3d Printing a Dice

Dice as a game tool, can be 3d printed just like every other game material.

However, it is important to note that 3d printing a dice cannot be perfect, yet it can be almost perfect. In the real sense, it depends on what you mean by perfect or what you have considered perfect.

In the long run, a dice has different angles and sides; therefore, you will have to print it carefully and creatively. Many people have raised the question; can a dice be fair? The answer is that perfection depends on you who will do the printing.

What to consider when 3D printing dice

 Wall thickness

This is the size of the external layers of your model. You need to make sure the wall around your dice is even so that the weight will not be more concentrated at one side of the dice. Also, keep in mind that many slicers make the base of prints thicker.

Infill setting

It is not enough to slice; it is also important for the model if you infill it. Give the inside a pattern that you will be following; for example, the honeycomb pattern can be used, the holes come from the bottom to the top, aiding it to have reasonable holes, so your dice has more chance of balancing on the side.

Print technology

You must determine the type of printer you want to use for your printing of dice. As mentioned earlier, there are different types of printers, and each of them has unique features for printing.

Print precision and imperfections

There is a lot of work to be done in this angle. This is because you have to correct every imperfection and monitor the precision. The printing process has to follow each other. Also, no matter how it is emphasized that the dice cannot be all that perfect, it still has to be mind-blowing.

Therefore, it is important to balance every imbalance. What you can do is program your slicer to print thick walls, then post-process with sanding to make it flat and nice.

Dice’s Type

To 3D print your dice; you need to, of course, know the type of die you are working with. D6, D4, D8, D12, and D20 are types of dice. While D6 and D4 are the easier ones to print; D8, D12, and D20 are more complex to print.  

This is because the smaller the dice, the tougher it becomes. You have to concentrate on every part so as not to make mistakes because there is less room for correction. The small die has to be precise, and doing that is quite tough, no matter how many sides it has.

As an advice, if you want to print a die for the first time, start with the biggest size or you will find yourself frustrated, leave those small dice to the experts. Nevertheless, practice makes perfect.

Materials Needed for 3d Printing

Plastic

This is the most common material used in 3D printing; this is because of its durability, its shiny and smooth surface. Toys, plastic spoons, water bottles are finished products from this raw material. 

It is widely used everywhere, suitable for both adults and children so that it can be used by everyone and anyone.

Metal

This is the second most widely used material. However, it produced the strongest day-to-day materials, like, cutleries, kitchen utensils, pieces of jewelry, and so on.

Paper

This material is also very useful. Before a design, you can print the model on paper to peep how it will look before the actual thing. Additionally, 3D printing can be done on paper too.

Nylon

This material is also used in the 3D printing process.

Resin

This material is flexible though strong; nevertheless, it is less used because it is limiting.

Nitinol

This material is a medical tool. It is super elastic. It can bend to any shape and size.

The main materials needed for a 3D printing of dice is silicon, a printer, electric chips, resin, air drying clay, zond paper, super glue, a 3D printer.

Steps to 3d Print Dice

Step 1: Gather All Your Materials

The basic step is to select your materials and this involved choosing your materials rightly. Have a clear knowledge of certain features of the materials you select. For example, FDM 3d printers’ materials are susceptible to a situation where the size of the real part will be different from the size of what you set in your slicer.  This occurs when there is uneven cooling of the materials.

Hence, it is advised that you know the characteristics of your materials very well before you make your designs.

Step 2: Create Your Design

This step is important to get the result you want. Designing your STL digital file requires you to be careful. Ensure you do justice to the number of indentations.

Make sure the indentation is not too visible, yet remain readable. For this, you need a dual extruder printer. This will allow you to print using two colors. And there will not be any need for you to fill the numbers with different density material.

The dual extruder printer allows you to keep with a singular density material while you use varying colors for the numbers.

Another thing worthy of note is that during indentation of the number, ensure you use the same surface area for all sides of the dice. This will make it fair to roll the dice.

During your design, note that designing your dice with a prism shape and cylindrical design will make it fair to print. All of these will guide you and help make the design process easier.

Step 3: Give your Design a Slice

The next step is to slice your design. To do this rightly, you’ve two choices to pick from. It is either you make the dice solid or hollow. The slicer settings must be done rightly in order to have a fair die.

Making a solid design means the dice will be heavier, but the process of 3d printing will be easier. But if you give it a hollow shape, you will save over 90% of your materials but it has certain caveats.

Some of the caveats of hollow dices include a high chance of varying thickness in its wall and the thickness of the flat area. Another is the possible sagging flat surfaces of the dices.

During the slicing, watch out for how you set the layer height and your nozzle diameter. It is advised that you select a smaller layer height for a perfect touch.

If you are using an FDM 3d printer, 0.05mm layer height is great for your design. But for the nozzle diameter, use 0.4mm. Slicing your dice design rightly makes it ready for printing.

Step 4: Print Out the Model

Once you have the design in place and you have done the right slicing process, you are good to go with the printing of the model.

You can decorate the dice anyhow you want, with colors, resin and zond paper.

Things to Avoid While 3d Printing

Lack of material guideline

It is very important to get the right materials for whatever you want to print in 3D. With respect to this, a proper guideline has to be in place. There is a wide range of materials such as nylon, metal, plastic, resin, and others.

These materials have their uniqueness in rigidity, texture, and flexibility. These qualities have to be in place during the designing process because, in every 3D technology, there is a type of technology being used.

Incorrect printing technology

For wax or resin materials, techniques like stereolithography (SLA), Digital Light Process (DLP) will be used. Do not use the wrong printing technology to print your 3D, so it is always good to have a guideline or simply do your research as thoroughly as possible to avoid mistakes.

Selective Laser Melting (SLM) technology is usually used for materials like plastic and aluminide.

There are sometimes that various printing technology has to be used to print a particular 3D, depending on the kind of materials. Many times it is a combination of materials that result in using various printing technology; for example, aluminide and polyamide.

Failing to consider the file resolution

Standard Triangle Language (SLT) is the most commonly used file format for 3D printing. When presenting the SLT file, it is important to use the correct file resolution for a good quality print.

SLT simply means the design is in triangles in a 3D space. If the resolution is too low, it will result in an uneven print, which means the triangles are too big.

However, if the resolution is too high, it will be difficult to upload the file and also difficult to handle. Therefore when choosing resolution, choose the right one; advisedly, a 0.01mm tolerance is good when exporting an STL file for a good export.

Incorrect wall thickness

Wall thickness refers to the size of the external layers of your model. The wall should have a minimum thickness.

Incorrect wall thickness will result in a failure in the printing. The model could crack or may not even print. Wall thickness could be determined by the size, alignment, and overall design.

Improper set up of machines

Most of the problems that occur with printing are the machine. As an individual or a company that deals with 3D printing, it is important to maintain the machine being used. Check it well before use each day, service when necessary too.

However, these machines come with instruction manuals; it is advised to follow such instructions before use.

3d printing dice is an interesting and fascinating procedure.  However, it is important to consider guidelines and instructions given in order for you to succeed. It is essential you follow instructions and not assume you have known it all. Avoiding mistakes will get you fair dice that you can boast of as the result of your hard work.