There is a big problem with 3D printers

David pointed me to this thread. I got an Ender 3 Pro last month. I had always wanted one but didn't want to deal with the setup and learning a CAD program. A friend made some nice little tools for reloading so I asked if would put one together and do some upgrades if I shipped all the parts to him. I've added some LED lighting, end caps for the filament roller and I'm going to print the Hero Me fan housing. Everything upgraded on the printer was printed on the printer itself other than buying cheap LED lights and some bucks.

I have a coworker that prototypes on a printer and he suggested Fusion 360 and, as expected, it's quite a jump to get started. I can muddle my way through it while searching Google for videos on how to do certain things. I initially used the Creality slicer which produced really nice prints but there are few ways to tweak it. I jumped to Cura and it was another leap. Again, Google has helped me better understand it. I've been through about 3 kg of filament so far figuring this thing out. Knowing how close your printer prints to dimensions is useful. Mine usually prints larger than specified.

My buddy pointed me to 3D Fuel PLA Pro. It prints wonderfully and has a higher impact and temperature resistance than normal PLA and can even be annealed for better properties. I've not used other filaments but this one is strong. Strength can depend a lot on fill percentage. I've even made some solids.

I asked David about a drawing for his oil catch under the 1340GT change gears. Luckily he used Fusion 360 and I was able to made some slight modifications to shrink it to fit my Ender build plate. I was able to build it at 8.5" which fit will barely any brim. I did it with no fill to reduce the print time to 7.5 hours. If I were to do it again I'd use 5-10% fill to add a little in between the walls. I'd also make the bottom thicker. It's completely usable like this for catching oil, though, so I won't be reprinting it.

This is the oil catch.

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Here are the first two things I made in Fusion 360. The first is a knurled 10-32 screw to be used as a thumbrest on an XLR chassis. The threads were a PITA to get right. The second is a 'holder' for an Oehler microphone that gets clamped with a large c-clamp to a board or steel. The 'knob' fits in a recess on the opposite side.

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Here's a 'sighting' device for the Oehler optical sensors. There are three and they need to be aligned to the target that could be 2000 yards away.

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Here's a storage tray for AMP pilots and shellholders.

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Here's a block to hold Wilson arbor dies and the allen key.

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Here's a 100 round reloading tray.

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And these are the logos I etch on all my rifle barrels. This is an outline of a littermate of the best shorthair I ever owned. We used this as a logo on our NAVHDA chapter hats.

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Love the versatility of my Adimlab gantry 3D printer. I got about 11 years till retirement. Building up my workshop tools now so on the day i retire i have plenty of DIY tool resources to keep me busy. Im a hardcore diy guy into motorcycles and guns / handloading. Looking to set myself up for independence. My shop inventory of goodies:

1) Little Machine Shop 4190 deluxe mill
2) Adimlab Gantry Pro 3D printer
3) AHP 201 TIG welder
4) HF 20 ton shop press
5) HF horiz / vert metal bandsaw
6) Titan motorcycle lift
7) Rolair torpedo air compressor
8) Dillon 650 reloading press
9) Grizz G9972Z 11x26 lathe
 
Building up my workshop tools now so on the day i retire i have plenty of DIY tool resources to keep me busy.

Nice plan. That is what I did. I am nearly 2 years into retirement, and the logic of spending the dough BEFORE is really starting to shine....
 
I realize I'm a year late and a dollar short here, but 3D printing is one of my recent passions (year and a half anyway) and I'm amazed at the versatility of not only the printer, but the myriad of materials to utilize for different applications. This is a single cylinder-double acting engine I printed with PETG. It could've been many other materials, but I live where it's HOT and needed something semi-heat resistant.

Other than some metal fasteners, all of the parts including the piston and cylinder are PETG printed, no rubber piston rings or metal bearings. I lubricated moving parts with olive oil, seemed to be appropriate although I'm told PETG is fuel/oil resistant. As it's plastic on plastic, you sure wouldn't want to run it at high speeds :mad:... You"ve probably figured out how I learned that, but being 3D printed, I just printed up the damaged parts and reassembled!

