?

Vintage RepRap
C-Me-CNC Delta
Wanhao D7 DLP

10 Reply by carl_m1968 (edited by carl_m1968 2018-03-08 14:58:13)

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

RURC wrote:
carl_m1968 wrote:

Because these printers do not a tilt on their peel but rely strictly on pulling the part away from the film for the next layer the trick is to orient the part prior to printing so that it presents the smallest cross section possible at all times. This might also require the use of supports and such but it is a necessary evil in the use of SLA printers. In the case of the Benchy it would be better to orient it standing on it's back end or set it at an angle where it is printed entirely on supports.

If your printer came with the build plate that has a bare aluminum surface you might also need to rough it up with a very fine grit sand paper as well. The newer units such as your version should not have these, but who knows if they decide to use old stock or not.


Interesting. Why is building the Benchy better at an angle? The bottom of the boat is a large flat area that I would think would adhere well to the build plate?

I believe our build plate is either painted or anodized black. I am not sure as my son has been doing most of the running so far.

I do know on the latest item he is trying to print he has tried to do a support structure, but something is just not right.

When you say "very Fine" sand paper are we talking 380 grit or 800 grit fine?

That same wide build area also adheres well to the vat film as well. In fact in most cases it adheres there better than on the build plate simply due to the fact it is much closer surface to glass and near perfectly flat unlike the build plate. As for the sand paper if needed I would say 800. You just want the surface to be slightly rough if it is the unfinished aluminum surface they used in some.

I am assuming right now you are using their sample of resin. What you find most likely is when you switch to another brand it will stick to the plate even less.

As for the Pi versus box, the only difference I see is the box has an LCD and no wifi. That means you must be by the printer to control it and you can only load files from USB. With the Pi you use and control the printer from any device that has a web browser using wifi. You can load files from any PC that is on your network. If you set up port forwarding you could even control the printer from across town with a Pi.

My computer is in my bedroom where I do my modeling and slicing but the printer is in the living room on a shelf. I simply turn it on, wait for it and the Pi to start. Takes about two minutes for the Pi to fully boot. Then I log into the Pi's IP through my web browser and am greeted with the nanoDLP interface. Form there I can load files, change and edit resin profiles, control and test the printer functions and so on without having to be right at the printer.

The Pi is also going to cost only half of what that controller cost and you have the touch screen in your hand if you have a cell phone or tablet.

Printing since 2009 and still love it!
Anycubic 4MAX best $225 ever invested.
Voxelabs Proxima SLA. 6 inch 2k Mono LCD.
Anycubic Predator, massive Delta machine. 450 x 370 print envelope.

11 Reply by RURC

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

Carl,

OK I see what your saying on the surface contact.

Also I thought the BOX Wanhao sells I thought it was just the Pi with a screen. OK we will be going the Pi route.

I will relay this information to my son who is at home playing with it now.

Vintage RepRap
C-Me-CNC Delta
Wanhao D7 DLP

12 Reply by justsomeguy

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

Did you guys ever get nanodlp setup? It's great!

13 Reply by carl_m1968

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Re: Just got the Wanhao D7

justsomeguy wrote:

Did you guys ever get nanodlp setup? It's great!

I got NanoDLP up and running the second day as my Lappy did not want to play with the printer. I have not looked back. I like the fact you have a control screen on any wireless device that has a web browser. Also does not keep a PC tied up either.

Printing since 2009 and still love it!
Anycubic 4MAX best $225 ever invested.
Voxelabs Proxima SLA. 6 inch 2k Mono LCD.
Anycubic Predator, massive Delta machine. 450 x 370 print envelope.