Ceramic artist John Fray, the founder and CEO of ClayXYZ, wants ceramics to be available and open to everyone.
Fray said, “When I first started researching, the technology of 3D printing ceramics was an exciting and interesting one. But, the desktop 3D printers on offer were unable to live up expectations. Industrial 3D printers could make that but these would be too costly to produce. So I decided to work with the professional team, spent more than one year designing ClayXYZ, the best desktop clay 3D printer. Our goal of designing ClayXYZ is to want more people to experience the fun of DIY, let more people achieve their own ideas.”
The three-step process for the ClayXYZ 3D printer looks pretty simple:
- Load the clay into the tube, and then connect the tube with the extrusion device.
- Download the model you want to print, either from Thingiverse or the ClayXYZ printer’s own library, start up the slicing software, and get to work setting parameters for fill ratio, thickness, etc.
- Push the start button to send your print order to the 3D printer, and enjoy the creation process of your textured piece of art.
ClayXYZ artwork can also be glazed with multiple colors: softly wipe the surface of the dry model with a moist sponge, then smear four to five layers of glaze on the surface of the model; you can also create interesting surface patterns by using different glazes. Once the model has fully air dried, put it in a kiln for firing. Speaking of the kiln, if you decide you want to print out a unique clay cup, it’s safe to drink from once the cup has been fired. You can also improve the performance of the clay by adding additives, such as gypsum powder. If your 3D printed clay piece doesn’t come out exactly the way you were hoping, no worries – you can easily repair it, or if you want to start from scratch, just dissolve it in water and reuse the material to try again!
If you already have an FDM 3D printer, you can still create lovely 3D printed works of clay art – just purchase the ClayXYZ extrusion device. To improve the accuracy of clay 3D printing, the device removes bubbles out of the clay with its special air compressor. The high-precision stepper motor drive extrusion device, together with a solenoid valve and pressure valve, helps the clay pressure stay controlled, so print precision of 0.2 mm is possible, and the extruder’s nozzle has a variety of different diameters. An Arduino Mega2560 makes up the printer’s firmware, and the printer supports Linux, Mac, and Windows. It has Repetier Host print control software, supports STL, IGS, STP, and OBJ model formats, and is compatible with both Cura and Slic3r software.