 
I realize I'm a year late and a dollar short here, but 3D printing is one of my recent passions (year and a half anyway) and I'm amazed at the versatility of not only the printer, but the myriad of materials to utilize for different applications. This is a single cylinder-double acting engine I printed with PETG. It could've been many other materials, but I live where it's HOT and needed something semi-heat resistant.

Other than some metal fasteners, all of the parts including the piston and cylinder are PETG printed, no rubber piston rings or metal bearings. I lubricated moving parts with olive oil, seemed to be appropriate although I'm told PETG is fuel/oil resistant. As it's plastic on plastic, you sure wouldn't want to run it at high speeds :mad:... You"ve probably figured out how I learned that, but being 3D printed, I just printed up the damaged parts and reassembled!

That is amazing!
I am ready to step in and buy my own machine, as a coworker does my printing for me. Just have to have the funds for either a Prusa 4 or the Bambi X1.
Pierre
 
I bought a creality CR10V2 several years ago. It was progressively upgraded and is now basically a v3 with a e3d volcano hot end and custom marlin firmware and a few other hardware tweaks.

Used to use it all the time, mostly because it was all new.

I use it less these days but there are times when its a lifesaver. Mostly reproducing broken parts for things you just can’t get anymore. That, and hobby stuff like the slot car track bits, rc parts and even gears for the Atlas:

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I’ve even used it to make broken interior bits that you just can’t buy any longer for the Corvette.

They do tend to “sit” quite a bit once the “new” wears off. But sometimes, its the only tool that can do the job you need.

I don’t regret buying one (or the money spent on “upgrades”) one bit.

:)
 
I bought a creality CR10V2 several years ago. It was progressively upgraded and is now basically a v3 with a e3d volcano hot end and custom marlin firmware and a few other hardware tweaks.

Used to use it all the time, mostly because it was all new.

I use it less these days but there are times when its a lifesaver. Mostly reproducing broken parts for things you just can’t get anymore. That, and hobby stuff like the slot car track bits, rc parts and even gears for the Atlas:

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I’ve even used it to make broken interior bits that you just can’t buy any longer for the Corvette.

They do tend to “sit” quite a bit once the “new” wears off. But sometimes, its the only tool that can do the job you need.

I don’t regret buying one (or the money spent on “upgrades”) one bit.

:)
I’ve used mine to print emergency repair gears for my HF Mini Mill, and once I put it in, it never came back out! I’ve experimented with PLA, PLA+, PETG, Carbon Fiber Nylon, Glass Filled Nylon, and TPU so far. Printed some excellent gaskets out of the TPU, gears out of the nylons, and I’m designing a simple throttle based carb for my IC engines that I’ll print out of nylon of some type or another. I’ve even printed replacement magazines for my .22LR rifle as well as other parts for broken items around the house. I even printed a rather large set of TPU fenders for my son’s one-wheel and he’s beyond pleased with them!

I’ve found it (them? I’ve expanded to two identically set up printers) to be an extraordinary addition to my workshop.
 
I have made several tool holders for the shop, but this is the latest item for the house. I made a blade holder for our food processor.

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I only know a handful of guys who bought them. But with most of them, after they run out of stuff they can make from someone else's files, they're done with them.
On the plus side, I might actually buy one of those spiders. It seems like such a waste of material to make one out of metal. Which is why I still haven't done it.

I have made very few of other peoples things mostly odd ideas of my own or molds for making other things. Here is a gasket mold for a brake cylinder bleeder cap:

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And here is a mold I made to encapsulate said brake cylinder cap to reverse engineer the threads by capturing a negative cast of them.

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Picture quality pretty bad but hopefully you get the gist.

I love these things, have opened up all kinds of opportunities that I wouldn’t have been able to do before.


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