Design Better 3D Prints that don't need Support Material

In my recent 3D Printer build I employed a lot of tricks to avoid support material!
While they can be extremely useful, enabling support increase print time, material use and clean up for 3D Prints. Using these design tweaks you can avoid the need for it altogether.
This video is part of the CAD for Newbies playlist! • CAD For Newbies
Software used - Fusion 360
Support Maker's Muse on Patreon
www.patreon.co...
50 3D Printing Tips and Tricks - gumroad.com/l/...
3D Printing Essentials - www.amazon.com...

[@JohnEdwa]

'Designing complicated models using separate components and groups' should be the next topic, mostly so you would start using them as well. They save quite a lot of time when you make and edit larger designs consisting of multiple separate parts.

[@dizzicz]

Is possible to move steps in timeline to and from group without cancelling the group already?

[@christopheremanuel5063]

@Daniel Jack definitely, have been watching on InstaFlixxer for since december myself :)

[@jamisonkhalil6752]

@Daniel Jack Yup, I've been using instaflixxer for since december myself =)

[@casenkeith5696]

@Daniel Jack Yea, have been watching on InstaFlixxer for years myself :)

[@gannonmalakai9706]

@Daniel Jack Yup, I have been watching on InstaFlixxer for years myself =)

[@Celcius1]

Angus, i have been designing my models like this for years, but its good to see it being acknowledge more

[@MakersMuse]

Awesome! I suspect a lot of these tips and more are a little like convergent evolution - designers face the same hurdles and overcome them in similar ways. Back in the day we didn't have this new fanged 'support generation' tool in slicers! :)

[@Celcius1]

Maker's Muse not only that, I just hated removing support material is a pain to remove if your using PETG

[@JeffDM]

Sacrificial bridging and manually designed-in supports were very much a thing in the "i2 Prusa Mendel" days, if not earlier.

[@REDxFROG]

@@JeffDM I haven't seen any of these techniques in any thingiverse model so far. Or perhaps I haven't downloaded enough of them. lol Too often we have to fix the thingiverse models ourselves anyway....

[@crunchysteve]

The multipart and self-designed supports was something I've been using, but those sacrificial bridges! Genius! So obvious now I see, just never thought of it! Brilliant!

[@RomanoPRODUCTION]

I love the rain, especially Australian rain because for it is falling ground to sky because I am in the Northern hemisphere 💝

[@alejandroperez5368]

Huuuh???

[@goethe528]

I am designing Parts for my 3D printers for over 5 years now. In this video I really learned something new! Thank you!

[@daveyJ213]

I actually used this technique when designing my first Benchy. After hollowing the cabin I was left with a other large unsupported ceiling. I added ceiling beams inside the cab on the under-surface of the ceiling. They did not print very we'll, but the resulting mess of an attempt ended up supporting the ceiling of the boat cabin. Glad my first hair-brained design attempt is actually confirmed by watching your video. Thank you!

[@MrCelali]

You are the best teacher about 3d printing, I have ever seen on youtube. Thanx Man.

[@gaellafond6367]

I have been designing 3D printable parts for a few years. I already knew all the tricks you mentioned, but I still appreciate your videos.

[@ConnieWalshcan]

Thank you so much. I was making a design where I was thinking I was going to have to make it in two parts and connect them together but hated the idea so I was waiting until inspiration struck. And putting in a temporary support that allowed a bridge was the perfect answer. Awesome. Thanks

[@buildersmark]

Creating my own supports was something I learned from you a long time ago & it's worked every time. It does take some thinking of "how do I want this to work" Great tutorial as always.

[@michaelj3971]

This video is pure gold! You made an oblique reference to this video in your "ELITES don't want you to know" video, and I had to find it to see how you design out the need for supports. I still need to go into Fusion 360 and try creating the sacrificial bridging, but I have saved this video in my favorites so I can always go back to it. Every once in a while you come across videos that stand out as exceptional, and this is one of them. Thank you!

[@donkeykong3x3]

I just wanted to say thank you. Your videos have helped me figure out ways to design parts around printing limitations, and has allowed me to take on much more daunting tasks.

[@koolkevin2357]

As a huge fan of ALL the Fallout series - I applaud you and admire your ingenuity. Well Done! (insert Vault Boy Thumbs Up HERE!)

[@MarkFraserWeather]

Thanks for the bridging tip. I tried it today, and it really makes a difference to printing with supports.

[@trexinvert]

You can also "split" certain overhanging parts to be completely separate, and then add an assembly feature like a groove/tongue or an interlock for adhesive fixturing. My little Markforged Onyx one machine has a small print volume, and I find myself splitting parts into 2, 3,4,5, or 6 sections and doing cluster prints to save time.

