I know, what a stupid title, better check it 
Jokes aside though:
Effect plates are nice for certain prints, be it holographic or carbon look.
But did you know that you can go one step further?
A smooth plate provides a prefect transfer surface.
What else do you need?
A laser printer, preferably a colour one but BW works the same.
Acetone.
The usual PPE.
How does it go?
-
Paper transfer…
You do a mirrored print of the image, logo or whatever you want on the 3D print.
Make sure it is slightly larger to allow for easier placement.
Have the 3D printed part ready - shiny side up.
Wet the paper with Acetone FROM THE BACK.
Place on the model and use a soft roller, sponge or such to gently press it on.
The print will soften and let’s go off the paper.
Peel off before the paper dries.
Takes a bit of trying to get the timing and soaking just right but then it works just fine - using white filament… -
Plate transfer…
What works on the model works on the plate - check first that the plate material won’t be harmed by Acetone!
Clean the plate properly using soapy water followed by IPA.
Print just the brim of the model and stop the print.
Apply liquid or stick glue on the plate, leaving out the inside of the brim.
Cut the print to nicely fit within the empty space after removing the brim.
Transfer the print onto the plate as above.
Let properly dry so all the acetone is gone and the toner dry on the bed.
Print using white PLA and the toner shall bond to it.
The paper transfer ended up smeary and the surface tacky.
Don’t use ABS
The toner sticks more to the plate than to the PLA!
Shouldn’t happen but if a higher nozzle temp and lower speed for the first layer won’t help apply the image after also applying glue on the plate - a VERY thin layer.
You have to be reasonably quick here.
The glue won’t really react to the acetone but acetone usually comes with a certain percentage of water…
Wait too long and it might smear, try to remove to early and toner might still be stuck on the paper.
Can I use other filaments or just PLA?
Any filament should work but some might require flame treatment to allow for a proper bond with the toner, like PETG or Nylon.
My print curls up!
It the toner comes off as well it means the toner cover won’t provide enough bond.
Let the print overlap the transfer or add a brim to the print.
What about fumes?
Well, it is Acetone, so for obvious reasons one should do this transfer stuff in a well ventilated area or outside…
Other colours for the filament?
Sure - to some degree and with limitations.
BW works on any colour that is not too dark as we only transfer black.
For an image or such it pays off to have an editing software or printer driver allowing to adjust the colours based on the paper.
For example on yellow paper/plastic you won’t need any yellow but have to adjust blue levels and reds in order to come out as expected.
Since the printer using CMYK and not RGB it can be a bit of a hassle if there is no way to automate.