3D Printing

[FarAway]

3-D printing?

I know some people are "printing" different parts and accessories or their cars.
I am thinking about getting into it, but I don't even know enough to ask the right questions.

My definition of experience, it is something you get ten minutes after you needed it.

Recommendations?
What will the initial $$ investment be?
Do I need a 3-D scanner?
What software?
Learning curve?

What else?


Cheers!

 

[fhteagle]

I've had "the beast" up and running for almost 2 years now. It's been very useful for my prototyping and experimenting, but also a huge time suck. Just learning the intricacies of the various material blends, slicer options, etc might as well be a pH.D. program. For example, PLA, the basic / starter material will not stand up to the high temperatures of a car interior baking in the sun. PETG might, I've had some survive quite well and others that were so adulterated by colorants and additives that they softened way sooner than pure material.

It's like any other hobby, welding, flying, etc. Looks simple from the outside but way way way easy to end up spending more than you're actually getting out of it at the hobbyist level.

That being said, Bambu Labs has come out with the new hotness all the reviewer people are talking about. It's a walled garden, but probably the closest you're going to get to plug in and play. Creality and Prusa are the established brands with well known roads, but both are getting passed up by Elegoo and Sovol on features/price ratio.

There are 3d print and even metal fab services that will charge reasonable fees to turn 3d shape files into tangible objects. I'd check those out before casually getting into the hobby.

If you do want to invest in your own machine, go bigger than you think you need by at least 50%. Way harder to upsize the frame than to replace an extruder, upgrade a hot end, etc. If you want to get into any kind of advanced stuff, an enclosure is all but required.

YouTube channels I follow on the subject with actual good info:
- Teaching Tech
- Proper Printing
- Makers Muse
- Thomas Sanladerer
- CNC Kitchen

Ones that are more gee whiz or thinly veiled ads than super useful how tos
- 3d Printing Nerd
- The Next Layer
- Void Star Labs (though Zack gets credit for kicking off the Gridfinity organizing system to be sure)

 

[CyberGus]

https://www.thedrive.com/news/honda...ted-3d-printing-models-from-maker-communities


Honda Orders Big Takedown of Honda-Related 3D Printing Models From Maker Communities
Printables removed all models with “Honda” in the listing uploaded prior to March 30, 2022.
by Rob Stumpf | PUBLISHED Apr 13, 2022

3D printing has been one of the greatest introductions to the automotive DIY scene in years. I've written about it before, and it's amazing to watch problems get solved with unique solutions from imaginative minds across the globe. What's more, it's great to see car companies embrace the maker community, even supplying the plans to help build and share custom parts.
Unfortunately, not all automakers share that same sentiment.

Recently, I noticed a part that I made for my Honda Accord was removed from Printables, the newly rebranded 3D printing repository offered by Prusa. There seemed to be no rhyme or reason for it, but I didn't think anything else about it...until reports of a mass deletion started popping up on Reddit.

All models referencing the word "Honda" posted prior to March 30, 2022, were seemingly removed from Printables without warning. These included speaker brackets, key housings, hood latches, shifter bushings, washer fluid caps, roof latch handles, and my trunk lid handle—a part not offered on 10th generation Accords sold in the U.S. at all. In fact, many of the removed parts had no Honda branding but were just compatible with Honda vehicles. As it turns out, Prusa says it was issued a takedown notice from Honda and removed all 3D models that referenced the brand.

"I can confirm to you that we have received a letter from a lawyer representing Honda, informing us that we were required to remove any model which used 'Honda' in the listing, the model itself, or one of several trademarks/logos also associated with Honda," a Prusa spokesperson told The Drive in an email. "This will also be related to the naming of the files it self (sic), as for Honda this would be considered as a violation of their trademark/patents."

A Prusa employee responded to a post on the company's forums, noting that Honda sent a "huge legal document" that covered every model that the company wished to have deleted. The document reportedly included items that did not have Honda logos, but also specific items with certain shapes and dimensions—like a washer fluid reservoir cap, for example.

A response from another employee was posted suggesting other sites that host 3D models were also sent a similar takedown notice. These files still remain up on Thingiverse, Thangs, and other repositories at the time of publishing, however...

 

[fhteagle]

I wonder what the Magnuson Moss Act says about restricting access to third party designed replacement parts......


Requesting takedown of something with a Honda logo seems reasonable to me. Takedown of anything that simply references that it fits or is compatible with a Honda branded vehicle is a bridge way too far. That's the equivalent of requiring an auto parts store to rip out the books that tell you what size Trico branded wiper blades fit your Odyssey.

 

[CyberGus]

I got this 3D-printed 4680 cell at the unofficial Gigafest party as a door prize. I think it’s broken tho, since it won’t hold a charge

 

[hridge2020]

3-D printing?

I know some people are "printing" different parts and accessories or their cars.
I am thinking about getting into it, but I don't even know enough to ask the right questions.

