3D model part for alfa 159
Discussion
Part 2 below for my front sidelight has snapped and they dont sell the part and have to replace whole unit! It seams strange with the explosion of 3D priting I cant find anyone who has modelled it as lots of people it has snapped! Tempted to get my working sidelight out send it to some to model/print a replacement! Anyone recommendations, ABS plastic would be best material?
Baron Greenback said:
Part 2 below for my front sidelight has snapped and they dont sell the part and have to replace whole unit! It seams strange with the explosion of 3D priting I cant find anyone who has modelled it as lots of people it has snapped! Tempted to get my working sidelight out send it to some to model/print a replacement! Anyone recommendations, ABS plastic would be best material?
Probably wouldn't last 2 minutes as a like-for-like 3D polymer printed part TBH.ETA I'd probably go for Nylon, and add some strength to the geometry before printing.
Edited by dr_gn on Monday 14th March 18:36
Seeing as its a headlight part I'd imagine it's subject to some quite high temperatures- 3D printing uses an extruded thermoplastic which could end up melting in that sort of application. The heat cycling has probably contributed to the original part failing.
Nylon has a much higher melting point than ABS, so you might get away with Nylon as Doc says.
The other issue with 3d printed parts is they are quite porous due to the way the material is extruded in layers, so moisture and dirt have an adverse effect on the longevity of the part. If you add lots of wall thickness and generally beef up the design of the part- nice big fillets and no sharp edges etc. then it might work ok.
Nylon has a much higher melting point than ABS, so you might get away with Nylon as Doc says.
The other issue with 3d printed parts is they are quite porous due to the way the material is extruded in layers, so moisture and dirt have an adverse effect on the longevity of the part. If you add lots of wall thickness and generally beef up the design of the part- nice big fillets and no sharp edges etc. then it might work ok.
As a recent investor in my own 3D printer….
With cheaper materials, you have 2 options
ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene)
PLA (Polylactic acid)
These are your cheaper options. Although judging the speed at which new materials are introduced, this information could well be out of date.
In this application - the only one worth using is ABS, (but see below) although as others have alluded to, it does have very definite limitations. The maximum temperature it should see in service is 70 °C. Inside a headlight? Hmmm…. A recently rebuilt M5 headlight of mine, when switched on, was turning the tiny amount of surplus WD40 left in it to smoke….
The problem is the properties of the 3D printer material are nowhere near as good (read strong) as the moulded item – some saying about 10% of its strength. Therefore considerable effort is required to not only model the product, but make it stronger too, and for that you need the forces involved etc.… not just knowing where it breaks e.g. upon installation/removal.
PLA will degrade in a damp atmosphere- not good, and (very crudely put) dissolves in hot water.
There are some newer materials on the market (at 2-3x the cost of the ABS) which have about 60% of the strength of ABS. how they resist thermal effects (as noted above) is another matter
To really wee on your chips, there’s the issue of product liability, and I am not sure where the law stands on reverse engineering. I am currently investigating this myself for my own ideas/improvements.
Hopefully, someone will be along shortly with more real knowledge than the stuff I have just learnt/am learning...
With cheaper materials, you have 2 options
ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene)
PLA (Polylactic acid)
These are your cheaper options. Although judging the speed at which new materials are introduced, this information could well be out of date.
In this application - the only one worth using is ABS, (but see below) although as others have alluded to, it does have very definite limitations. The maximum temperature it should see in service is 70 °C. Inside a headlight? Hmmm…. A recently rebuilt M5 headlight of mine, when switched on, was turning the tiny amount of surplus WD40 left in it to smoke….
The problem is the properties of the 3D printer material are nowhere near as good (read strong) as the moulded item – some saying about 10% of its strength. Therefore considerable effort is required to not only model the product, but make it stronger too, and for that you need the forces involved etc.… not just knowing where it breaks e.g. upon installation/removal.
PLA will degrade in a damp atmosphere- not good, and (very crudely put) dissolves in hot water.
There are some newer materials on the market (at 2-3x the cost of the ABS) which have about 60% of the strength of ABS. how they resist thermal effects (as noted above) is another matter
To really wee on your chips, there’s the issue of product liability, and I am not sure where the law stands on reverse engineering. I am currently investigating this myself for my own ideas/improvements.
Hopefully, someone will be along shortly with more real knowledge than the stuff I have just learnt/am learning...
Hello again
After some intensive research into alternative materials, (i.e. 10 minutes on Google) there are some filaments that will do a sustained 110 °C, which could well be enough for the application – who knows?
Once I am up and running with the 3D printer, I wouldn’t mind having a go at this.
As long as you realise that it’s all strictly trial run stuff, practice and general mucking about to see how I get on- and any shed loads of profit to be made on this venture, I get to keep.
How urgent is it?
After some intensive research into alternative materials, (i.e. 10 minutes on Google) there are some filaments that will do a sustained 110 °C, which could well be enough for the application – who knows?
Once I am up and running with the 3D printer, I wouldn’t mind having a go at this.
As long as you realise that it’s all strictly trial run stuff, practice and general mucking about to see how I get on- and any shed loads of profit to be made on this venture, I get to keep.
How urgent is it?
In one of the topics on the classics board there were some photos of someone who had made engine components using a 3D printer, but rather than directly using the 3d-printed part as an engine component, they used it to make a lost-wax style mould so that the items could then be made out of something more suitable.
A TV Vet was on the radio this morning, he was talking about how they've opened a centre for 3D printing for replacement parts for animals, including bones, and how 3D printing could support a titanium mesh for strength. So it's obviously progressing, though I hate to imagine how much more expensive than the basic £200-odd 3D printer theirs is.
Been posted before, but we built these aircraft on our FDM 900. The glider airframe was 100% printed in ABS, and also Nylon. The EDF powered version had the centre fuselage printed in one piece (and the winglets) and the carbon fibre wing and hatch panels were made in FDM printed moulds:
http://www.amrc.co.uk/featuredstudy/printed-uav/
http://www.amrc.co.uk/featuredstudy/amrc-engineers...
They were great projects for learning how these materials and printed structures behave. We've also got several SLS metal 3D printers, but that's another black art.
http://www.amrc.co.uk/featuredstudy/printed-uav/
http://www.amrc.co.uk/featuredstudy/amrc-engineers...
They were great projects for learning how these materials and printed structures behave. We've also got several SLS metal 3D printers, but that's another black art.
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