[@gato4381]

Great job Angus, really. I remember one of yours videos saying "i don´t want make "beta tester" and lost my time, i don´t want to be a reviewer. I want to help de 3d comunity" (or something like that) well.... you really make it. Thanks!!!!

[@sypeiterra7613]

As I'm working on a huge engineering class project with a majority of the parts 3d printed and having just bought an ender 3 i really needed this

[@michieljames737]

Great video as always. Thanks for your shared information. Still my No.1 3D printing channel. I could not hear the rain at l. Enjoy it and rejoice. We in Cape Town South Africa are facing our second year of a majour drought. We are thankfull for every drop when it rains.

[@MakersMuse]

Thanks for the kind words! We have just started to come out of a fairly major drought here and hope you see more rain soon.

[@3dmedicvince449]

I've broke things down sometimes to print better but this really highlights a lot of great design tips. Can't wait for the next video.

[@3DPrintFarm]

Angus! I love that you are covering this topic. My work with resin printing and adding manual support with various orientations to minimize supports has been definitely a learning experience in developing an “eye”. It’s not something that comes naturally.

[@davisdiercks]

Nice! This is exactly what I needed today; I recently bought a small printer and I was just this morning thinking about supports, material use, multiple parts, etc, and this really cleared things up and set me in the right direction. Thanks much, you're awesome!

[@forgotrafe]

Have used the sacrificial bridging technique in a model today and it works brilliantly. Also used the 0.3mm super fast method you explain in another video. Many thanks!

[@Proffinouille]

thank's a lot for our teardrop shaped holes tip !!!!!!! i used it in my job and spread it to my collegues an boss. Even if I said that it's your invention but I got felicitations so I give you felicitations back !! ;)

[@MakersMuse]

Awesome! Thanks for watching :)

[@Proffinouille]

Maker's Muse i used it on a markforged tow and i Will try asap on most standard printer

[@Tr3v1z3]

Thanks for more tips and trick on cad design. 3D printing is like any other manufacturing process, with some things they can and can't do. Know process limitation and how to bypass it is far more interesting than just download and print. Some more tips you can take a look on: You can create parameters in fusion360 with extrusion width and layer height and use it in some critical dimensions (home made support structure for example, or to be sure that you have at least x complete perimeter around an hole), printing direction have some influence to design strength. Best regards,

[@4STEVEJOY34]

It is raining here in Ca. USA also. The hard part about your videos is remembering ALL the good info. Thanks. 🖖🔥⌛️

[@PhillipTorrickeBarton]

I'm loving this series! Can you do a video on splitting a model, specifically .STL files, and adding tabs/pins and holes for joining them post pint.

[@joedog86]

Excellent video. Definitely could have used that tip about the sacrificial bridge in the past. Thank you for your high quality tutorials!

[@luscus9754]

Hey Angus. Great Vid as usual. We use Brass inserts instead of nuts. No slots necessary. Just design in the appropriate sized hole and then heat / melt them in with a soldering iron. Once in they ain't gonna come out. And they're cheap.

[@Old_Man_Bushcraft]

Good information! Started using bridging very recently after having a part turn out poorly. I was to the point of trying anything. I still need to tweak my settings for bridging but it was definitely the answer. I wish I’d seen or thought of this earlier. Keep up the videos. So much helpful info.

[@leedesigner1977]

Good video as per usual matey. Me personally, I’m not fussed about producing models and items all in one piece, I’d sooner split things rather than faff and waste time on something that may not work, and maybe look poo. On a side note, I appreciate all the hard work you put in to these videos, Angus. Yours is the only 3D printing channel I watch, as your content covers pretty much everything and you have a unique way of getting your point across. Keep rocking dude, you’re doing a great job with it all. Cheers, Lee (UK)

[@Fyknite]

now this is what im talking about, great job! I was thinking of designing my own as well and now I know its possible this particular way. great job!!!

[@RandomChannel967]

Thankyou Angus! Your last two videos have taught me so much about optimising print performance/quality! I never would've figured these techniques out, especially the cylindrical holes with expansion gaps, I can't tell you how many PLA holes I've had to drill/ream out to get that perfect bearing fit! :-D Really appreciate your content.

[@simonfitch1120]

Really useful, thanks! I can't believe I've been printing for a year now, and a couple of tbese ideas are new to me!

[@SamsDesigns]

Again, what awesome content! You're clearly back at it even better than before since your well deserved break. Keep it up Angus!

