Now that's interesting...

Phil H said:
Lots of possibilities, but presumably not cheap:

www.autocar.co.uk

How 3D printing is aiding classic car revival | Autocar

Classic car owners in need of rare parts can get them quicker than ever thanks to 3D printing. We find out more
www.autocar.co.uk www.autocar.co.uk

PH
Click to expand...

Its quite amazing to me (I work in an office and am not an engineer) how tech like this has moved on and how they make what seems impossible, possible.
I love the fact that there are firms that will do this for relatively “ordinary” modern classics and not just the £££££££££ historic classics.
Let’s hope traditional skills are retained as well though.
 
Scaf said:
Its quite amazing to me (I work in an office and am not an engineer) how tech like this has moved on and how they make what seems impossible, possible.
I love the fact that there are firms that will do this for relatively “ordinary” modern classics and not just the £££££££££ historic classics.
Let’s hope traditional skills are retained as well though.
Click to expand...
I ve got 3 x 3D printers in my lab. It’s really quite easy to produce something really impressive once you have the hardware and shouldn’t be too costly. They have been doing it for years in in aerospace and automotive industries as far as I know. Not sure why this comes out in the media every so often as if it’s new!
 
iainw said:
I ve got 3 x 3D printers in my lab. It’s really quite easy to produce something really impressive once you have the hardware and shouldn’t be too costly. They have been doing it for years in in aerospace and automotive industries as far as I know. Not sure why this comes out in the media every so often as if it’s new!
Click to expand...

Are you creating a 3D-printed monster for the 21st Century, Dr Frankenstiain..? :)
 
Last edited:
iainw said:
I ve got 3 x 3D printers in my lab. It’s really quite easy to produce something really impressive once you have the hardware and shouldn’t be too costly. They have been doing it for years in in aerospace and automotive industries as far as I know. Not sure why this comes out in the media every so often as if it’s new!
Click to expand...
I think it's the applications and enhancements which generate the interest rather than the 'new technology' aspect. A few threads on here have pondered the possibility of 3D printing obsolete/obsolescent Maserati components, and the Autocar article answers that to some extent.

Many years ago I was involved in a feasibility study to use fibre optics instead of copper on a particular aircraft and at the time it wasn't considered feasible for our platform, but now it would be so much easier in terms of application and cost. The same philosophy applies to 3D printing; even when it's available you need time to refine each application and make it affordable.

PH
 
I bought a projector from a guy in boston Lincs , he had a room full of 3D printers making classic car parts , said his previous job was in CAD but now people send him broken bits of plastic to recreate from home.
 
Phil H said:
I think it's the applications and enhancements which generate the interest rather than the 'new technology' aspect. A few threads on here have pondered the possibility of 3D printing obsolete/obsolescent Maserati components, and the Autocar article answers that to some extent.

Many years ago I was involved in a feasibility study to use fibre optics instead of copper on a particular aircraft and at the time it wasn't considered feasible for our platform, but now it would be so much easier in terms of application and cost. The same philosophy applies to 3D printing; even when it's available you need time to refine each application and make it affordable.

PH
Click to expand...
Surely the weight of fibre and data handling capacity of fibre would be a no brainer for non-critical applications of the aircraft.
 
midlifecrisis said:
Surely the weight of fibre and data handling capacity of fibre would be a no brainer for non-critical applications of the aircraft.
Click to expand...
Up to a point, but even today it wouldn’t necessarily be a no-brainer as each application including non-critical ones should be considered on merit wrt to safety, reliability, performance, and cost – not necessarily in that order. Back in the day though it was, for our use anyway, relatively new technology; on the upside fibre would help resolve weight issues, and due to the weight saving there was also the possibility of adding dual or even triple redundancy to systems. On the downside we had cost and component availability (to meet very demanding system specifications), and that’s before we got around to EV considerations and certification.

There’s a similar analogy with 3D printing, in that theoretically many things may seem possible and perhaps even cheap, until you look at basics like stress analysis and lifing. The Autocar article refers to 3D printed clutches to which special coatings are applied and I’m sure that’s fine, but would 3D printed wishbones ever get regulatory approval? Just like the fibre optic scenario each application must still be considered on its own merits, but imho the basic criteria for that are quite similar.

I’m not sure how many Maserati years I have left, and in the long term I rather fancy a lightweight Hydrogen-powered wheelchair, now I wonder……..

PH
 
Before I finally hung up my boots last year, I was aware that some companies were already exploring 3d printing in titanium ( not just plastics) for both aircraft and engine parts. Can't say on which applications but it certainly blew my mind when I came across this. The potential to significantly reduce the levels of material waste in the manufacturing process, along with massively reducing manufacturing lead times is mind blowing. I'm told by by some really clever people that one day they will be able to 3D print an entire aircraft. Mindblowing....
 
The thing that really interested me wasnt all the plastic stuff and yanks making guns in their bedrooms it was reading an article about a guy who’d made a iron cylinder head. Design process was pretty normal but when it came to casting they actually 3D printed the sand mould, straight from CAD, no need for patterns etc.

It such a difference from not that long ago as all the patterns can now be on a disk in your pocket, no need to keep them in a huge building. When my dad worked at Hunt Brothers Foundry the building circled below was the pattern store, it was massive.

66191
 
As a kid we had school visits to the GWR workshops in Swindon; a big, dirty, and very noisy industrial complex but fascinating.

In later years the workshops became a mix of Railway Museum, residential properties, and retail outlets, and the Pattern Store became a bar/restaurant, with plans now submitted to convert it to a community church:

66197

PH
 
With 3D scanners and 3D printers it is much easier to make those fragile parts that often break on classic cars for little cost. They had some brackets from an old sunroof redone on the last series of Wheeler Dealers surely got to be the way to go. Even if you need parts cast, as above, 3D printing can make the moulds which will reduce costs to.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top