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How to Print GLASS-CLEAR Transparent Resin
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Apr 29, 2025
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View Video Transcript
0:00
i've wanted to do this video for so long
0:02
in fact I've wanted to do many tutorial
0:04
videos but the problem is brands just
0:07
keep releasing printers and let's be
0:09
honest that's what people want most from
0:11
this channel i've got to accept that
0:13
would you believe there was actually a
0:14
time last year where I was worried that
0:16
I'd struggle for content now I literally
0:18
can't get content out fast enough and
0:21
seriously I filmed this back in July but
0:24
that's my problem your problem assuming
0:26
you click the thumbnail of this video is
0:28
that you want to know how to get glass
0:30
clear transparent prints from resin
0:32
printers great cuz that's what I'm going
0:34
to show you today hi I'm Ross and this
0:36
is Faux Hammer Videos so no matter what
0:39
your application be it models sculptures
0:42
or jewelry the idea of crystalclear
0:44
transparent resin is great right but the
0:47
second you actually try to use this
0:49
stuff you quickly realize that that
0:51
vision is marred by issues clear resin
0:54
can turn yellow when exposed to UV light
0:56
it can discolor when washed in heavily
0:58
used isopropanol but the biggest issue
1:00
is that even if you get everything right
1:02
once you clean it it turns frosty and
1:05
that is far from the desired glass-like
1:08
result that you actually wanted so
1:10
here's your solutions in what I feel is
1:12
a sensible order now first of all some
1:15
clear resins will just turn yellow it's
1:17
the nature of many materials if you want
1:19
recommendations on good quality resin
1:21
that won't turn yellow I'd recommend
1:24
chatting with people in various groups
1:25
online and getting a consensus cuz I've
1:28
only used a limited few in my case I'm
1:31
using the Pat 10 resin from Heygears
1:33
because I'm printing on my Ultracraft
1:35
Reflex if you don't know that printer or
1:37
the newer Reflex RS I love these
1:40
machines and they're currently the ones
1:41
I use for my own personal projects but
1:44
I've got to be fair it's not for
1:45
everyone so please check my reviews on
1:48
both those units for more details now
1:50
first off this PAT 10 resin like many
1:52
others will actually start to yellow
1:54
slightly after it's been cured but when
1:57
you give it a day or so it'll actually
1:58
return back to normal so if you've got
2:01
clear resins that are prone to turning a
2:03
bit yellow try waiting that might
2:05
actually be a test worth doing on those
2:07
materials too but that's the summary of
2:09
step one get a clear resin that's still
2:12
clear after curing or maybe curing and
2:14
waiting a bit the next few steps kind of
2:16
require us to understand what's
2:18
happening and why our prints can
2:20
discolor in other ways or turn frosty
2:22
which most will and I'm sorry if some of
2:25
you already know this bit but let's
2:26
please take a moment for beginners to
2:28
understand this too now when your
2:30
print's finished you probably notice
2:31
that whilst it's still on the build
2:33
plate it is pretty much glass clear but
2:35
the second you wash it frosty now a lot
2:38
of people and me included will assume
2:40
that this is due to the resin reacting
2:42
negatively with isopropanol or whatever
2:45
cleaning fluids we use it's not the real
2:47
reason is that printed models are made
2:49
up of tiny cubes called voxels and these
2:51
voxels on the surface of a model refract
2:54
light in various directions rather than
2:56
being a smooth surface you can see
2:58
through it's like the difference between
3:00
a pane of glass you can see through and
3:02
that same pane crushed into loads of
3:04
little pieces you can't see straight
3:06
through it anymore because it's now a
3:08
pile of crushed glass with lots of edges
3:10
it's no longer a smooth surface shrink
3:13
that down significantly and it's pretty
3:15
much the same on 3D printed models lots
3:18
and lots of little cubes means lots and
3:20
lots of tiny edges the reason it looks
3:22
good on the plate is because when a
3:23
print's completed and is still dripping
3:25
with residual resin from the tank you'll
3:27
notice you can already see through it
3:29
pretty well and that's because the
3:30
liquid resin on the surface is filling
3:32
all of those tiny gaps and masking all
3:35
of the edges so as soon as you wash it
3:37
the residual resin on the surface is
3:39
gone you can no longer see through your
3:41
model so I'm sorry guys from all the
3:43
testing I've done on consumer machines
3:45
I've not managed to see a single way
3:46
that I can get them to print a glass
3:49
clear model in one go but thankfully the
3:52
easiest solution isn't hours of sanding
3:55
in fact there's no sanding needed at all
3:57
because if you're printing miniatures or
3:58
detailed models let's be fair sanding
4:00
those tiny details is next to impossible
4:03
what we need to do and maybe this is
4:05
still unfortunate we need to fill those
4:07
recesses and do what the layer of resin
4:09
was doing before we washed it off we
4:11
just need to do it in a controlled way
4:13
now another tip I want to give is when
4:15
printing your models when you're doing
4:17
