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25-05-2018, 15:49
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#1
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CF Adviser
Join Date: Oct 2007
Boat: Van Helleman Schooner 65ft StarGazer
Posts: 10,280
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3-D printed propeller
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25-05-2018, 16:53
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#2
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2008
Boat: Custom cutter, 42'
Posts: 701
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Interesting. But hard to believe that the process is more cost effective than casting.
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25-05-2018, 17:17
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#3
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CF Adviser
Join Date: Oct 2007
Boat: Van Helleman Schooner 65ft StarGazer
Posts: 10,280
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pauls
Interesting. But hard to believe that the process is more cost effective than casting.
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I agree, for standard props a reusable mold will still be the cheapest way until these machines become common place.
However, for one off highly skewed performance designs, this will offer the designer the opportunity to fine tune and modify slight changes for testing.
When tank testing Superyacht hulls, the models were fabricated this way to very precise and subtle changes, requested by the architect
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25-05-2018, 17:35
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#4
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2008
Boat: Custom cutter, 42'
Posts: 701
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
I agree about the design flexibility. But, for example, 3D printing can be used to make the form for a casting, with all the design flexibility that allows. The plastic form is much cheaper and faster to do. Or, CNC milling can make a highly accurate form, probably faster than the plastic 3D printing, and again with the ability to accurately follow subtle design changes. With modern CNC the solid model goes straight from the designer into the CAD machining software.
I dunno. Maybe the manufacturing costs have changed from what I'm familiar with. They had to have a good reason to build that prop. But I'm skeptical.
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25-05-2018, 17:49
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#5
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CF Adviser
Join Date: Oct 2007
Boat: Van Helleman Schooner 65ft StarGazer
Posts: 10,280
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
All good points, yet knowing the Dutch superiority in working metals... there must be some business advantages in developing this??
Maybe it eventually lends itself to in-house fabrication, where a specialized foundry is no longer needed?
Then those machines are purchased by large shipyards and used for a variety of metal components as a cost saving multifunctional tool.
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25-05-2018, 17:59
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#6
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Jacksonville/ out cruising
Boat: Island Packet 38
Posts: 31,351
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
You can now print with greater precision than you can cast or machine, plus your not inhibited by undercuts etc that you can’t cast and be hard to machine.
General Electric is 3D printing turbine engine parts, and there new, yet to be released turboprop has large sections of printed parts.
https://www.ge.com/reports/future-ma...-engine-parts/
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25-05-2018, 18:31
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#7
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CF Adviser
Join Date: Oct 2007
Boat: Van Helleman Schooner 65ft StarGazer
Posts: 10,280
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Fascinating developments and a new term for me;
"Additive Manufacturing"
Thanks a64
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25-05-2018, 20:01
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#8
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cruiser
Join Date: Sep 2014
Boat: 1980 (Canning) Mariner36
Posts: 834
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Quote:
Originally Posted by a64pilot
You can now print with greater precision than you can cast or machine, plus your not inhibited by undercuts etc that you can’t cast and be hard to machine.
General Electric is 3D printing turbine engine parts, and there new, yet to be released turboprop has large sections of printed parts.
https://www.ge.com/reports/future-ma...-engine-parts/
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i went to a 3D printer convention a couple of years ago and they were displaying many 3D printed aerospace parts. they seemed to be relatively easy and fast to make but the machines were prohibitively expensive...they were also making medical devices and implants with amazing precision.
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25-05-2018, 20:06
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#9
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cruiser
Join Date: Sep 2014
Boat: 1980 (Canning) Mariner36
Posts: 834
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pelagic
All good points, yet knowing the Dutch superiority in working metals... there must be some business advantages in developing this??
Maybe it eventually lends itself to in-house fabrication, where a specialized foundry is no longer needed?
Then those machines are purchased by large shipyards and used for a variety of metal components as a cost saving multifunctional tool.
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it absolutely will i think when the machines become more affordable. the only drawback i witnessed from metal parts that were printed was that the surface finish was pretty rough. i think that printed prop was heavily ground and finished after it was printed.
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25-05-2018, 20:10
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#10
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Registered User
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Hobart
Boat: Alloy Peterson 40
Posts: 3,919
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Very interesting. I wonder how they control heat distortion as they weld each bead onto the propeller? Looks like a standard Mig welder setup to a robotic system.
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25-05-2018, 21:27
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#11
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CF Adviser
Join Date: Oct 2007
Boat: Van Helleman Schooner 65ft StarGazer
Posts: 10,280
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Quote:
Originally Posted by Snowpetrel
Very interesting. I wonder how they control heat distortion as they weld each bead onto the propeller? Looks like a standard Mig welder setup to a robotic system.
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From what I read, they preheat the mix components before applying via the welding nozzles....
I imagine as this procedure develops, they will combine metallurgy and chemistry and maybe even nanotechnology into more sophisticated products built by robots.
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26-05-2018, 09:32
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#12
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Jacksonville/ out cruising
Boat: Island Packet 38
Posts: 31,351
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Eventually I think to some extent additive manufacturing will replace CNC, which sort of replaced regular lathes.
I say sore of as they have their place for one off
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26-05-2018, 09:51
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#13
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Jacksonville/ out cruising
Boat: Island Packet 38
Posts: 31,351
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
My uncle who flew into D Day in a glider after the war started a machine shop in Vero Beach Fl.
There were a whole lot of dredges operating back then and they had some sort of driveshafts that wore out. He made a lot of his money by building a machine that used a wire fed welder to weld up the shafts and a lathe to turn them back down to new tolerance. I assume mostly he added a wire feed welder to a large lathe.
Never knew it, but I guess he invented additive manufacturing decades ago?
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26-05-2018, 10:00
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#14
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Registered User
Join Date: Oct 2008
Boat: Custom cutter, 42'
Posts: 701
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Good link, A64. Thanks.
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26-05-2018, 10:03
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#15
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: Jacksonville/ out cruising
Boat: Island Packet 38
Posts: 31,351
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Re: 3-D printed propeller
Just found out he built this tug. Never knew that.
http://www.tugboatinformation.com/tug.cfm?id=9852
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