Are you talking about stereolithography (SLA)?
Don't ship the model, ship the file. Keep the business local. If the plans
exist in a 3-D modeling format - which is almost a guarantee these days - then a
local SLA shop can hand you back a scale model
in a day.
You asked if anyone has used the process. I
have. Manufacturing jobs didn't fall off recently around here like they
did in a lot of the US. Probably because this area went through
that particular cliff a decade before. Big changes happened. The
biggest being that all us worker types who still have jobs
have STEM smarts now..... :-)
So now there are several local SLA
houses selling 3-D parts. And you can bet that they are giving the
traditional machine shops fits. Not to speak of competing with each
other....
Several times now I've had a run of
modest prototype parts made directly from pictures drawn in software -
usually these parts are initially drawn up using a design program
called "SolidWorks". Even though I'm old enough to be fair with a pencil, the
computer design program is way faster than I can sketch. Plus
it automatically does 3D. That's my favorite program, but I'm told by the
stereolithography houses that they can work with the data of many different
design programs.
What are you wanting to know specifically? Best
thing would be to stop by your local stereolithography shop. It's easy to
get a tour; those guys are like religious converts. I guess I am too because
I guarantee that you'll be amazed. What's even more amazing is how little
this process is known about at the non-STEM consumer level.
SLA is a business that can be done in an
shoebox office with one machine and a computer....for reasonable
money. Advances in SLA technology happen mega quickly. New techno
is usually expressed as model details with greater resolution, closer
tolerances, and available in even more and different grades of plastic -
including reinforced plastics. I'm betting the next step will be fully
hard models built by sputtering metal. Right now there are plastics
that are transparent, hard, tough, and one that is springy.
I don't know about blends or custom colors, but if you are willing to snap
or screw the parts together there's no limits. Large models could be made with
windows or see-thru hulls. The material is cheap and complexity costs nothing at
all. It's all different from traditional machining. The parts I've gotten
so far have all been in a single type of plastic. Maybe next year it
will be all different.....competition is fierce here since there's half a
dozen shops within lunch-hour range. You can have models
made anywhere that data can be sent. I heard that NASA made satellite parts in space....
Roger L.
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----- Original Message -----
From: Rob DenneySent: Thursday, November 08, 2012 8:56 PMSubject: Re: [harryproa] 3D printed harryproa models?Fantastic idea! The 3D items I have seen have been quite robust. Shipping should not be too difficult, especially if the beams are removable.rob
On Fri, Nov 9, 2012 at 9:45 AM, Gardner Pomper <gardner@networknow.org> wrote:
I was wondering if anyone in the forum has any experience with any of
these online 3D printing companies. I was just browsing around today
and saw at least one that can print a model up to almost 2' by 2'.
What with rob doing 3D models of the harrys, I would ABSOLUTELY LOVE
to buy some scale models. Rob should sell them himself if he could
figure out how to just get it shipped directly from the printer to the
customer.
I want at least a harry, a visionarry and the version rob is working
on for me. Probably a harriette too!
So, has anyone gotten anything printed? Even better, has anyone done
anything in 3D and submitted it for printing?
- Gardner
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