[@davidsally_pizzatony]

I'm nearly 60 I fall asleep to rain 😂 😂 new to 3d printing, actually teach it as an ad on, point my class to your videos, I'm honest enough to tell them I'm a chancer at this game still, but hopefully I'll get there soon, great simple ideas in this one

[@OneIdeaTooMany]

I use all of these in my models. I tend to use polygonal shapes if I need to index parts together as they tend to print better than circular indexes and these have allowed me to make parts that exceed the build volume using the least amount of support material.

[@Crits-Crafts]

Nicely explained as always. Although this little project of yours has got me rethinking the printer I was designing...

[@Kapalek84]

Sometimes it might be possible to join two parts without bolts using similar principle to lego blocks. Square holes and matched square pins. Interesting video! Thankyou for sharing.

[@brentblawat]

Great video! I am just getting back to 3d Printing again -- and Definitely some tips I'll be using! Thank you!!

[@802Garage]

Holy crap just about to hit 1M subs! Congratulations on the major accomplishment.

[@dadsfriendlyrobotcompany]

I too had to design a two piece hotend carriage. It had to mount an E3D v6, 2 noctua fans for cooling the part and E3D, a direct extruder, and also be able to support a cable chain so all the wires don't go down into the printing area. I used gussets and thick walls so I could tap threads into the screw holes.

[@wernerboden239]

Good tips; I did the same things, but there is one I missed: I have some prints, where I drew the object in a 30 or 45 degree angle, from the bed. So I added some smal support construction at the bottom, which also helped to add surface area. One more thing: These nut inserts... People tend to design an opening next to the screw hole, but you could scew it a bit, so that the opening is offset in relation to the crew hole.

[@freestyler5758]

Cool video. You are one of the reasons I got my ender 3 and these kind of videos kind of motivate me to make a costume printer myself

[@rklauco]

Perfect video. Even better than the hole design last time.

[@Yakkers]

Huh, I had no idea you could actually print over open air like that in the sacrificial bridging bit. Obviously something that's either floating or attached on only one point is impossible, but I didn't think you could even really do it across two points like that since the filament doesn't have anything to adhere to as it goes and it'd just sag. I guess the cooling fan really does good enough of a job for that beyond the first layer droop? Thanks for this series by the way, I have my first 3D printer coming in a week or two and I haven't touched cad since Solidworks in high school and this has been a perfect refresher. Detailed but concise and efficient, just what I needed to de-rust the memories while also understanding the new software and modern parametric style

[@MikeyFirst]

Great tips. If you ever get to the Netherlands to give a workshop on 3D printing, I certainly would attend it! Keep going Angus.

[@ajosepi1976]

Thank you for this video. People want to print everything in one go FAR to much. There are reasons that manufacturers make things in more than one part other than production technology. Too often I hear "they don't because they can't." I call BS on that. Why do some people think we have manufacturing technology that Toyota, Ford, GM, Bowing, GE, and EVERY OTHER manufacturer on the planet does not? There are cost, speed of production, reliability, assembly, repair, maintenance, environmental, and material type reasons behind the decision. I probably missed a few reasons, but these are key. I was taught to design the part on paper to work correctly first, then choose the material that is best suited, THEN change that material for the one that is best suited with cost in mind, THEN choose the best production process, THEN AND ONLY THEN do you go to CAD. People in 3D printing are pigeonholed into a few materials so they usually skip that step. I don't think most people realize how limited 3D printing can be. It has such amazing potential that to often the down side gets over looked. Thank you for setting things straight. Also couldn't hear rain...

[@marek35]

never heard of sacrificial bridging. great idea. thank you!!

[@nukedathlonman]

Nope, didn't hear the rain at all on my monitors. But those are all good idea's on how to avoid support materials, I'll keep it in the back of my mind as I start to get into modeling.

[@MakersMuse]

Yeah noise gate did a WAY better job than expected :)

[@beerenmusli8220]

Sound: Is perfect, background noise free crispy greatness Angus: Apologies if the sound is rainy Me: What is he talking about????? :D :D :D And: THANK YOU SO MUCH, THIS VIDEO WAS IMMENSLY HELPFUL!!!!

[@agepbiz]

Great video as always! I picked up a few tips for sure

[@duggerinc]

Thankyou for all your hard work! The information you provide is just great! I've learned so much from your videos. Please consider doing one on bridging for people who know nothing about it. Please please please. And thanks again!

[@joey1_]

Im in 9th grade and in my physics class, we are making balloon cars and I printed my body and made a male and female piece for the axel so it will work. It took a lot of work, NEVER GIVE UP. It was rough but it works Amazing right now.

