• Tudsamfa@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    Got into 3D-printing a few years back. Intended to print some replacement parts, a few decorations and gadgets, and took care to not waste too much plastic. In the internet, there are pages dedicated to 3d models other people have printed. They were always a good inspiration on what could be done, and even if the model isn’t exactly what you wanted, it was always a functioning prototype to test with.

    Since last year, multicolour printers have gained popularity. They automatically change between 2 different colours, but to make sure nothing of the old colour is left in the system, every time they change it they print out a few grams of waste product.

    It’s a waste indeed if you look at the “poop bucket” of anyone who uses these types of printers. Idc if it’s only the “technically recycleable PLA” they use, I don’t like it. And now I have to manually filter out those models, and they can fill an entire page depending on what’s the new trend right now.

    • Ticktok@lemmy.one
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      2 months ago

      On the flip side, I’m hopeful that the large scale waste people have will finally drive more local filament recycling services.

    • Whitebrow@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      There are options available in the slicer to wipe the byproduct into the infill of the models, that way you end up not wasting any of the material