3D Printing Parts - Page 2 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

leathermang · #16 03-12-2016, 02:53 PM

When dealing with the AC system those kinds of caps are needed for all the items which need to be cleaned... once an item is cleaned it needs to be protected from air until the other items are cleaned....
If you put together a kit of those various sizes I expect people about to start that job would be happy to pay for it.
People would need to start a list of the sizes of caps needed for that job.
Tricky items like the Evaporator would benefit from fittings for dealing with flushing it and catching the flush safely as it comes out ... and to where it can be viewed for cleanliness.

wagonfreak · #17 03-14-2016, 12:19 AM

@mach4 Darn, I wanted to be the first to show off my cool 3D printed MB parts.

I got 'hooked' on 3D Printing when 5 Makerbot Replicator's were donated to my university library. The librarians didn't want to manage them, nor did the IT folks, so several students (myself included) were hired to run them.

Here is a list of W123 parts I have put together that would be a good fit (IMHO) for printing:

Jack Hole covers
Wagon hatch release piece behind handle
those small covers for under dash panel screws.
back seat ashtray covers
knob for old (white) style hand primers
Chrome bezel around ignition tumbler

(if anyone thinks of anymore feel free to add)

I've only printed and CADed the Jack Hole covers to find out they were to small.

The rest are on the back burner as the Wagon is many hundreds of miles away from school and I won't be able to truly print bespoke parts until I can bring measurements (obtained on Spring Break) back to the makerspace with me.

When you sand down PLA and hit it with some paint in a cheapo HF airbrush it's amazing how good it looks. I suppose the same would be true of some plastic dye from SEM in a rattle can.

Glad to see that you have put your printer to good use! Best of luck!

Mark DiSilvestro · #18 03-14-2016, 07:51 AM

What type of plastic is used as the media in these printers? Is it tough like nylon, or brittle and vulnerable to fuel like styrene?

Happy Motoring, Mark

babymog · #19 03-14-2016, 08:16 AM

Tough and brittle are moving targets, plastic selection is much more complicated and one polymer does not fit all. Nylon is one of the plastics that gets brittle over time, as it tends to over-dry, and is not UV stable.

The answer to what plastics are available for the printers is a moving target I'll leave to those currently running these machines as many types of filament have been added in the past 2years (Google will show the selection, you can even search at Amazon) and our model shop has favorites so I'm sure these guys do also, but basically many thermoplastics in many colors, some of them are able to withstand contact with oils and solvents. The application (engine bay, hot and oily with little sun, or interior/exterior with sun exposure but clean, flexible or rigid?) will dictate whether there is a perfect filament available.

alexanderfitu · #20 03-15-2016, 05:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mach4

I'm getting ready to pull the injector pump off my "junk" engine, and put it into storage should anything happen to my current one. I wanted to seal off the various ports and decided this was a suitable application for the printer. I took some measurements and designed some plugs and rings in Sketchup and printed them out - injector line fittings, fuel intake, fuel supply and fuel return. Turned out pretty decent.

Obviously could have used lots of different ways to do it, but the printer worked out nice.

Excellent, my kind of thing! Any chance you can share the STL files for the pump caps.

anarchy · #21 03-17-2016, 02:18 AM

I like what your doing, I have wanted to start 3D printing parts for a long time. I have access to a laser cutter and have started the process of converting parts to vector images so they can be cut.

Here is the first draft of a climate control for a W126

leathermang · #22 03-17-2016, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by babymog

Tough and brittle are moving targets, plastic selection is much more complicated and one polymer does not fit all. Nylon is one of the plastics that gets brittle over time, as it tends to over-dry, and is not UV stable......

All this digital printing is very exciting on several levels.... but just as babymog points out here there is a lot to learn and apply for good results..

HOWEVER.... there are often low tech solutions for many of these things....

There are good books on ' casting small rubber items' which has been around for years... and now the two part silicone stuff is really amazing..
youtube has great instructions available.. So pliable you can use a one piece mold even with some undercutting and pull it off the model....

