Chess. 3d printing complete.
by John
The white pieces were printed several weeks ago, then the black pawns. But I had 2 failed runs when printing the black major pieces. The failures seemed to be caused by failed adhesion of the pieces to the platform. In each case, the runs were progressing nicely, but failed after about 20 hours, in the middle of the night, covering the 7/8th completed pieces with PLA spaghetti.
The settings were exactly the same as the white pieces, so why the sudden failures? Is the black PLA different in some way?
So I asked my colleagues at the GSMEE. (Geelong Society of Model and Experimental Engineers), some of whom are experienced 3d printers. It was suggested that perhaps I had turned on the cooling fan too soon, after layer 1. So I changed the setting so the fan did not come on until after the platform and one layer of the pieces had been completed. And the result was excellent! See the photo.T
Of course the colour of the PLA is irrelevant. The PLA will be melted, vapourised and burned out after the molds are made. But I could not resist the opportunity for a photograph.
Next, to make the wax and PLA trees, and make the molds.
Still thinking about what metals to choose, and how to colour them. The pieces could be used just as they are, but I really want to feel the weight of real metal pieces.
And although I claim that the 3d printing is complete, the assumption is that there will be no casting failures. I could well be printing more pieces.
johnsmachines 
I’ve been interested in 3-D printing since my father and his cohorts at Dynell Electronics created the first 3-D Solid Photography sculptures in 1975 as part of their research on robotic vision systems, first put to use on GM car assembly lines for robotic welding.
Unfortunately, I have no access to a printer or group of enthusiasts out here and the pandemic has isolated us for over a year. If I were back in Boston I could be hot printing glass, which I can tell you about later. It’s one of the reasons I’m itching to get out of Hawaii and back on the mainland: Opportunity.
Your PLA pieces look lovely as a set. You might make a mold of one pawn, rook, knight, bishop, king and queen and use them for making additional waxes as needed.
I suggest that you cast them in aluminum and try anodizing them. Otherwise prime and paint.
Aloha,
Richard
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I know nothing about anodizing, although I did work in an anodizing factory maintenance crew as a vacation job when I was a medical student. Nasty acids in vats. I will look into into it and thanks for the suggestion Richard.
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