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Author Topic: 3d Printers?  (Read 388 times)

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Offline Sarahlacewing

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3d Printers?
« on: May 08, 2013, 08:32:51 PM »
I'm interested in having something very specific made but I have no idea how to go about it.  Any thoughts?  Are there places that you can commission to have a piece made?
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Offline BrightIdea

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Re: 3d Printers?
« Reply #1 on: May 09, 2013, 06:44:20 AM »
I don't have experience with 3D printing services, although I am sure somewhere would be happy to do it for you. Maybe a college in your area has one you can pay to use? I believe the majority of 3D printers are owned by companies and schools and used for design and rapid prototyping purposes.

My suggestion is to google "Rapid Prototyping" and also your area to see what services are available.

The major steps in 3D printing are modelling, preparing the model for printing, printing, and then cleaning up the print. I have done 3D printing in the past, and started by modelling my part using a 3D-modelling program (I used Pro-Engineer Wildfire). After that, you have to convert the files into a format the printer can use (STL aka stereolithography files for the printer I used). Now that you have a file that the printer knows how to print, you can print your 3D object and then remove excess material/clean it up.

3D printing can be nice for doing art, and making prototypes. I wouldn't trust it to make something durable though, although print quality may vary depending on the machine and materials it uses. Also, be wary of the $$$ factor, as I have heard stories of people doing limited runs of items on a 3D printer, and it costing a lot.

Now I am curious what you are designing  :)  Good luck with it!
« Last Edit: May 09, 2013, 06:47:13 AM by BrightIdea »
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Offline Sarahlacewing

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Re: 3d Printers?
« Reply #2 on: May 09, 2013, 06:57:53 AM »
Thank you!
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Offline kaoskat

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Re: 3d Printers?
« Reply #3 on: May 09, 2013, 08:54:47 AM »
Yeah, I'd search around online and check with a local printing company. One of them might have one.
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Offline Galactica

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Re: 3d Printers?
« Reply #4 on: May 09, 2013, 08:57:35 AM »
I know I've looked into it in the past- and it was very expensive.

If you can figure out the 3d software- you can get your image turned into a 3d design- and then upload it to Shapeways for printing.  Alternatively- you could figure out how to do it yourself ?   Although I've heard it is pretty difficult.   http://www.shapeways.com/create?li=home-create

Offline melodys_angel

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Re: 3d Printers?
« Reply #5 on: May 09, 2013, 09:58:21 AM »
Ive bought from shapeways before.

Its reliable but I got nailed big time with customs and theres only one choice with shipping for where I am.
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