Is a 3D printer Coming to Your house...

[turbguy]

I think we are in the infancy of 3D printing. Currently,there are too few material options (for my taste)...

I've seen too many useless doo-dads as output. Sure, you can print an engine's crankshaft, but it won't be usable (with any current technology). The resulting material properties just are not there.

 

[The Hat]

I've seen too many useless doo-dads as output. Sure, you can print an engine's crankshaft, but it won't be usable (with any current technology). The resulting material properties just are not there.

On the contrary, you can 3D print a working crankshaft for your car, and it might even work better than the one that’s in it now, BUT the cost of such a printer would be ten times the new cost of your car, in the meantime we are still able to enjoy making everyday things with our cheepo print models.

What such fun I have with mine, I’d recommend you think a little harder about getting one, even the little Mini Monoprice model, you’d be surprised at what they can produce...
They are as addictive as inkjets printers, even more so...

 

[turbguy]

I would demand to see the material properties of such a "printed" crankshaft. While I know you can "lay down metal", I highly doubt the results could even come close to those of a standard alloy forging.

I know rocket engine parts are printed, but the expected lifetime of such an engine is measured in minutes...

 

[The Hat]

@turbguy, I don’t reckon I could or even want to defend what the big 3D printers get up too, and you might well be correct in being suspicious of their quality, but a couple of minutes in space can well be a lifetime for someone else.

I just enjoy these wonderful printers, because they force me to think in and outside of the box, and I don’t reckon that's bad for an auld fart such as myself...

 

[flowrider]

Congrats! There has been a lot of discussion about that printer! Definitely keep us posted on how it performs for you!

Thanks! It took a few evenings to get it up and running and another to clean up all the wiring. Definitely not as easy as a ready to print printer. I printed a few things so far but have been struggling with printing off a layer fan in ABS as it never wants to stick to the bed. Working on it though.

 

[The Hat]

@flowrider, make sure you got the platform height right, and use any cheap hairspray on the surface for adhesion, spray the heated bed just seconds before it starts to print, and try using brim or raft for your first layer.

PLA filament is much easier to start out with...