Jim Smith, who blogs over at his terrific site, GrassRootsEngineering.com, about his 3D Printing and the custom-made printers that have taken over his living room, has printed what he believes to be the largest single part ever printed by a custom designed, RepRap based, home-built 3D printer.
The mammoth (in terms of home home 3D printing) object took almost 2 days to print with a .25mm layer height, and it measures 376 x 376 x 250mm [14.80 x 14.80 x 9.84in]. We’re not sure what it is, but it’s beautiful. The part is hollow, with a 0.5mm thick single wall, and is made of the same material Legos are made of: fully recyclable ABS plastic. Jim used Solidworks to design the part so that it would max out his build volume on the printer.
The part was actually supposed to be even larger and should have taken over 57 hours to print. But as everyone on the bleeding edge of technology knows, not everything works out the way you want — the printer jammed after 48 hours. But it’s still huge. He estimates the total cost at about $7.50, which includes $5 for the ABS plastic and $2.50 for electricity.
Watch the video, and then head over to his site if you want to see some photos of the part, and the exact specifications.
If only the printers could print such an object as fast as the time-lapse video showed it! Someday, someday.
Get to know Jim a little more by watching this NPR interview with 23-year old Jim, recorded earlier this year. He sounds like quite a brilliant young man. No wonder 3D printer manufacturer 3D Systems snapped him up.