[@joey1_]

@David it goes 60 feet

[@joey1_]

@David let's just say my group is very happy I did it for them

[@djklermundable]

Oh my god Angus, I love Fallout! I want to make one of these too! Wow, love the sacrificial bridging

[@InsideTheMindOfMatt]

no sounds of the rain that I could hear.Nice video curious to see the end results of this printerLove your videos as always glad your back from break hope you recharged

[@VincentGroenewold]

Great tips, started modeling myself and didn’t yet realize I could totally design it like that. Haha Only thing that has to be said, all of these things do require a well tuned printer ofcourse.

[@TD3DMakes]

Looking forward to trying out the sacrificial bridging. Another great video Angus!

[@briancarlsen4772]

Good tips, I have sort of started to do this with my designs making separate parts part anyways. The built-in support thing I will have to try on my current design but I think I can fix it with just putting some chamfers in the problem areas. They are not going to be visible to anyone so I think that would be ok. But I have been looking at trying to minimize the need for support material as much as possible over the last few projects. and your tips will help for sure, never thought of making my own supports, clever.

[@bubblec0w]

Great tips. It would be wonderful if you could make a video about printing multiple part components but without the need for screws and glue. How to design joints that just fit together and will work for different types of things. I see so many designs with screws that just would not need them. Love your vids!

[@SuperMakeSomething]

Fantastic video series Angus! This and the hole design video are all great advice.

[@darshanaacha6469]

Like your meshmixer videos, this series has been super helpful for me. great content. thanks

[@plebetopro5786]

Your last video helped me out on some M2 screw holes (ignoring that I measured them wrong... Should have been M3...). And I have been trying to apply this when I can. Still need to learn how to split existing models, but am doing it on my own designs at least!

[@sneekylinux]

One of your best Videos Ang, will try to put this into practice at the weekend..

[@gassman5305]

Love your work, as always great to watch and learn! Bang on, less is more with great quality like this who cares for pushing x vids per week/month. Totally on the right track mate, keep up the amazing work!

[@kaoakana]

These are great techniques. I’m totally going to apply these!

[@lklmmedia4715]

Used to do this with Meshmixer I think. But use Sketchup more often than not as I work mostly in straight lines...haha. and it is dead simple to use for quick prototyping. I had never really taken the extra time to throw supports in though and usually let repetierHost/Cura just do it's thing - Which is really annoying when you have Holes on the X plane that Cura might orient in a way that is easy to remove. But any openings you have then in the Y axis it basically Fills in! So I used the later method on the weekend - in a 60mm wide by 15mm opening I placed half a dozen 0.6mm wide/thick posts that printed with No walls, very little material, was sufficient to hold up the 60mm space at the top of the opening, but was Dead simple to remove. Wish I could post a pic - because the resulting "lattice" looks good too, due to stringing between the posts due to no retraction...

[@BitSmythe]

1:00 I like this week’s “porcupine” hairdo.

[@KieranShort]

Thanks Angus... these are things I'll definitely consider next time when designing something. I've got a an i3 mk3 MM2 on order, and now have some PVA, so was thinking of using soluble support interfaces in the future where needed. But this might be easier.

[@taz12480]

What you could also do is set the overland needed to print supports to 90 degrees so that it won't mess with holes or curves and won't droop the overhangs

[@danpop1714]

Love your work, always!! n Omg my first day back in Sydney (moved from Melbourne ), and I bring the biggest storm from the south in 44 years ... well prob coincidence but that was a cray storm..

[@MakersMuse]

Nah you definitely brought it with you... haha it was nuts!

[@Flagazz]

Angus, maybe in 7:36 you should choose bridge settings to a perpenticular angle... this should make a better bridge for that part, less cleaning and more precision/ less falling layers on that @maker’s muse Thanks for the desing tips, awesome stuffs in your channel.. I watch it for a loong time, since the beggining. Cheers!

[@Flagazz]

@maker’smuse

[@aaronrhaywood]

Very clever Angus!

[@NullHyp]

That Vault tech printer is so cool 👌🏻

[@ericbommer2280]

genius in simplicity.

[@dannygo500]

One tip i have for fusion 360 is: if u want to delete a part but it messes up the timeline bad, just make a big sketch and extrude it through the part you want to delete.

[@arfklm]

That is great job, mate. Keep on. Hi from Istanbul.

[@harsevsingh6596]

Another great video! Will definitely be implementing these into my future designs

[@TheTotalGeek]

These design tips are gold 😃 much appreciated !

