3D Print Plastic Pieces.... | FerrariChat

3D Print Plastic Pieces....

Discussion in '348/355' started by Fmuto42, Dec 26, 2015.

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  1. Fmuto42

    Fmuto42 Karting

    Jul 19, 2015
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    I think if I'm not mistaken I saw a previous post about the ashtray that looked like someone did a 3D print for the 348 design which begs another questions. How viable would it be to 3D print some of the plastic pieces that we all long for and not pay anywhere between $500 to $1500 for?

    I am a newbie so if this has been spoken about or shot down, let me know, otherwise it seems feasible? Right?!
     
  2. PAP 348

    PAP 348 Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    Dec 10, 2005
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    Just ask Luigi Frank, he was the one that printed that ashtray.

    He might be able to print just what you need.
     
  3. GTUnit

    GTUnit Karting

    May 25, 2014
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    What pieces do you need printed?
     
  4. Manda racing

    Manda racing Formula 3

    Feb 25, 2015
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    348 right side driving light trim piece.
     
  5. 97 Spider

    97 Spider Formula 3
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    I have an original for sale right now on eBay. Ask.. About 1 million dollars :)
     
  6. flat_plane_eddie

    flat_plane_eddie F1 Rookie
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    Mar 30, 2013
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    I need the center AC vent...can anyone 3d print that lol?
     
  7. phrogs

    phrogs F1 Veteran
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    #7 phrogs, Dec 26, 2015
    Last edited: Dec 26, 2015
    If you have a printer theres some parts id like you to print, dash vent parts haha


    The cost to print quality items is a bit of an expense I can't justify. Otherwise id print my own parts. I have been thinking about getting my own but I have decided to repair my broken parts.
     
  8. Fmuto42

    Fmuto42 Karting

    Jul 19, 2015
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    Right side air vent / speaker cover
     
  9. 2mmuch

    2mmuch Formula Junior
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    #9 2mmuch, Dec 27, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Hi Frank

    I happen to be the guy doing the astray thing. Printing a part is not the issue, yes there are lines all over it, but you can use spot puddy on it and sand it smooth, and then paint it. The biggest cost is designing something close and will function. This takes time and sometimes a lot of time, depending on how complicated it is. Once designed you will print it to see how it fits, then make any adjustments and print it again until it is right. I printed the astray 5 times after I had a laser scan the original and then try to fit all the pieces to it correctly. Each print took about 11 hours.

    My car is up on the hoist put a way for the winter but I will be lowering it down next weekend to fit my custom rear badge I've been working on. I can take a look at the piece you are talking about to see if it is do able then.



    Lou
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  10. Fmuto42

    Fmuto42 Karting

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    Thanks Lou! Let me know if you think it's feasible. I'm still hunting out parts cars too. It's unreal what's not available anymore.
     
  11. cf355

    cf355 F1 Rookie

    Feb 28, 2005
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    cool tech
     
  12. R&D

    R&D Karting

    Mar 16, 2015
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    I have access to 3D printing and CAD, and I've also thought about doing this recently. The only potential issue I have with it is post-processing time and material selection. Most 3D printers do PLA (corn starch based polymer, easy to print) or ABS (same thing LEGOs are made from, strong but tougher to print without warpage). I'm not sure how well these plastics will match the factory plastic color though. In addition, for something like an air vent, you may be looking at quite a bit of sanding post-print to get a nice smooth surface finish on all the vent ribs. Does anybody know exactly what the factory plastic parts are made of? Are they the same material all the way through, or is it some sort of plastic with a coating and the coating is the part that gets sticky?
     
  13. 2mmuch

    2mmuch Formula Junior
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    Hi Frank
    Took a look at it today. Would be a big project to do. A lot of detail, 3d printer would not do the holes that clean. To much work to do for a one off. Sorry

    Lou
     
  14. phrogs

    phrogs F1 Veteran
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    Molded plastic that is coated with the material that becomes sticky.

    Ill try to take some photos
     
  15. R&D

    R&D Karting

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    I went ahead and yanked the vents out of my car and started to de-goop them this weekend (TON of elbow grease would not want to do again). There is a chance I would be able to make an almost perfect copy of these with the resources at my disposal, although it's going to be a ton of work to get it right (scanning will not get a good enough model to capture all of the tolerances and interplay in the motion mechanisms, and for this it matters a lot that it's correct). Would anybody buy these if I made them? I think I have a way to get them good enough that they won't look printed... I am currently doing a test print to see what's possible. More to come
     
  16. R&D

    R&D Karting

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    OK here's where I'm at so far with this. I have a complete vent assembly almost modeled (few details left to add), minus the surround/throat that leads down to the HVAC distribution tube in the dash. The side vents will probably be a bit more work but nothing undoable. I'm going for exactness here so I measured all the dimensions with my Starrett dial caliper. Should be pretty much an exact reproduction minus the injection molding parting lines.

