5 Feb
2012
5 Feb
'12
4:41 p.m.
On Sun, Feb 5, 2012 at 3:26 PM, Richard <legalize at xmission.com> wrote:
I love how I simply suggested that you contact pocket
factory if you
want to try out this process and everyone who's never used one of
these printers comes out of the woodwork and starts whining about how
it will never work.
I haven't come out of the woodwork, but I've built and operated
multiple hobby-grade Fused Filament Deposition printers, I run the
2+-year-old local Makerbot and RepRap user group, and I speak at
conventions on the technology. I also own PDP-11s and PDP-8s with
front panels and would like to find a new source of toggle handles.
With that, I don't think FFD will make very "nice" toggles. Among
other things, there are limits to the hobby-grade machines, including
not being able to do overhangs (including hidden pockets) over 45
degrees. This affects how one designs the shape and in what
orientation one attempts to print. Higher-end printers do "support
material", as will the just-released-weeks-ago Makerbot Replicator
(where PVA support material experimentation is in its infancy). Also,
the injection-molded DEC toggle handles have their own molded pivot
pins (which do occasionally break off), which are so small that they
would not be strong enough with any 3D printing technique. There are
alternatives (like piano wire pivots), but it complicates the effort.
I guess they'd rather bitch about how there's
no supply of toggle
switches and they'll never get replacement switches for their
PDP-11/PDP-8 front panels.
I have yet to see anyone post an STL file of the toggle handle shape
(with or without pivot pips, with or without a hole for a metal pivot
wire). If somone who has CAD skills (not me - I make printers not
object designs) wants to tackle the shape, I can evaluate it for
printableness.
It's not "impossible", but in my experience of working with 3D
printers, low end printers will have problems making that shape with
sufficient fidelity and strength and high end printers will produce
nicer results at a substantially higher expense (potentially multiple
dollars per toggle). As a cost comparison - someone recently wanted
to see how much it would cost to use stereolithography (liquid resin)
versions of parts to make a Mendelmax printer. A company in Colorado
sells an entire FFD part set, ready to use for $85. The bid for
stereolithography for the same parts was $1500 ($800 of which was the
resin). Nice parts cost money.
One can bang out something that will probably work on a cheap printer.
It will not look as nice as a molded part. It will not even closely
match color unless you want to pay for a 25lb custom run of color
filament (at $15/lb). You can make many thousands of toggle handles
from 25lbs of plastic, but you still have to make them
one at a time
(though you could split the spools of filament amongst multiple
printers for volume).
Any other questions?
-ethan