Dual Color Mars Lithophane

Introduction

This model is a dual-color addition to my Solar System Lithophane Lamp Series. It consists of two separate meshes designed for red and white filament.

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Print Settings

• Material: PLA or PLA+
• Recommended layer height: 0.15 mm
• Use Arachne perimeter generation for better detail
• If using a 0.6 mm minimum wall thickness, set minimum line width to 75% to avoid holes
• Wall count: more than 10
• Seam position: aligned
• Brim: outer brim only, 5–10 mm
• Supports: none required
• Use conservative print speeds to reduce artifacts

Warning: The top section is difficult to print because of limited top layers and heavy bridging. Test-printing only the top section is recommended.

This is not a SpeedBoatRace print! Use conservative print speed settings to avoid artefacts! It's totally fine if your print takes one or two days to finish. 

Filament

Filament choice strongly affects contrast and light transmission. Depending on pigment and additives, filaments become opaque at thicknesses between 0.2 mm and 3.5 mm, and some are unsuitable for lithophanes. In my experience, most suitable filaments fall into one of these thickness ranges: 

• 0.6–2.0 mm
• 0.8–2.4 mm
• 0.8–2.8 mm
• 1.0–3.2 mm

STL files are included for both colors in all four ranges, and ranges can be mixed in one print.

You will need one white and one red filament. The red filament is especially critical. A good red should stay bright at low thickness and become very dark at higher thickness. The best result I found so far is Prusament PLA Blood Red. Before starting a long print, print a Solar System Lithophane Calibration Panel for each filament.

For my print, I used Prusament Blood Red PLA and Prusament Pristine White PLA at 0.8–2.4 mm and 0.8–2.8 mm respectively.

Requirements

Size: approx. 205 × 205 × 195 mm.
Suitable for most printers except smaller models such as the Prusa Mini.
Requires a multi-material printer (AMS or toolhead changer).
Material use: about 300 g PLA/PLA+ total.
The lamp mounts to a base with an M75×4 thread, compatible with The Quicksilver’s Lithophane Moon Lamp wide screw base and matching accessories.

Lamp Bases

I provide several different lamp base and illumination solutions. All bases use the same M75×4 thread. Hardware links are suggestions only. 

Additional community-provided base options are available as well.

Some lamp bases use snap-off support. The supports look like small ring segments, tabs or cylinders that should be removable with very little force and should leave you with a good surface. They are only tested with PLA/PLA+ filament. Using other filaments may make support removal more difficult.

Led Lamp Kit 001 Base
Easiest base option. No mains wiring required. You can get the LED Kit online in shops such as AliExpress, Amazon or Ebay BOM: 1x LED Lamp Kit 001 - via AliExpress Printed Parts: 1x 01_lamp_kit_base Assembly: Insert the LED Lamp Kit into the base. Screw the base into the lamp.
Puck Base
Uses E14 or E27 bulbs. Requires basic wiring skills (crimping ferrules, connecting lamp sockets). BOM: 1x E14 or E27 lamp socket with M28x2 thread, no strain relief - available at (european) hardware stores 1x Lamp wire with switch, 2x 0.75mm² - available at hardware stores 8x M3 threaded inserts 8x M3x8 BHCS screws 1x E14 LED Bulb  Printed Parts: 1x 02_puck_base_E14 or 01_puck_base_E27 1x 02_puck_base_lid 1x 02_puck_base_strain_relief Assembly: Install 8 M3 threaded inserts in the puck base. Use a soldering iron, preferrably with a heat set insert tool Screw in the E14 or E27 socket from the top. Secure the socket with the ring or with glue Insert the ferrules of your cable into the two connectors of the socket.  Install the strain relief with 2 M3x8 BHCS screws. Make sure there is no tension on the cables Pull the cable to make sure that the strain relief is seated properly. You should not be able to move the cable Install the bottom lid and fix it with the remaining 6 M3x8 BHCS screws
Rock Base
The Rock Base is inspired by Kristian's Floating Moon Rock Base and based on the High Quality Rocks Asset by P_4_N_D_A. The base supports the LED Lamp Kit 001.  No electrical skills required. You can get the LED Kit online in shops such as AliExpress, Amazon or Ebay BOM: 1x LED Lamp Kit 001 - via AliExpress Printed Parts: 1x 03_rock_base Assembly: Insert the LED Lamp Kit into the base. Screw the base into the lamp.
E14 / E27 Adapter
A set of simple adapters for any lamp base that uses E14 or E27 sockets.  BOM: 1x Lamp with threaded E14 or E27 socket - some Ikea examples: a ceiling mount, a metal lamp base, a large lamp base and this pretty cheap base. The thread diameter of your lamp must be either ~28mm (E14) or ~40mm (E27). 1x E14 or E27 LED Bulb  Printed Parts: 1x 04_E14_adapter_no_thread or 04_E27_adapter_no_thread or 04_E14_adapter_threaded or 04_E27_adapter_threaded if your printer is well tuned, I recommend the threaded version Assembly: Screw the adapter on the E14 or E27 socket Secure it with a nut

Other models

If you are interested in Lithophane lamps, consider checking out my other models. Click the links below for the respective models or check my profile.Other models

Solar System Lithophane Planet Lamp Collection - ⌀205mm	Multicolor Earth Lithophane - four colors
Dual Color Mars	Phobos Lithophane
Solar System Lithophane Planet Lamp Collection - ⌀25mm	Solar System Lithophane Planet Lamp Collection - ⌀75mm
Solar System Lithophane Planet Lamp Collection - ⌀150mm	Solar System Lithophane Planet Lamp Collection - ⌀295mm
Minimalist City Map Lithophane Lamps	Natural Pattern Lithophane Lamps
Historic Greco-Roman Mosaic Lamps	Glowing Orb Lamp
Solar System Lithophane Calibration Panel

Acknowledgements

A big shoutout and thanks to:

• P_4_N_D_A: creator of the high quality rock asset I used to create the rock base

Changelog

• 19.04.2026: initial upload