Made this up today with my 3D printer
Attachments
-
27.5 KB Views: 776
Last edited:
Most hobby printers use PLA, which doesn’t hold up very well in an automotive environment.What is the basis or type of plastic being used?
Can the plastic be 'coated' or finished, and with what?
Most hobby printers use PLA, which doesn’t hold up very well in an automotive environment.
Some better hobby printers can process PETG, which has substantially better physical properties, particularly UV resistance, although it doesn’t paint or solvent bond well. Temperature resistance is much better than PLA: 70-80° C which is sufficient for many aftermarket automotive applications.
ABS can be painted or even plated, one of the reasons it is widely used for automotive parts and office equipment. Typically the part is post-processed first for a smoother finish by solvent honing, sanding or both. You can also solvent bond it, ultrasonically weld it, machine, drill, or insert metal inserts. Most hobby printers do not have the process control to run it, and it is considered finicky and exotic, while it is actually one of the lowest performance thermoplastics in the commercial 3D printing world. Temperature resistance is around 100° C so it can stand up in a hot wet environment.
We have a Stratasys printer that uses ABS. If you want something printed I’d need an STL file, the neutral file format widely used in 3D printing.
Glad you are having such success with your machine. I’ve been involved with 3D printing since 1989 and it’s nice not to have to explain what it is anymore.My designs are not open source, you can always make you own .stl files but you don't have my consent to reproduce mine. Notice that mine are PETG and printed on a TAZ 6, they paint up just fine.
A quick tip on here many moons ago was to drill the side of the flap where the pivot had broken off from and use a spring loaded watch strap pin for the repair. That way you did not have to dismantle the entire vent to fit the the replacement louvre.We’ve purchased new panels for both sides. Once I take the old ones out I can measure them up and see if it’s feasible. I can’t match the color exactly, though. I’ll think about modifying the design by adding a boss so that you can insert metal pins.
I was planning on giving away the old ones anyway. The top louver or two is missing.Hated to spend $200 on replacements but they bugged me.
A quick google says that PETG is available in coloured filament, ie Black, which for me would or could eliminate post colour processing. Would solvent honing distort the colour?Most hobby printers use PLA, which doesn’t hold up very well in an automotive environment.
Some better hobby printers can process PETG, which has substantially better physical properties, particularly UV resistance, although it doesn’t paint or solvent bond well. Temperature resistance is much better than PLA: 70-80° C which is sufficient for many aftermarket automotive applications.
ABS can be painted or even plated, one of the reasons it is widely used for automotive parts and office equipment. Typically the part is post-processed first for a smoother finish by solvent honing, sanding or both. You can also solvent bond it, ultrasonically weld it, machine, drill, or insert metal inserts. Most hobby printers do not have the process control to run it, and it is considered finicky and exotic, while it is actually one of the lowest performance thermoplastics in the commercial 3D printing world. Temperature resistance is around 100° C so it can stand up in a hot wet environment.
We have a Stratasys printer that uses ABS. If you want something printed I’d need an STL file, the neutral file format widely used in 3D printing.
Haven’t used PETG so cant say. A quick GIS search yielded the following:A quick google says that PETG is available in coloured filament, ie Black, which for me would or could eliminate post colour processing. Would solvent honing distort the colour?