3D printer

[moneymaker]

Anybody have one? I’m not looking to buy just curious how popular they are and what people use them for. I see they can be had for under $1000.

[flyer]

My wife tells me the studios she’s associated with are using them for more and more films. Below is an interesting article on how they are being used in Hollywood. I’ve also read they are being used in the medical field.

http://www.inside3dp.com/hollywood-superheroes-3d-printing/

[The-Shoveler]

HP’s master plan: Build an ecosystem for its 3D printing technology in 2015 with general availability in the second half of 2016.

http://www.zdnet.com/article/hp-to-enter-3d-printing-market-in-2016-will-customers-wait/

I think it will be great once they get the price down to a reasonable level. HP’s plan is to have one in every home.

The first PC’s were actually quite expensive (back in the 80’s). 3D will be the same, expensive at first then very reasonable.

[Coronita]

Imho for most of the home/hobbiest 3-d printers..not worth the time (more so than the money) if you are expecting “finished” product results, unless you like messing with acetone vapor baths,etc.

Ex-coworker has one. And we have one at work.

1. Extrusion process a long time for something small. For example, we printed a simple 3x3x3 simple object, and I think it was like 2-3 hours.

2. Finish is pretty rough if you’re looking for commercial quality results. Hence the mention of acetone vapor baths. To get a really smooth finish, that a cheap and dirty way of doing it.

3. It can be really really frustrating when the plastic filament cools, it warps so things aren’t perfectly straight.

4. Unless you only plan to print things that are already have some cad/reference file, be prepared to spend some time brushing up on your CAD skills.

That said, if you are a hobbiest and want to experiment, and have something specific you want to build, and and have the time and patience for it, go for it. Prices aren’t bad now, though you know they will get cheaper too. Imho, it’s not ready for primetime people who don’t have the time nor the patience to deal with its limitations.

I’ll try to find out what brand my ex coworker has and go to the lab to figure out what we use.

That 3-D printed cell phone case, for example, will take you a long time, probably won’t look as nice as that $2.99 case you get from some vendor in Hong Kong you buy off of Amazon that includes free shipping from Hong Kong, complete with tracking number.

[outtamojo]

Not worth getting together with other parents and donating one to my son’s middle school then?

[Coronita]

[quote=outtamojo]Not worth getting together with other parents and donating one to my son’s middle school then?[/quote]

Academia is different. Pooling funds, you could get a much better printer and plus kids would have the time to/energy/patience to do something with it. I’d say though it would be more appropriate for high school kids with an interest in it though.

[afx114]

The new library downtown has a floor with a handful of Makerbots on it that you can use for free.

[teaboy]

[quote=moneymaker]Anybody have one? I’m not looking to buy just curious…[/quote]

So, you’re saying you’re not gay, you’re just buy-curious?
🙂

tb

[moneymaker]

It would be fun to use one to make something, seems to me the logical next piece of equipment would then be a scanner so that replication would be feasible without learning too much about mathematical modeling.

[Author]

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