transparent avoid hollowing where you
4:19
can all of the issues outside of the
4:21
model will duplicate on the model's
4:23
inner shell too things like supports
4:26
they'll be visible inside the model but
4:27
also since you can't easily clean the
4:30
inside or apply what we're about to do
4:33
you will still have that frosty surface
4:35
on the inside too so yeah the best tip
4:38
is to avoid hollowing models for this
4:40
transparent process the other issue we
4:42
get is something we talked about earlier
4:44
and that's discoloration beyond just UV
4:47
yellowing so I'd also recommend when you
4:50
clean transparent models make sure you
4:52
do it in a clean washing fluid if you've
4:54
been using the same stuff for months you
4:56
may want to ditch that especially if
4:58
you've washed non-clear resins in it
5:00
because traces of what is in the washing
5:02
fluid being your isopropanol or whatever
5:05
can easily discolor your clear resin by
5:07
dying the surface or and if you've been
5:09
printing a while you've probably seen
5:11
this when isopropanol evaporates and
5:13
it's been used a lot it can actually
5:15
leave traces of the resin in it in the
5:18
recesses of your model's surface once
5:20
again that's going to ruin the clear
5:22
effect that we're going for and I know
5:24
some people will say you should sand
5:25
your models with finer grits of
5:27
sandpaper and that will work for larger
5:29
things but this process is long arduous
5:32
and as I said not practical on small
5:34
fine detailed models in my case
5:37
miniatures so let's say we've got a
5:39
clean model which is frosty and we don't
5:42
want to try and sand all the intricate
5:43
details what do we do well as I said we
5:46
need to fill those gaps with something
5:48
clear to bring back the see-through
5:49
effect and I tried a few ways now you
5:52
could just cure your model straight from
5:53
the plate with excess resin on it how
5:56
successful you're going to be is
5:57
anyone's guess because well you'll have
5:59
to touch the model to get it to the
6:00
curing station and this is also a
6:03
surefire way to fill in all of the
6:05
natural shapes that you actually want to
6:07
keep on your print i've not personally
6:09
tested this but it is potentially doable
6:11
what I started with was this product
6:13
recommended to me by James Taro of
6:16
taromodelmmaker.com i talk about him a
6:18
lot on the painting phase and I've got a
6:19
video coming about what he does in the
6:21
future this is Gauy coat from AK
6:24
Interactive gauy gowsy whatever this is
6:27
made for things like Airfix cockpits
6:29
once they've been sanded you just dip
6:31
the part in shake or wick off the excess
6:33
and leave it to dry 20 minutes or so
6:35
later do it again and then again maybe
6:37
three maybe five times and this got me
6:40
decentish results but it's made for hard
6:43
plastic cockpits not slightly flexible
6:46
resin after a few dips I got okay
6:48
results but I wanted better this is hazy
6:51
glass not clear glass but I figured this
6:54
gory coat is just some kind of clear
6:56
gloss varnish so I also cracked out some
6:58
Valo polyurethane gloss varnish and put
7:01
that into my airbrush now I typically
7:03
use much better airbrushes for painting
7:05
models and I'll have some amazing
7:06
airbrush reviews coming soon but for
7:09
varnishes and practice paints that could
7:11
potentially wreck an airbrush I default
7:13
back to this KK Moon unit I picked up on
7:15
Amazon for about 20 quid 4 years ago and
7:18
it's always a smart place to start with
7:19
an airbrush of this caliber if you've
7:21
never airbrushed before because well if
7:23
you wreck it it's not going to break the
7:25
bank as much as something like a harder
7:26
and Steambeck Ultra Evolution or
7:29
Infiniti again reviews for them coming
7:31
soon but the process for using this is
7:33
just a case of spray it on lightly and
7:35
slowly build up a smooth thin coat
7:38
across all the surfaces doing this made
7:40
me realize I have a new obstacle to
7:43
overcome dust so between my airbrush
7:45
coats I decided to leave the part
7:47
covered you can use whatever you like i
7:49
just used a lid for a small spritz
7:51
bottle for this mask also this clear
7:53
mask is part of the Skull Soldier model
7:55
from Loot Studios the model's actually a
7:57
loyalty reward and comes in both 32 and
8:00
75 mm and I also have it in statue size
8:04
and in this case despite the render of
8:06
this model showing a clear mask on the
8:08
75 mm version there actually isn't a
8:10
mask for the 75mm version at all so I
8:13
had to download the one from the statue
8:15
model and guesstimate the size reduction
8:17
to get it to fit on the 75 mil version i
8:19
think I got it close enough now spraying
8:22
the mask with polyurethane varnish and
8:23
leaving it under its cap gave me better
8:25
results but it was still a bit cloudy
8:28
also I need to say if you are using an
8:30
airbrush spray always wear a mask and
8:32
have a good ventilation unit you don't
8:34
want to be breathing in any of this
8:36
stuff i actually use a bench vent
8:38
extractor unit which pushes fumes
8:40
outside and I've already actually done a
8:42
video for that if you want to check this
8:43
thing out it's not cheap but it's
8:45
brilliant also while I was spraying I
8:48
decided to have a go at spraying on the
8:49
gauy coat to see if that was any better
