Lowell's Fish Lab
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Welcome - Please Read Before Continuing
🕑 Added 2025-02-02 18:06:05 +0000 UTCPlease review these frequently asked questions before continuing:
Q: How does this work?
A: Sign up for the Patreon, download the files you want, and then cancel your membership. You're welcome to stay subscribed but please don't do so accidentally.
Q: Where do I find the print files?
A: Print files are attached to (some of) the posts below. The original fry tray post is one of the oldest so you will find it near the bottom. On the post, look for a .zip file next to a paperclip symbol. Click the text to download the attachment. You will then need to extract the files within the .zip to a chosen directory on your personal computer.
Q: Do the parts need to be printed with supports?
A: No, I design all of my parts to avoid using supports. For most of these components, supports will do more harm than good if enabled.
Q: What material would be best to print these parts?
A: I personally print in PETG for its temperature and chemical resistance but it is more difficult to work with. If you have consistent access to a printer I think PLA or PLA+/pro is fine. Just avoid hot water or the super-heated trunk of a car in the summertime. PLA softens at a relatively low temperature. There is a common belief that PLA will break down after long-term exposure to water. After ~2 years of testing I have no evidence that this is true but I don't think it matters for your personal use. If you have a printer and something bad happens to a PLA print, just print another one. No big deal.
Q: Do you have recommended print settings?
A: Officially, no. 3D printing instruction is beyond the scope of what I do here. Troubleshooting bad prints can sometimes take a 10-page forum thread and I just can’t offer consultation as a service; however, I can offer a few pointers specific to these designs:
I use thick walls/shells of 1-1.2mm. I use a minimum of 25% infill and for the fry trays that is very important. If you print them too hollow they will float rather than sinking down to rest on the tank rim. For small components under any mechanical stress I up the infill to 30% or higher.
I also print slow. On entry level printers (like Ender 3) I was printing at 25-30mm/s. On my Bambu lab printers I increased to 50-80mm/s for print moves and max speed for travel. Slower for bridging and overhangs. Modern printers are ostensibly capable of printing at high speeds but the printers themselves have never been the problem. The material is the limiting factor and generally speaking, those limitations have not changed. If you are struggling with print quality and ask for my advice, 90% of the time I will tell you to slow the print down. 12 hours vs 20 hours of print time is irrelevant for a piece of equipment you will go on to use for months or years.
If you are struggling with first layer adhesion (prints coming loose or knocking over), especially on the tall components like the uplift tubes, enable brims in your print settings. I print ALL parts with at least a 6mm brim. Brim-object gap varies part to part and requires personal calibration.
Q: Can I print and sell these designs?
A: No. Please review the use license. I make these files available under the condition that you do not distribute them, modify them (the .STLs), or sell the prints or any other derivative works. I’m sure that is disappointing for some of you but that’s the deal you already made if you’re reading this. These files are here to help you breed fish, not to contribute to the delusion of profit potential you used to justify buying a 3D printer to your wife. I stand to profit more from selling the prints than selling the print files. I make them available because I know some of you (especially outside the US) have printers and it seems like such a reasonable thing to do to let you print your own if you have the tools. Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.
Q: Is it possible to obtain a commercial license to print and sell these designs?
A: The short answer for most people is no. In the United States and Australia, no. Other countries, still probably no. I have authorized only one person to do this: Elyza at Hand Pick Aquatics in Australia. You would basically have to be a (fish) business owner with a pre-existing online retail presence who just happens to 3D print. I have strict standards for how they would need to be made and what they would be made from as well as non-printed components that would have to be supplied. Again, I know this will be disappointing for many of you but I won't create demand for a product that I can't control the quality of.
Q: I have friends who are asking me to print these designs for them. What am I allowed to do while adhering to the license? Can they cover material cost?
A: This is a grey area but I want to lean the side of permissiveness. I don't consider this "commercial" use because it isn't profitable. Ideally I would say if your friends are in the US or Australia, point them to me or Elyza. We make and sell complete kits that will take care of more than just the printed components and they are very reasonably priced for what they are, in my opinion. At the end of the day though, if you want to help your friends and you collectively think you can put it together more affordably and no one is profiting from it, I don't have a problem with it.
Here are links to where the kits can be purchased:
makemorefish.etsy.com (United States)
handpickedaquatics.com (Australia)
Q: I have an idea for something else you could design or a useful modification to one of the existing designs. Are you open to that?
A: You can share any thought that you want with me but I can't promise I'll take any action on it. Design and test printing is costly and time consuming. I can't offer custom modifications for special use cases or new design requests as a service.
