To all youse folks doin' tree dee printing- I have been thinking about this technology recently and was wondering about different materials printed on the same part. More specifically, printing the plastics over metals and woods. The differential expansion and shrinking, and bonding. So, for example, suppose the plastic was printed surrounding a metal or wood part. Would the plastic crack as it cooled? And will it bond to the metal or wood? I suppose the wood could be heated before the plastic is applied but how long would it stay warm? I have seen machines with heated platens so maybe the wood or metal object could be heated by the platen. But most of the metal objects I have been thinking about surrounding with the printed plastic are fasteners or stiffeners. They wouldn't be sitting on the platen. So nuts held captive by the plastic are a good example. And does the plastic need to bond to the metal for my application? I don't know, but lets say it does. Is there some type of glue that could be used that would make the hot plastic bond to the metal? For lightness wood can be a very good material to combine with plastic to make a strong part. I can envision a part that is plastic on the outside to achieve a particular shape, like a handle, but with a wood core for strength. And what about using a variety of plastics to make an even better part? Say a luggage handle that is wood core surrounded by a hard plastic contoured to fit the fingers with soft plastic in the finger grooves. Can this be done with the materials available to the average experimenter with a limited budget? I know there are a lot of questions above and I appreciate any answers from folks who know about this stuff. I want to experiment with 3D printing and have some ideas but I have not been able to find much info about the above questions from people who actually have experience trying to do what I want to do. Thanks, Eric
- posted
10 years ago