Fuzzy Skin Finish For 3D Prints, Now On Top Layers

[TenTech]’s Fuzzyficator brings fuzzy skin — a textured finish normally limited to sides of 3D prints — to the top layer with the help of some non-planar printing, no hardware modifications required. You can watch it in action in the video below, which also includes details on how to integrate this functionality into your favorite slicer software.

Little z-axis hops while laying down the top layer creates a fuzzy skin texture.

Fuzzyficator essentially works by moving the print nozzle up and down while laying down a top layer, resulting in a textured finish that does a decent job of matching the fuzzy skin texture one can put on sides of a print. Instead of making small lateral movements while printing outside perimeters, the nozzle does little z-axis hops while printing the top.

Handily, Fuzzyficator works by being called as a post-processing script by the slicer (at this writing, PrusaSlicer, Orca Slicer, and Bambu Studio are tested) which also very conveniently reads the current slicer settings for fuzzy skin, in order to match them.

Non-planar 3D printing opens new doors but we haven’t seen it work like this before. There are a variety of ways to experiment with non-planar printing for those who like to tinker with their printers. But there’s work to be done that doesn’t involve hardware, too. Non-planar printing also requires new ways of thinking about slicing.

9 thoughts on “Fuzzy Skin Finish For 3D Prints, Now On Top Layers

  1. This sounds awesome, but I can’t help but wonder how much of a toll this will take on the z-axis of many machines. My Ender was upgraded to POM ant- backlash fittings on my lead screws because z-hopping quickly wore out the brass ones. On the other hand, my Flsun V400 delta hasn’t shown any signs of accelerated wear on its belts after hundreds of hours of z-hopping like a cricket after every retraction.

  2. Why not just rotate the whole thing 45 degrees? A cube on a corner has no flat surface on top. So what if it doesn’t to the stop of a sphere? You were never going to solve the hairy ball problem.

    1. That’s exactly what I have been doing, with custom supports that are built into the model to minimise material and scarring. Works really well, and only minimal additional modelling time.
      Slant 3d put me onto it in one of their quick 3d printing for mass production videos.

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