Today we’re going to learn how to smooth 3d printed plastic with chemical vapors.
Why is Vapor Smoothing a good idea?
1. Vapor smoothed parts look smooth and shiny. And since surfaces are now non-porous, they will continue to look great for years to come. They are now easy to clean, and won’t harbor bacteria or fungus.
2. Vapor smoothed parts are stronger. FDM 3d printing results in layering, which means parts are weak along the grain. Vapor smoothing makes the surface of your parts monolithic, so they are much stronger.
3. But probably the biggest advantage to vapor smoothing is that mechanical surfaces are made slick. This reduces noise and friction in mechanical devices, and just makes them work better.

The script for this video is here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1j...

***UPDATE: Best results are achieved with ABS and acetone. Results with PLA and ethyl acetate seem to vary a lot, probably due to different formulations of PLA. I talk about making PLA cement in the video, but have since found that some brands of PLA do not dissolve in liquid ethyl acetate.
PLEASE be careful with solvents, and especially the vapors of solvents. Many solvents at the hardware store are extremely poisonous to inhale and/or extremely flammable when vaporized. Use extreme caution to protect yourself.