We really are at the crossroads of 3d technology becoming a part of everyday life. Real life meets Star Trek tech from the 70’s
(http://i.stack.imgur.com/WPmeL.jpg)
The makerbot mini is just a new improved version of their thingybot - their original 3d printer btw…
Make Magazine has published two books on 3D printers, one in December 2012 and a revised version last year.
I did a quick Google search and found both on-line - the first one is available for free download - Book #1 helped me decide on the Afinia that I bought first.
Book #1
http://www.timelab.org/sites/all/files/MAKE_Ultimate_Guide_to_3D_Printing.pdf
Book #2 - Download - $9.99
http://www.makershed.com/Make_Ultimate_Guide_to_3D_Printing_2_0_p/9781457183027-p.htm
dave
I will be interested in the hp item. Have great success with printer both laser color and Officejets.
Bob Kubasko said:
I will be interested in the hp item. Have great success with printer both laser color and Officejets.
Bob - It appears that HP plans on only the business market for 3D printers, not consumer units - you may want to read this article:
http://3dprint.com/4292/meg-whitman-hewlett-packard-business-3d-printing/
dave
David Bodnar said:
Bob Kubasko said:
I will be interested in the hp item. Have great success with printer both laser color and Officejets.
Bob - It appears that HP plans on only the business market for 3D printers, not consumer units - you may want to read this article:
http://3dprint.com/4292/meg-whitman-hewlett-packard-business-3d-printing/
dave
Whoa. That is strange news. Maybe there is still room for the entrepreneur?
David Bodnar said:
Make Magazine has published two books on 3D printers, one in December 2012 and a revised version last year.
I did a quick Google search and found both on-line - the first one is available for free download - Book #1 helped me decide on the Afinia that I bought first.
Book #1
http://www.timelab.org/sites/all/files/MAKE_Ultimate_Guide_to_3D_Printing.pdf
Book #2 - Download - $9.99
http://www.makershed.com/Make_Ultimate_Guide_to_3D_Printing_2_0_p/9781457183027-p.htm
dave
Thanks. Interesting article.
I ordered the Book #2, will let you know what I find…
Regards, Greg
Anyone have any experience with a LUTZBOT TAZ 4? it will work with a lot of different materials, and has a larger print area which I have some use for. it sells at amazon so it is returnable?
My company is looking at a purchase, and as one of the mechanical designers I was asked for an opinion. My top three are:
MakerGear M2
LultzBot TAZ 4
FlashForge Creator Pro
Our local The 3D Printing Store uses an Affinia, and it makes nice parts. The build volume is small, though, at 5x5x5. These three have much larger build volumes and have gotten a lot of excellent reviews at Amazon and elsewhere on the web.
Check the link below for multiple reviews and side by side comparisons. Lower print layer/stepping/resolution numbers produce a finer finish.
Think the Dremel 3D only uses two types of plastic filament one of which is from cornstarch
http://www.computerworld.com/article/2685322/dremel-releases-a-3d-printer-for-the-masses.html
Think the caption to the main photo should read.
Our family hobby…
Watching the paint drying.
Oh…Ok…!
dremels filament is like 60 a kilo for pla, that’s double “normal” pla
I’d wait until all the improvements in the pipeline are fitted .
In development , accountants frequently force the sale of a model before it’s quite ready , so the improvements get into the next model or the one after that .
Give them time to mature .
Mike
Michael Glavin said:
Check the link below for multiple reviews and side by side comparisons. Lower print layer/stepping/resolution numbers produce a finer finish.
Thanks Michael, that is a very handy list.
Mind you, SWMBO is convinced “we don’t need one”. 
The other thing I have noticed with 3D is some of the machines give a finish where you cannot see the layers , an important factor when doing fiddly bits like the complete diesel engine on sale here , its injectors , intake and exhaust manifolds all perfectly formed .
Other machines seem to give a result like badly finished plywood , none that I have seen on here , I hasten to add .
I would wait for the price to come down and quality guaranteed before I get one .
Mike
Top quality finishes are produced usually by industrial printers as opposed to domestic table top types.
Shapeways offer items of the same design with four or five options of finish at differing costs.
In fact I have just ordered 4 items at their lowest cost as the really top smooth finish is nearly three times the cost! I think the extra cost would be ok IF you were going to use the item for mass resin casting production. 3D printing is certainly not mass production.
This IS interesting (from a Pro)
http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2013/05/why-3d-printing-is-overhyped-i-should-know-i-do-it-for-a-living/
Ross Mansell said:
…
This IS interesting (from a Pro)http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2013/05/why-3d-printing-is-overhyped-i-should-know-i-do-it-for-a-living/
Yes, that should prick a few daydream balloons. Thank you!
I can see the 3D being useful on short run kits of rail stuff , in fact the diesel engine that I mentioned is available to order , being made in small batches (whatever that means) . It does give a quick fix at a reasonable price to bung some detail under the bonnet of a field loco . It looks good , but having no use for one I have not even handled one , so cannot vouch for the finish which looks good in the advert photos . In any case , the model engines out of plastic kits are ideal for that----I have several waiting for a home because you cannot see them on a model with the bonnet shut , so why go to all the trouble of fitting them ?
I think the main point that the article above brought out was people will use it for the sake of it rather than stepping back and having a think . Some of the latest CNC Milling machines will do a heck of a good job , quicker and less expensive than the current crop of 3D (apparently) . According to my engineering contacts they are not yet cost effective . Certainly , they are not going to chuck out a very costly CNC Mill to produce bits , and that is the main obstacle to their introduction into industry .
There are also other techniques in the pipeline which may be preferable from an engineering standpoint .
I expect 3D will be useful when it has matured a bit .
Mike
The most memorable people in life will be the friends who liked you when you weren’t very likeable .
I have seen on 300toys.com, 3D printed detail stuff. Road cones and barriers. It would be cheaper to print parts then to make a mold and injection mold them. Of course, if something were to be in production for several hundred units, or a few thousand units, then injection molding is still the way to go. The speed at which parts can be injection molded is so much faster then 3D printing.
I have seen some of the items that Dave Bodner has printed. Depending on the quality setting he uses, the surface could have minor striations, or major imperfections. I would think that someone could make a decent business printing hard to find detail parts. Like Mark and the folks at Shapeways are doing. But right now its not up to mainline production. The speed and cost just inst there yet.
