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Author Topic: 3D Printing a quick guide  (Read 6372 times)

essex2visuvesi

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3D Printing a quick guide
« on: March 17, 2016, 10:54:41 pm »


In this guide I will go through the design and printing of a simple speaker Enclosure.  This is not intended to be acoustically correct, more a exercise in the design process


Part 1 - The design Phase


For simple parts I use an free online tool called tinkercad. (www.tinkercad.com)  This is very simple to use and an evening spend going through the tutorials will pay dividends.  There are other much more powerful applications available but in this instance I will use tinkercad as it is very easy to grasp and simple models can be created quickly with little cad or technical drawing skills.


This is tinkercad:-



I then Selected a box



The box can then be resized to the correct dimensions



Now we have a box that is to the dimensions we require. We need to make a hole in it, so I created another box the size of the inner dimensions and assigned it as a hole



The hole is then moved into the box



The hole and the box are then grouped together and we we end up with an open box



Using more boxes I have added some reinforcement to the corners where the top will screw down



Next up is the lid
The lid is simply 2 boxes stacked on top of one another



Then some screw holes. These were created by manipulating the cylinder tool and assigning them as a hole.



Now the speaker opening. I created the opening by manipulating the cylinder to the correct dimensions



This is then placed into the lid



once the piece is converted to a Hole we end up with this



Total time taken to design this (while also writing the notes and taking screenshots) was less than an hour


That’s it for this instalment


In the next instalment I will talk about how to export the model and preparing for 3d printing

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Capt Podge

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #1 on: March 18, 2016, 01:11:22 am »

Thanks very much for sharing this with us E2V.

I'll see if I can download the programme later today and give it a go O0 :-))

Looking forward to the next instalment already....

Regards,

Ray.
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essex2visuvesi

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #2 on: March 18, 2016, 01:48:19 am »

The good thing about tinkercad is that there is nothing to download.  Its browser based so you can access it from anywhere. all the files are stored online as well.
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Charlie

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #3 on: March 18, 2016, 08:50:05 am »

Thanks for putting this together E2V, this is just what i (and i suspect lot's of others) am looking for. At this stage i don't want to invest in my own Printer, but i would like to be able to design my own fittings, and get them printed out by a 3D company.


Charlie

essex2visuvesi

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #4 on: March 18, 2016, 12:05:42 pm »

Tinkercad is great for making simple parts quickly.
The only issue I have with it is that it will not work in Google Chrome on the iMac.  Its something to do with plugins which I have not really investigated. Firefox or Safari is fine tho.


On Windows I don't think there are any issues, but any feedback on what it does and doesn't work on would be appreciated

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Martin (Admin)

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #5 on: June 26, 2016, 10:23:42 pm »


Hey E2V!
I've been going through the learning videos .... with some success.....!


Quote
The hole and the box are then grouped together and we we end up with an open box

How do yo ensure everything aligned?

 
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SailorGreg

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #6 on: September 19, 2016, 11:16:02 pm »

Hey E2V, what do I do next?  I have a design for a small part in Sketchup and have registered with Shapeways, but an initial flick through their site suggests they need files in a format other than the .skp that Sketchup produces.  Is there another stage before I send a file to Shapeways? (Or have I just not read the instructions properly?   %) )  Or should I have used a different 3D package?  If so, which one?  Oh, so hard for a beginner!  :embarrassed:

I know I could ask Shapeways but I thought I might get an answer here in terms I can understand!

Thanks

Greg

Kim

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #7 on: September 20, 2016, 12:11:53 am »

Hi,
If you have designed in sketchup you need to convert to an extension used by shapeways, pretty straight forwards conversion.
Where you might run in to difficulty is where curves are involved.
Happy to have a look .
Kim MacLean
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tsenecal

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #8 on: September 20, 2016, 04:48:56 am »

Hey E2V, what do I do next?  I have a design for a small part in Sketchup and have registered with Shapeways, but an initial flick through their site suggests they need files in a format other than the .skp that Sketchup produces.  Is there another stage before I send a file to Shapeways? (Or have I just not read the instructions properly?   %) )  Or should I have used a different 3D package?  If so, which one?  Oh, so hard for a beginner!  :embarrassed:

I know I could ask Shapeways but I thought I might get an answer here in terms I can understand!

Thanks

Greg

I use sketchup as my 3d design tool as well, and exporting to STL file format was mandatory for me to use my 3d printer, so...

while in shapeways, go to the "Extension Warehouse"  i am using a Mac, and in my version, it is in the "Window" menu.

when in the "Extension Warehouse", look for "Sketchup STL"  an extension by "the sketchup team".  this extension allows for both exporting (for sending files to places like shapeways and thingiverse) and importing (for you to manipulate files you download from places like thingiverse)

after downloading the extension from the extension warehouse, then go to the preferences dialog for sketchup, select "Extensions", then click on the "Install Extension..." button.  then look for the file you just downloaded...

now when you use sketchup, there will be an "Export STL..." option in the file menu.  that is what you use to save your file in the format that shapeways can work with.
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SailorGreg

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #9 on: September 22, 2016, 06:22:43 pm »

Thanks guys for the responses.  tsenecal, I have looked on the Shapeways site for the Extensions Warehouse but can't find it - the only tabs I have to choose from are "Shop", "Make" and "Community", none of which seem to have the Extensions Warehouse in their menus. Not sure what I am missing, can't believe that is only available on a Mac.

I have also re-done my (very simple) design in Tinkercad as recommended by E2V.  I can download that file in a format that suits Shapeways, so it looks like I am good to go.  However, I see Kim you do a 3D printing service, so I think I will fire off a PM to you to see if we can do business!

Thanks again guys

Greg

tsenecal

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #10 on: September 22, 2016, 10:10:20 pm »

Greg,


i am an idiot, i just re-read my post.   it should read "while in sketchup", not "while in shapeways".


sorry for that.  the rest of the menu choices are all also in sketchup, not shapeways.
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SailorGreg

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Re: 3D Printing a quick guide
« Reply #11 on: September 22, 2016, 10:35:14 pm »

Ah yes, got it now.  Thanks.

Greg
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