Comparing Resolution: FDM vs SLA 3D Printers

#fdm #sla #3dprinting #resolution #surfacefinish

See the exceptional surface quality SLA can achieve compared to FDM. From smooth finishes to unmatched detail, SLA is ideal for professional, presentation-ready parts.

We compared parts printed on FDM and SLA 3D printers in the following materials:

FDM: PLA filament
SLA: Grey Resin, printed on Form 4

Spoiler alert: the FDM 3D print had pronounced layer lines, especially on the supported surfaces. The SLA part didn’t.

Need quality parts? SLA steps up when other tools fall short.

[badmoose]

If you dial in your settings you can get way better prints than that on fdm. I will concede it will never match a sla tho.

[eliasfauser]

Now try inserting metal parts mid print. (And using filament thats 20 €)

[raymondjohnabayan]

Maybe I have a bad unit or am doing something wrong but on small and thin parts like this I always get warping. Also there ends up being an ugly side with support marks.

[rix]

Sure, it's better looking. But unless you do it in a well ventilated area with proper ppe (which most people don't do), you will poison yourself.

[OroronFan]

You have severe overextrusion on thr FDM part. You're comparing dailed in SLA settings to horrible FDM settings.

[MachineManGabb]

What about at the support interface side?
You only showed the pretty side.

Formlabs parts look ugly using formlabs support, i usually have to make the support geometry elsewhere and import it