extrusion:resin = inkjet:laser
is it the other way arround? laser you are melting plastic, inkjet you are spraying a chemical and letting it cure.
You’re overthinking this analogy. Inkjet was the earlier, slower, messier, lower-res method of printing. It’s more intuitive, but laser printing is a more imaginative method. It’s also faster, cleaner, and higher-res. And more expensive.
So it is with extrusion and resin printing.
No. Extrusion printing is more related to the OLD old dot-matrix printers. And inkjet is related to printers like Statasys’ Objet, which are literally inkjet printers.
Resin is definitely a good comparison with laser printing though.
@Nick_Cox , yeah, good point. But it’s just a simple analogy. Not trying to encapsulate all of reality into it.
You guys are so contrary =D
I don’t think resin is any less messy. I’d even suggest it’s messier because the machine and parts need to be cleaned of resin once the part is built. The parts are certainly much nicer looking but they aren’t as durable. I have a resin machine but don’t have nearly as much use for it as the filament machine.
Wow @Jeff_DeMaagd , that’s interesting. I’ve been holding off on getting a 3d printer because I wanted something “better” than FDM. But this makes me look at it in a different light 
@Jeff_DeMaagd , I meant the finished product immediately out of the printer, but thanks for the valuable insight. I feel I would have much more fun printing tiny, precise things. Is your resin printer not useful for that?
I realize I’m being a bit too literal with the analogy, I just felt a misconception needed to be cleared up.
“immediately out of the printer” it’s still coated in sticky resin. It needs to be put in an acetone bath, shaken about for a minute or several to remove that uncured resin, then you need to cure it with UV. The best post-build curing method I’ve seen yet is to submerge the part in filtered water and put it in the UV box. And then it needs to be set out to dry for a while. And any resin that dripped anywhere must be cleaned up before it cures. Once dry & cured, any support needs to be removed. Then the build platform should be wiped clean of resin. If the machine is going to be idled for a few days, the remaining resin should be poured back into the bottle, and the tank wiped clean. All this is usually far more work than I need to do with filament processes.
The closest to a functional part I’ve made with resin are a couple pieces that were used to as a mold buck, which is used to cast the shape in a different material. Maybe the Vorex material is strong enough for practical parts, but they don’t specify any material strength properties to make such a judgement.
@Jeff_DeMaagd , wow, I had no idea the post-build process was so involved. Thanks for clearing that up!
No problem. The thing to keep in mind is that it’s another process with its own set of tradeoffs. I hope the process will improve over time, this is current the state of the hobby.
This is part of what I am referencing when I do cleanup:
http://blog.madesolid.com/2014/04/quick-cleaning-method/
YOU’RE DOING IT!