3D Printing for Sailboats

there was a lot of talk before the last AC of teams printing components.

I 3D printed the inboard end spin pole fitting for a Carbon 20 when I was over in Singapore a couple years ago. Super easy part to draw and print, worked well.

I 3d printed a trampoline mushroom (could not find the right size to replace a broken one anywhere). Took forever to get it right, but I was able to mount it and use it. Not sure how it will hold over time (sold the boat, so who knows).

I usually try to wipe off any fungus or mold..

I am excited to see what will come of 3d printing when they can do it on a grand scale with carbon fiber or better (whole boats?)

I would love the ability to 3D print Hobie 16 rudder cams!

Can they 3D print nylon?

Material strength is still the primary stopping point in my mind. It's come a long way from the fragile SLA methods of 10+yrs ago. But, for our boats where high strength and low weight are at an absolute premium, I don't see it happening any time soon any significant way.

I haven't really kept up with 3D printing technology, except in the most general way, so I apologize to the engineers out there,if I ask what are ignorant questions.

Most of the good plastics are two component systems. Are there two component 3D printers out there? I would imagine two component printing heads would be a nightmare to keep working reliabily. I suppose one component as a bath, and the other in the printing head would more reliable, but limited to just a few choices of materials.

Are there 3D printers capable of incorporating re-enforcing fibers or other re-enforcing materials?

3D printing as a general buzzword seems to infer a lot more capability than the technology really has today. There are also a number of different technologies employed by 3D printing. As far as fiber reinforced materials go, the only things I've seen are a fiber reinforced thermoplastic materials (run-of-the-mill ABS or similar) that is extruded out of one heated nozzle. The structural properties of these parts coming out of these type of thermoplastic machines are pretty limited. They're still good for prototyping and making cosmetic widgets but I have started to see some genuine industrial application for light duty, short run, parts. The economies are such that if you are making thousands of widgets it's still more economical to build a mold and build the parts in a more traditional fashion. However, 3D printing is slowly catching up to that model as costs come down.

Other types of very structural 3D printing are using a mixture of fine sand and fine metal powder. The sand and metal are laid down in sheets by a 3D printer and then put into a furnace to melt the metal powder into a solid unit. This is effectively making a 3D printed casting and works great for a functional item (though the cost is still too high for serial production work)

Hi, Once my uncle told me that there are websites which provide 3d printing on everything. When I searched online I got the site named Atlantic Precision which offers different types of services on 3d printing. And they give their best deals on the quality printing at the reasonable price.

I just bought a set of daggerboard lower/exit rotating bearings for my A-Class. They were 3D printed by DNA.

Normally the boat has a large exit opening in the bottom of the hull to accommodate the bends of the J/Z boards. This bearing has an opening just the size of the board, but rotates to accommodate the changes of angle as the board is inserted/removed.

he kind of sounded like a bot... but you posted good info... Thanks mike

HP has a new printer coming out that looks to have pretty good strength performance.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUkvC59vidw

We've looked at printing some parts, but when you're after super light weight and strong, it's hard to beat milled or molded carbon parts. My next toy is a small CnC so I can make molds and/or mill parts.