PLUS as an example of really low tech... if you have something round which you need a cap for..... you may can find a wooden dowel JUST a little bit undersized.... coat it with a release agent.... and simply squeeze Red High Temperature RTV ( Room Temperature Vulcanizing ) Silicon gasket maker... let that cure .... pull it off the dowel and use it.... sometimes just wrapping the object with Saran Wrap works just fine for a ' release agent' .... with less clean up...

When I first started checking on the 3d printing I ran across $ horror stories about the life of the printing tip.... several thousand dollars for the printer but the tip having to be replaced every five to ten models built... at a couple of hundred dollars.... that really runs up production costs fast. So check for reliability reports before investing... and check on cost of the raw materials you will be wanting to use also... I have not seen any printers which could do ' structural ' items....

Mark DiSilvestro · #23 03-17-2016, 11:46 AM

Stopped at 'Best Buy' thus week to look for some audio-video cables and they had a new 3-D printer set up and operating, cranking out small plastic vases and figurines. The finished items on display looked & felt like styrene.
Prices - Printer $1000, 3-D scanner $400, roll of plastic wire (looked like weed-eater filament) $40. Display said the system used ABS and PLA plastics.
No idea as to life of the printer tips.

Happy Motoring, Mark

babymog · #24 03-17-2016, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by anarchy

I like what your doing, I have wanted to start 3D printing parts for a long time. I have access to a laser cutter and have started the process of converting parts to vector images so they can be cut.

Here is the first draft of a climate control for a W126

You might want to check the spelling on Hazard, ... but I like the concept!

renaissanceman · #25 03-17-2016, 01:17 PM

Nozzle life is very much related to whether you are good at optimizing print temperatures to your material type and using quality filament. My $3k printer has required one new nozzle and a couple of days of down time in the several thousand hours it has operated. It cost of $12 since I did it myself -- many companies now only offer assemblies that are not "user serviceable" for ~$500, but I've had my accounts active since the early days of hobbyist printing so I get parts sold individually.

Cheers!

leathermang · #26 03-17-2016, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by renaissanceman

.... My $3k printer has required one new nozzle and a couple of days of down time in the several thousand hours it has operated.... It cost of $12 since I did it myself --.....Cheers!

Why don't you tell us the make and model..... and point us in a direction where we might learn about the other important ideas to long lasting reliability ?

mach4 · #27 03-17-2016, 03:36 PM

Just finished up a micro-project using the 3D printer - a bracket for my fuel pressure transducer. Since installing it several months ago it's just been zip-tied in place while I contemplated different permanent mounting options.

Here is the finished product - just a snap fit on the main vacuum line and the sensor's brass pressure damper tube.

This thing is so much fun...

badgator · #28 03-17-2016, 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by anarchy

I like what your doing, I have wanted to start 3D printing parts for a long time. I have access to a laser cutter and have started the process of converting parts to vector images so they can be cut.

Here is the first draft of a climate control for a W126

Self-Destruct

I'd leave it, if it's too hard to change.

If not I'd add something to the temp wheel side - laser temp? proton accelerator? boost level?

leathermang · #29 03-17-2016, 08:41 PM

Doesn't the moon roof need to blow off the top before hitting the ' eject ' button ?
You do not want someone with a broken neck laying on top of you while you are trying to drive...

renaissanceman · #30 03-17-2016, 11:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by leathermang

Why don't you tell us the make and model..... and point us in a direction where we might learn about the other important ideas to long lasting reliability ?

Sorry, I thought I had mentioned ealier that it was a Replicator 2X. Learning how to make them run smoothly requires a lot of reading and a lot of trial and error. I have been swamped with studying for my Professional engineering exam in addition to my normal workload, so I can't write out a dissertation on the best way to start lerarning. Cruise around the various forums and read read read and then try it...just like cars!

I have been 3D printing since 2011, and have build a small side business doing prototyping around the printers! I'll post how many hours I have on my replicator when it finishes the build it is currently running. I think it is somewhere around 2-3k hours.