My definition of experience, it is something you get ten minutes after you needed it.

Recommendations?
What will the initial $$ investment be?
Do I need a 3-D scanner?
What software?
Learning curve?

What else?


Cheers!

All depends on what your planning to do....

Munro and associates 3D scans the parts to sell files/information to OEM's

 

[Kahpernicus]

All depends on what your planning to do....

Munro and associates 3D scans the parts to sell files/information to OEM's

What do they sell to oems?

 

[Luke42]

3-D printing?

I know some people are "printing" different parts and accessories or their cars.
I am thinking about getting into it, but I don't even know enough to ask the right questions.

My definition of experience, it is something you get ten minutes after you needed it.

Recommendations?
What will the initial $$ investment be?
Do I need a 3-D scanner?
What software?
Learning curve?

What else?


Cheers!

I've been using a Prusa i3 to print the missing parts for my car.

It's a good printer, and handles a variety of materials. There are better ones out there, and I bought mine from a guy who was upgrading - but it's fully featured and very capable.

I'm using ASA filament for car stuff, since that's supposed to be more-or-less automotive grade ABS plastic with UV protection.

The reasons not to use ASA plastic is if your printer can't handle the higher temperatures, or if your printer doesn't have a heated bed. Also, it's a little smelly when you print, so it helps to have an enclosure with a carbon filter (instructions/files for the enclosure and air filter are available on Thingiverse).

One of my 3D printing friends recommends against using PLA filament for in-car stuff because the interior of his car got hot enough for the plastic to slump on him, here in the mostly-temperate climate of Illinois, USA.

There are a variety of Tesla accessories available for download as STL files from Thingiverse.

 

[charliemagpie]

Drawing a long bow

Maybe these manufacturers have a dire need to maximize profits from their parts business to hold them over as they hopefully transition to profitable EV's.

 

[JBee]

Another thing to consider with 3D printing is if you want to only print pre-existing CAD/STL models by downloading them from the cloud, or if you want to design or change them yourself.

There are a few programs you can use to create the files required, but don't underestimate how long it takes to draw more complicated, detailed or dimensionally accurate model that is then also 3D printable. Just because you have drawn the model, does not in any way guarantee that it will also print. The trick is to design things in a way that they will print, and also do that fast with the desired properties when it's finished.

It's a skill set, and it can be time intensive. Not to dissuade you, but also something that should be recognized before starting. For me 3D printing was an absolute blast to bring my virtual CAD modeling skills into reality, and even now some 8 years into it, still gives me joy to see. When you add some subtractive manufacturing (CNC) along with some mold forming using a vacuum press oven, you get really get some decent manufacturing capability.

 

[FarAway]

Another thing to consider with 3D printing is if you want to only print pre-existing CAD/STL models by downloading them from the cloud, or if you want to design or change them yourself.

There are a few programs you can use to create the files required, but don't underestimate how long it takes to draw more complicated, detailed or dimensionally accurate model that is then also 3D printable. Just because you have drawn the model, does not in any way guarantee that it will also print. The trick is to design things in a way that they will print, and also do that fast with the desired properties when it's finished.

It's a skill set, and it can be time intensive. Not to dissuade you, but also something that should be recognized before starting. For me 3D printing was an absolute blast to bring my virtual CAD modeling skills into reality, and even now some 8 years into it, still gives me joy to see. When you add some subtractive manufacturing (CNC) along with some mold forming using a vacuum press oven, you get really get some decent manufacturing capability.

I would like to do some of my own stuff. I work on old cars and old pinball machines.... both have parts made from "unobtanium".
I worked with a couple of 2D cad programs years ago. What are you using? Is sketch-up a good option?

 

[fhteagle]

I've tried TinkerCAD, FreeCAD, OpenSCAD, but I think I have settled onto OnShape as my go to. The learning curve is definitely not flat, but getting over the initial difficulties with even knowing what you have selected is worth it. You can make some very good models very quickly once you get the hang of it.

Teaching Tech goes through a lot of the basic operations in OnShape in a series of 6 videos. A little too quickly and without saying every key he's pressing, but you can at least follow what is supposed to happen next and monkey a bit until you get it too.

 

[fhteagle]

Maybe these manufacturers have a dire need to maximize profits from their parts business to hold them over as they hopefully transition to profitable EV's.

This is neither legally nor morally a justification for exceeding the rights and privileges of holding a trademark, which in my opinion Honda very clearly did with that takedown request. I'm not a lawyer, but a very concerned citizen about the long term direction patents, IP, copyright, and trademark issues are headed.

 

[CyberGus]

Remember when you made that ashtray out of clay for your dad, and it looked like it was run over by a truck and then thrown down a flight of stairs? Everything I try to draw in 3D looks like that.

 

[Bill906]

Drawing a long bow

DONE!