    Follow the link to see the part:

    https://youtu.be/9nBpI0Wy1E0
     
  17. flat_plane_eddie

    flat_plane_eddie F1 Rookie
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  18. R&D

    R&D Karting

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    That is pretty much exactly the assembly I want to reproduce. Later I will focus on the side vent assemblies. I noticed that the other 3D printed parts on here are produced using FDM, which works OK for stuff with a lot of smooth surface area (you do have to sand a fair bit to make it smooth and get the lines out and then usually paint it). The problem is that FDM will not make this vent assembly well at all (and especially wont be able to pull off the side vent holes). In particular, the pivot points need to be very precise and smooth or they wont feel right. Also the fins will look awful if there are a ton of lines in them from printing. As such, I'm investigating my options. I currently have a test print being made with a high end SLA machine, and am considering testing out some laser sintered plastic as well. I anticipate this taking a fair amount of time as there will be some trial and error involved. As for your question of "is this worth it?", in my case I think yes. I broke my center vent taking it out of the dash this weekend (clip had previously been broken and was jammed) so I really want to make a solution. In addition, I think there may be a small side business here for me helping the Ferrari community (check out my homepage from my profile-work in progress), as I used to be an automotive engineer and currently work in a very high tech research field and my work involves using cutting edge fabrication techniques on a regular basis. As for a price it is too soon to say. I know that scrubbing the sticky stuff off my vents was hours of hand labor with Dawn and a toothbrush (I didn't want to use anything too caustic or abrasive), which I'm guessing is why stickynomore charges $390 to refinish your vents (it looks like they do excellent work from the photos on their website). I think the end goal is something that looks stock from the factory (not something that looks like it was 3D printed), and that will probably involve printing a very accurate model with a high end machine and then coating/painting the part to give it exactly the right finish. If other people are interested please chime in. For now I plan on chipping away on this as time allows.
     
  19. Fmuto42

    Fmuto42 Karting

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    Nice stuff. I gotta check out the YouTube
     
  20. R&D

    R&D Karting

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    #20 R&D, Jan 7, 2016
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Well I decided to have a test print made of the most complex and detailed vent part, the center (it has all the thumb grooves). The vendor sent me some (somewhat crappy) photos of it today before washing and it looks really good, and it wasn't even printed at the highest possible resolution for that machine. The layer height on this is 0.002" and the X-Y accuracy is better than 0.005" already. I have options to double that accuracy at the expense of longer print times. I now have a lot of confidence that this process is going to produce viable reproduction parts. My #1 target right now is to get a super accurate model of these vents, since every other interior part will be a piece of cake to reproduce afterwards. When I get the part back I'll test fit it in my factory vent and take some photos and post them. When I finalize the design files these will be printed in black plastic, not clear (the vendor's machine was already set up for clear this time so it was faster). I don't think there will be any evidence of print lines on them after cleaning.
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  21. R&D

    R&D Karting

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    #21 R&D, Jan 8, 2016
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    I more or less finished brushing up the vent model. To ensure absolute accuracy, I measured every single dimension for the model with my calipers, and all angles were measures with a protractor. The next piece to model is the housing that holds these 2 vents as well as the flow on/off thumb wheels. Below that housing is the "manifold" with the 2 butterfly valves that the thumb wheel operates. The question is: does anybody need just the vents? I am probably going to test print one anyway to check the fitment in my OEM housing (I'm guessing it will fit perfectly) and continue modeling the rest. Another question is: does anybody care how accurate the parts you don't see are. All the parts I've modeled so far are visible from inside the car at least to some degree. Once you get to the manifold piece its buried inside the dash. I could knock out a functional design really quickly that would work but not be concours correct in shape. That being said, I'm leaning more toward continuing with the OCD and making it perfect. Maybe I should offer both options... Any thoughts?
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  22. madturk

    madturk Formula 3
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    This is so impressive. Subscribed.
     
  23. PAP 348

    PAP 348 Nine Time F1 World Champ
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    Very cool!
     
  24. Fmuto42

    Fmuto42 Karting

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    Absolutely amazing work my friend!
     
  25. Fmuto42

    Fmuto42 Karting

    Jul 19, 2015
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    I think you keep going down the road you are with the absolute best that can be seen. If it's out of sight there tolarances there, IMO.
     

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