MagicBox Acetone Bath to Smooth 3D Prints

[Brian_Krassenstein]

Has anyone seen the Magicbox Acetone bath machine? It looks pretty much like a 3D printer. Once you are done printing an ABS or PLA filament based object you place it into the MagicBox, turn it on, adjust the settings, and the machine does its work.

http://3dprint.com/2522/magicbox-kic...lish-3d-print/

This seems like quite a nice solution to the roughness you typically get from 3d printed objects. Judging from the images provide at their Kickstarter project located here, it appears to work pretty well. The machine will retail for $699, but backers of their Kickstarter project will get a nice discount of $170. Check out a couple examples of what this thing can do:

[DerekPeterson]

These look very good, but I just don't know if it's worth paying $699 for. Aren't there cheaper ways of giving your 3d prints an Acetone vapor bath?

[Timaz]

Just wait a few months and these will show up on Ali-Express. Same results for a fraction of the cost.

http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=37659285790

[Teledog]

Newbie here (Flashforge X should be here next week)
Watched a few YouTube videos on home-brew vapour polishing.
It seems they almost all use a glass jar or metal tin with the acetone boiling at the bottom.
They consistently seem to be smooth on the bottom and rougher on the top
I would think this is because of the temperature differential from the bottom to the top.
Has anyone tried insulating their jars/cans & letting the temp stabilize before tossing in the ABS?
The unit that Timaz posted seems to be insulated ( and perhaps internal fans for circulation?).
Also, it seems some folks use nail polish remover, and others real acetone.
I would assume real acetone would be more consistent, as nail polish remover has varying contents of acetone.

[Brian_Krassenstein]

Just thought I would update this. The Kickstarter project was fully funded and then some. Brought in a total of $113k+ from over 250 backers.

[Teledog]

After running many prints of ABS, I just use a small brush with MEK. (not that they need much smoothing).
A fine polyethylene mister would probably do a better job, with le$$
But the small brush works like a charm.

[palawanisland]

what is MEK?
acetone on nail polish will not do. acetone not pure enough.

[34Ford]

what is MEK?

Methyl ethyl ketone

Works great for cleaning brushes that have been subjected to fiberglass resin too.

[awerby]

MEK isn't something you want to use a lot of, especially if you're doing this at home. It's extremely poisonous stuff. Acetone isn't exactly health food either, and I've seen reports of ABS parts that were treated with it cracking up and degrading prematurely. Isn't there something you could dip your parts in, like an epoxy or a varnish, that would coat them smoothly instead of trying to dissolve the surfaces?

Andrew Werby
Juxtamorph.com

[Papa Steve]

Dipping the model into a bucket of paint can suffice is some cases. I've tried lacquer and enamel with reasonable results.
Mcor 3D printers recommends smoothing the model by dipping in a bucket of superglue. Not cheap ! $400 for a gallon !!!