Some 3D printed goodies

Ron Caudillo

Creative Advisory Consultant
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Hi all,
I will be completing service training for an HP industrial 3D printer tomorrow. It uses powdered material (a type of nylon), applied in layers and a fusing agent to "print" onto each layer for the part you are building. Many parts can be made simultaneously in this printer. In our student project job, there were 41 parts printed. Here are three of the items I had in the job build, stl files downloaded from Thingiverse.

Ron Caudillo
 

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Rhaven Blaack

!!!THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN!!!
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Administrator
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Hi all,
I will be completing service training for an HP industrial 3D printer tomorrow. It uses powdered material (a type of nylon), applied in layers and a fusing agent to "print" onto each layer for the part you are building. Many parts can be made simultaneously in this printer. In our student project job, there were 41 parts printed. Here are three of the items I had in the job build, stl files downloaded from Thingiverse.

Ron Caudillo
Those are really cool!!!
I will take a Viper MK-I and MK-II, (BRTC25) Thunder Fighter and (HBB) Thunder Fighter. ;)
KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!!
 

Gandolf50

Researcher of obscure between war vehicles...
Staff member
Moderator
Hi all,
I will be completing service training for an HP industrial 3D printer tomorrow. It uses powdered material (a type of nylon), applied in layers and a fusing agent to "print" onto each layer for the part you are building. Many parts can be made simultaneously in this printer. In our student project job, there were 41 parts printed. Here are three of the items I had in the job build, stl files downloaded from Thingiverse.

Ron Caudillo

They look a bit ( Fuzzy) from the pix that is ... but a nice print none - the -less !! sort-of frosted... my printer will drop down to if I remember right a .6mm layer ( maybe a bit smaller ) in PVC or PVA which is a fairly smooth print just a slight bit of the slices apparent, for a desk top is sufficient for small stuff up to 6/6/6 in.. but!! >>> I was looking at some Universities for my daughter and found http://www.fabfoundation.org/ and started drooling !!!! so found one that is close! I recommend anyone that has large or intricate projects to join up with the closest one to you!! ;)

PS... CONGRATS!!!
 

Ron Caudillo

Creative Advisory Consultant
Staff member
Moderator
This printer uses jet fusion technology rather than laser or extrusion. Basically, a "bucket" is layered with powdered material, each layer will have a fusing agent "print" the part(s) cross section for that layer and then a heat lamp fuses the layer where the agent was applied. This process is repeated in the Z axis until all layers are applied. In this way, parts are "suspended" in the powdered material so no support is required!

When the job is complete, you simply vacuum up the surrounding material (it is recycled for the next job, no material is wasted!) and the printed parts are revealed sort of like digging through dry sand looking for shells. It's almost like a treasure hunt!

The printed parts will have some of the powdered material sticking to it in cracks and crevices, and also a fine dusting on the part surfaces. Recommended cleaning is to use a stiff bristle brush to knock off most of the material and sand blasting to finish. No sand blaster available for the class so that is why they look "frosted or fuzzy" I'll have to use a variety of brushes to finish at home.

Here is a screenshot of the HP job builder software, I have imported several STL files to create a "job" to print. Including an Xwing, B-9 robot, Starship Troopers Warrior Bug, a Soma cube puzzle, and another puzzle.

Ron Caudillo
 

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Ron Caudillo

Creative Advisory Consultant
Staff member
Moderator
Those are really cool!!!
I will take a Viper MK-I and MK-II, (BRTC25) Thunder Fighter and (HBB) Thunder Fighter. ;)
KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK!!!
I wasn't able to include a Babylon 5 Starfury, the other students project took up the remaining space. :(

Ron Caudillo
 

zathros

*****SENIOR ADMINISTRATOR*****
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That's really great!! There are many D.I.Y printers on YouTube that use GNU software, that is very powerful. Some of these use very strong lasers and can bind sintered metal. This is the way of the future, and that wave includes many people doing it in their home, including innovating, and the printing of parts in proprietary methods. It's awesome. Almost like replicating in Star Trek, just a bit slower
 

Ron Caudillo

Creative Advisory Consultant
Staff member
Moderator
Can you make objects with moving components (say like a crescent wrench) ?
Yes and it prints threads quite well. It does not use filament, instead it is a nylon based material, flexible (for thin parts) yet tough and very strong. One of the guys project parts was a hand crank mechanism.

Ron Caudillo
 

Rhaven Blaack

!!!THE MAN BEHIND THE CURTAIN!!!
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
Yes and it prints threads quite well. It does not use filament, instead it is a nylon based material, flexible (for thin parts) yet tough and very strong. One of the guys project parts was a hand crank mechanism.