[@das250250]

You could use a 3mm perspex sheet as a replacement for the motor mount which can be screwed in to printed material. A nice clean ,strong interface and saves time .

[@MakersMuse]

True that, not a bad idea. I'd love a laser cutter in future to do complex acrylic parts.

[@hanelyp1]

For the motor mount you could cut the flat stock by hand if you didn't have a laser cutter.

[@MakersMuse]

Need a good size holesaw for that middle hole though :)

[@das250250]

Maker's Muse maybe a cnc cutter ?

[@das250250]

Maker's Muse why does the hole need to be great than the axle diameter

[@REAL_MPSS]

Thanks for another very well thought out and informative video.

[@ChannelHTS]

great tips mate p.s. couldn't hear the rain

[@MakersMuse]

Cool stuff! Looks like the microphone did a good job.

[@chriskay4859]

But I did see it on the news and Sunrise and ..........

[@SG_01]

I made a ring to join two pieces together, and for that, I found the support material extremely difficult to remove, but I heard about sacrificial bridging 3DPN's video, and I ended up designing in some posts on the outside and inside of the ring to bridge to those so I could print it without support material. They actually broke up pretty well, though I did end up cleaning them up with a knife.

[@TechyBen]

I've been learning things lie this to some extent. I remember years ago 3D printer users (local anyhow) being like "some things won't print well", and now I'm like "things *designed* to print well do*. It's not a technology that does magic, it has to be skilfully used. :) PS I used your teardrop hole solution in a build recently! :D

[@spikekent]

Great tips Angus. Couldn't hear the rain at all.

[@kazolar]

S3D 4.1 handles bridges even better so you would not have these droops -- I've tried these type of bridges and doesn't do infill lines which are likely to fail and just goes in the direction of the bridge -- very good approach, hope other slicers start doing the same thing.

[@samuelgonzalez7783]

I want to tell you that you've inspire me to build my own fallout theme 3d printer. I have found what I'm going to use a main body, a auto shop gress barrel. I have q fair idea now and plan to make it portable.

[@MakersMuse]

Cool! Best of luck with it :D

[@samuelgonzalez7783]

@@MakersMuse Thanks, right now I got to save up for the parts and plan ahead (Darn black friday and good deals). It's best to measure multiple times and cut once. Though in your opinion does printed ABS mounts fair well in an enclosure? I know that injected molded parts are good, but I think those are mixes of PC and ABS.

[@pauldrice1996]

Set it to print a draft shield around the part and pause the print right before the bridge. Fill it with something to keep it being able to collapse like sand or playdough or maybe even a custom made water soluble support printed beforehand or made out of toilet paper mache like a prison knife.

[@mlefe09]

I love this series!

[@micmathers1]

Great food for thought.

[@brendanowen7563]

Thanks Angus, another great video.

[@LonganLee]

Very useful tips and solutions

[@CuguTuxo]

Nice video Angus, since you started to optimize your design for non-support style (which is the right thing to do), you may start thinking about removing infill where it is possible because it's importance is overestimated.

[@thomasmoore3535]

Great video! Your bridging on the X axis motor mount may have failed because your modeled support was only one perimeter thick. It did support the outer perimeter of that section, but not the inner perimeter and not the end of the infill. I'd be curious to see how well it would work if you modeled the support at 1.5 mm think and then ensured that the bridged infill was perpendicular to the support. This should allow for the two perimeters to be supported as well as the end of the infill.

[@prahjister]

I just wanted to point out that in some slicers have to enable printing thin walls when printing built in supports. Good video just wanted to point that out. It may be that I used .4mm supports. In yours you mentioned larger

[@TentoesMe]

Thanks, Angus, for the tips!

[@avejst]

Impressive, very good designs, wow Thanks for sharing 😀👍

[@AintBrokeFixIt]

i prefer to model in supports for spaces like where those motors go. you can make a nearly hollow box then space it .3mm from the print at the top and a couple mm spacing on the sides. once the print is done the .3mm spacing makes it simple to remove and leaves a nice flat surface with like no drooping at all. it will use up a little more material and print time but you get a cleaner part and much easier to remove than the generated supports.

[@Gixie-R]

Im only using Tinkercad for my designs but this is done easily on that.

[@bigfilsing]

Hi Angus. I think it's a good idea to generate a test piece for the "hole support" bridging rather than get into a long print ( like your base) only to find out halfway your bridging settings need more work. The Nema stepper feature you showed, with it central large and 4 bolts holes, would be a good example.

[@1amTheRam]

use deep learning neural networks to modify and reorient any stl to minimize or completely remove the requirement for support for the output stl