8:51
but I also used the airbrush just
8:53
blowing air to try and dry it now
8:55
unfortunately this caused it to dry too
8:57
fast and the surface started to get
8:58
micro fractures it also dried really
9:01
hard like clear hard plastic which makes
9:04
sense because as I said before it's made
9:06
for plastic canopies rather than
9:08
slightly flexible resins and don't worry
9:10
I will move away from airbrushing
9:11
shortly i know many of you don't have an
9:13
airbrush but they are cheaper than most
9:16
people think to get started with again
9:18
reviews coming soon this is meant to be
9:19
a hobby channel more than a 3D printing
9:21
review channel but as I said so many
9:24
printers now I was pretty convinced I
9:26
could still do better than this so I
9:28
grabbed some lacquer based gloss varnish
9:30
by a company called Alclad which I
9:33
believe now to be HR Hobbies in the UK
9:35
but still Alclad in the
9:37
US yeah if anybody knows what's going
9:40
off with them please pop it down in the
9:42
description but anyway if you use this
9:44
stuff and you skipped through the video
9:46
you most definitely want a mask when
9:49
you're using this stuff now I've
9:51
actually done a review of these guys
9:52
candy colors before which well for me
9:54
didn't turn out great and it turns out I
9:57
did it wrong my complaint about the
9:59
brand was more that when I asked them
10:00
for advice and what's going off why am I
10:02
getting it wrong they just ignored the
10:04
problem rather than explain to me how to
10:06
get the best out of their paints and
10:08
that's sad because now they've ended up
10:10
with a negative review where there's so
10:12
many people out there who've had a good
10:14
experience with them and I still don't
10:16
fully understand what I've done wrong
10:18
thankfully with clear varnish it's
10:20
pretty straightforward spray it on but
10:23
again this needs to be done in thin
10:25
coats super thin if you want to retain
10:28
all that detail if you put too much down
10:30
in one go it's just going to run and
10:32
well it'll look awful so when you're
10:34
spraying this on you want a light
10:36
dusting for the first coat it might even
10:38
look more matte but trust in the process
10:41
stick it under something give it 20
10:43
minutes to dry it might need three coats
10:45
it might need five i can't remember how
10:47
many I did i think it was closer to five
10:49
but once you've cracked it you'll be
10:51
able to see straight through the part
10:53
and you'll notice you've also retained
10:55
all of the details on that model so this
10:58
is where we come away from the airbrush
11:00
application and just like I did with the
11:02
gauy coat initially yeah you can just
11:05
dip your parts into this stuff however
11:07
it will take days to dry and I mean days
11:11
and as advised before you will lose
11:14
detail and probably get some extra
11:15
buildup on lower edges and some of the
11:18
recesses but at least it's doable for
11:21
those of you who don't want to use an
11:22
airbrush for anyone who wants to get
11:25
closer to an airbrush but not get an
11:26
airbrush you can get gloss clear coat
11:28
spray cans but again they don't have
11:31
such fine control as you get from an
11:33
airbrush once again it is going to clog
11:35
some fine details but it is a workable
11:38
process and the reason I wanted to do
11:40
clear resins like this is because I've
11:42
printed a ton of special effects parts
11:44
from Deadly Print Studio which I hope if
11:46
you're into the hobby you've probably
11:48
seen by watching people like El
11:49
Miniaturista on his various social
11:51
channels because well let's be honest
11:54
his painting is incredible but I wanted
11:56
these to come out in clear so I could
11:58
apply some translucent colors over the
12:00
top but here's the question for you the
12:03
audience how do you think I should do
12:05
this do you think I should apply the
12:06
color first and then the gloss or should
12:09
I just go back to candy colors because
12:11
they're both gloss and translucent hey
12:14
maybe that's a future video idea but
12:16
there it is guys that's it there's
12:18
several ways to get glass clear prints
12:20
without sanding if you've got any
12:22
additional tips pop them down in the
12:24
comments maybe I could try out some
12:25
alternative suggestions but otherwise I
12:27
want to say thanks for watching with a
12:29
huge thanks going to our members i'd
12:31
also like to thank Loot Studios for some
12:33
of the models used in this video but I'm
12:35
paying for them i actually recommend
12:37
them because I genuinely think they're
12:38
some of the best models online and yes I
12:40
do make a commission for everyone who
12:42
signs up with Loot Studios but come on
12:44
i've been recommending them for a long
12:46
time before that deal was even in place
12:48
so I guess thanks Loot for finally
12:51
paying me occasionally still haven't
12:54
actually been paid yet again thanks for
12:56
watching please consider joining our
12:58
members program to get your name up in
13:00
lights along with early access and
13:02
exclusive Discord roles thanks again
13:04
until next time it's amazing what you
13:07
can do when you don't have to look at
13:08
yourself in the mirror anymore who knows
13:10
what that's from and you can't Google it
13:13
faux hammer out
13:19
[Music]