Ron Caudillo

That is very cool!!!
 

zathros

*****SENIOR ADMINISTRATOR*****
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Administrator
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The powered Printers have the best potential. The more time you allow for the Laser to make the part, the finger it comes out. There are so many mediums used in 3D printing, but the concept remains the same, though the execution of it is radically different, dependent on what your working on and width. Fan blades for jets are made this way now, and NASA's new Saturn V rocket engine, which can be throttled and started and shut off in space, is being 3D printed, major components have already been fired, and they work.

This is what the big boys use. Ironically, a person could make a much slower, but equally accurate printer like this at home, providing you have a decent machine shop. The Lasers can be purchased separately. :)


Below is a list for machines under $350 dollars.

 
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Gandolf50

Researcher of obscure between war vehicles...
Staff member
Moderator
This printer uses jet fusion technology rather than laser or extrusion. Basically, a "bucket" is layered with powdered material, each layer will have a fusing agent "print" the part(s) cross section for that layer and then a heat lamp fuses the layer where the agent was applied. This process is repeated in the Z axis until all layers are applied. In this way, parts are "suspended" in the powdered material so no support is required!

When the job is complete, you simply vacuum up the surrounding material (it is recycled for the next job, no material is wasted!) and the printed parts are revealed sort of like digging through dry sand looking for shells. It's almost like a treasure hunt!

The printed parts will have some of the powdered material sticking to it in cracks and crevices, and also a fine dusting on the part surfaces. Recommended cleaning is to use a stiff bristle brush to knock off most of the material and sand blasting to finish. No sand blaster available for the class so that is why they look "frosted or fuzzy" I'll have to use a variety of brushes to finish at home.

Here is a screenshot of the HP job builder software, I have imported several STL files to create a "job" to print. Including an Xwing, B-9 robot, Starship Troopers Warrior Bug, a Soma cube puzzle, and another puzzle.

Ron Caudillo
I got it! That reminds me of the guy who designed the 3d solar printer using a fresnel lens and CNC parts and layers of sand ! ( Now the warrior bug sounds like a perfect project for this!) ;)
 

zathros

*****SENIOR ADMINISTRATOR*****
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I knew a guy who got a fresnel lens out of an old retired light house for nothing. This thing was so powerful, he almost burned down his garage when a cloth was moved accidentally, and it started to smoke the stuff underneath it by the Sun's rays going through the window. They are awesome things. I have a rather large "first' mirror" I took out of an old high end, at the time big screen T.V.. I have held that lens in my backyard and pointed it at my neighbors window at high noon. He came out running after I had just put it down and asked me if "I had seen that?". I asked what, and he said his room lit up like the sun was outside his window. I told him I didn't see a thing. ;)
 

zathros

*****SENIOR ADMINISTRATOR*****
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If I had the choice between a Bridgeport Miller sized CNC machine or a equal sized 3D printer, I'd take the CNC machine. You could easily make an even bigger 3D printer. At this point in time, 3D printers aren't fast enough. The ones used to make jet engine blades and the like require the parts to be baked until they become ceramic, and those ovens cost a lot to own and operate. The massive ones, like NASA is using are essentially untouchable. However, as I posted above, for modelers, a small investment can get you a machine the would allow you to make parts for extremely accurate and working models. The knowledge gained is invaluable. ;)
 

Gandolf50

Researcher of obscure between war vehicles...
Staff member
Moderator
I knew a guy who got a fresnel lens out of an old retired light house for nothing. This thing was so powerful, he almost burned down his garage when a cloth was moved accidentally, and it started to smoke the stuff underneath it by the Sun's rays going through the window. They are awesome things. I have a rather large "first' mirror" I took out of an old high end, at the time big screen T.V.. I have held that lens in my backyard and pointed it at my neighbors window at high noon. He came out running after I had just put it down and asked me if "I had seen that?". I asked what, and he said his room lit up like the sun was outside his window. I told him I didn't see a thing. ;)

I bought 6 = 9" concave ones years ago from Jerry-Co. Surplus cost something like 5$ for the 6. Used to project lighted object inside a box onto a front surface flat mirror, and create a pseudo holographic image in front of the flat mirror, worked REAL well.. ;) and yes will set things on fire REAL quick! and project the view from your window onto the wall next to it! Which is nice, way cheaper than a huge flat screen!

Used to buy all sorts of stuff from them for next to nothing, from stepper motors, 1 rpm motors, lenses of any type you can imagine to gang-switches, used them in all sorts of Art installations combined with sound, light pressure switches proximity sensors, my studio look more like a mad scientist than sculpture studio! :)
 
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