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Old 06-09-2018, 08:23 PM
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teflonrocketry1 teflonrocketry1 is offline
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Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Whitehouse, Ohio
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bluegrass Rocket
I’m trying to learn more about 3D printing by reading and watching videos, lots of videos. So, I’ll mention this since I haven’t seen anyone else post it. When printing your parts, keep in mind that PLA will not stand up to the outdoor sunlight or to being locked in a hot car. It will melt. ABS is the way to go for rocket parts. And you will need an enclosure for your printer to keep the ambient air warm so the ABS can cool down slowly helping to prevent warping. You will also need to turn the cooling fan off for ABS.

Regarding laser cutters, for cutting lite ply and even balsa you would need a 30 watt laser minimum. The lasers you see on eBay are all water cooled made in China lasers and you get what you pay for. Full Spectrum Laser makes a decent one with parts from overseas but, assembled in Las Vegas and water cooled, still around $3500. And if you do a lot of cutting with a water cooled laser you will probably need a chiller to cool the water down. Air cooled lasers like the Universal Versa 12” x 24” laser “desktop “ model is $15,000.

Like with most things, higher cost means higher quality. There are certainly hobby minded tools out there but, a lot of the cheap ones are quirky and require lots of fiddling. Maybe look for local maker spaces that have higher end equipment.


I have been watching the videos by Chris Taylor on his YouTube channel Today's 3D Print https://www.youtube.com/playlist?li...x4SEQQxKdo595qH . Chris is also the person behind NARAMLive.com . I am also a fan of Angus Deveson on his YouTube channel Maker's Muse https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCx...drh-b2ND-AfIybg .

I have yet to test PLA plastic at high or low temperatures. This polymer is definitely more crystalline and lower melting than ABS and is much more difficult to sand. I have had my more complex ABS prints fail at the seams where the transitions and nosecones abruptly change shape. I think there is a setting in the slicing software that will remedy this. I also have printed hundreds of simple ABS nosecones that hold up to the squish test (even the shoulders stay together) without an enclosure.
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