Club G40 Forum

Club G40 => General Chat => Topic started by: scotsjohn on May 21, 2013, 01:26:33 pm

Title: 3D printers
Post by: scotsjohn on May 21, 2013, 01:26:33 pm
Listening to the recent developments in 3D printers and they sound like they could be a good source for some of the shitty little plastic parts that go obsolete on all cars. Something like a thermostat housing is now a viable copy and metal parts are on the horizon. Happy days!
Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: PeteG40 on May 21, 2013, 01:29:37 pm
Ye but pattern thermostat housings are about 20 quid
Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: metz on May 21, 2013, 01:33:22 pm
When they can print a centre box for my ehaust system i will be impressed  ;D
Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: Yoof on May 21, 2013, 04:28:28 pm
Has this been in the news recently? Heard a few people talking about it now, it’s been a very common technology in the Automotive industry for the last decade or so. Printers aren’t massively expensive now either.

Stainless steel can already be done too  ;D

The quality of parts is very good, and the speed is ever increasing. I've had a full inlet system made for a development car, is almost as good as an equivalent plastic slightly more brittle mind.

Did read something about someone making edible stuff in them- seems a little strange!
Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: scotsjohn on May 22, 2013, 05:33:27 pm
I know a guy who has one and it can do really interesting stuff like teacups. That cost him about six grand a few months back. Working in anything other than resins will cost big time though and not likely to ever be something the man in the street will have in his garden shed.
Opens the door to a whole world of possibilities for repro/retro though, for those with the money. I'd like to know how they replicate alloys though; that's future now stuff.
Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: gofasterpinch on May 27, 2013, 11:21:03 pm
i made a fairly basic one about 18 months ago that printed icing structures on cake, which was quite good fun.

work with them all the time, a variety of processes with different materials/finishes.

i'm a fan of the Objet system currently, used to prototype all the automotive stuff using FDM when i worked at Nissan (probably what you had your inlet made from yoof?)
Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: hayesey on May 28, 2013, 09:43:47 am
what has happened yoof is that the price of the printers has drastically reduced in the last couple of years.  And some people are even making their own for peanuts (google search reprap).


Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: Yoof on May 28, 2013, 12:54:25 pm
i made a fairly basic one about 18 months ago that printed icing structures on cake, which was quite good fun.

work with them all the time, a variety of processes with different materials/finishes.

i'm a fan of the Objet system currently, used to prototype all the automotive stuff using FDM when i worked at Nissan (probably what you had your inlet made from yoof?)

Yes I believe so, presume that's the same principle as EBM used for stainless and titanium parts?

A few yanks are now sharing designs for guns too...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DconsfGsXyA

1 step forward, x back?
Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: Raw on May 29, 2013, 12:42:35 pm
The future is apparently not so much print on demand but construct and deconstruct on demand:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wShKl0Hbw0 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wShKl0Hbw0)

The video fails to mention that the pebbles/sand can be reused time and again and that paterns can be stored and shared for re use.
Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: Kustom on September 09, 2013, 04:56:42 pm
The printed titanium parts have good properties and can even be welded :)

The machines are getting pretty big too, the Aston Martin that was shotup in Skyfall was printed in 1:3 scale

http://gizmodo.com/5959717/skyfall-filmmakers-3d+printed-this-rare-aston-martin-so-they-wouldnt-damage-the-original


Title: Re: 3D printers
Post by: markg40T on September 10, 2013, 12:08:34 pm
3D metal printing is becomeing a very much used technique for complex shapes that cannot be cast do to the removal of internal plugs.
It is being used as a more cost effective way of manafacture due to the lack of machining after.
The final product with the correct heat treatments is as strong as a cast equivilent. the heat treatment reoves all the internal stresses produced form the heat of mealting the metals.
the theory is that they are a welding machine that lays small welds on top of each other much like priniting ink just getting thicker and thicker.

Quite intresting really.