Can I use the wood lathe to sand donw a 3D print?

Discussion
1

I have a 3D print that need some sanding, it’s cylindrical and would be faster if I just use the wood lathe to turn it while I’m using the sandpaper.

Am I allowed to do that?

I don’t know how is the relationship between the two so I prefer to ask then make a mess.

2

I would tag @woodtechs but most likely they’d say you, yourself, can’t do it without induction. I am sure someone can help you out though (I can’t, not inducted).

3

@woodlathetechs.

If they allow it, you must use extraction to ensure those particles don’t enter the air.

4

… about that…

5

A chemical treatment might be worth considering as an alternative to sanding, depending on the material it’s printed with. For example , if printed with resin, then acetone could be used (or acetone vapour). It also depends on what you need to do. It will give a smooth finish, but won’t even out big bumps, and will only thin it down slightly. I understand acetone vapour also smooths PLA and ABS as well.

6

i’m ok with it (sanding only) but i would really like extraction. if woodtech opinion is to require extraction that takes precedence as we share the same space.

note that the chuck is behind L2 induction, not sure if you’ve had that @emuboy.

iirc plastics in the woodshop are allowed but have a bad reputation for leaving lots of sticky mess, as such if you do anything with plastics make sure it’s cleared up. my personal opinion is to follow mostly the same rules as much as possible. i don’t want the cutting tools to be used, but tbh people use them against epoxy plastic already.

7

I’ve been inducted, it’s PLA I will 3D print an adapter for my drill, thanks

8

I’ve never tried it, but the advice is usually not to sand PLA prints with machines, because it’s so easy to heat PLA enough that it starts to droop.

But of course, if you’re using your own drill then the worst that can happen is that you’ll ruin your print and have to print another one, so I hope you’ll give it a try and I’ll be interested to see how you get on. Maybe make sure to keep the speed a bit low.

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9

If you wet the sandpaper it’s fine, I tried in the past

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