A really amazing machine arrived today
 

We've all heard about them and I was very skeptical. We got the 2 head unit so you can mold two different materials in the same part. For my kind of business this is going to be a very nice addition to our tooling department.

http://mintesfiles.com/gfy/makerbot_02.jpg

http://mintesfiles.com/gfy/makerbot_01.jpg

http://mintesfiles.com/gfy/makerbot_03.jpg

can it make fleshlights ?

Very cool man congrats!!

NOW BACK TO WORK. ;)

Would love to see you try and make a gun with it.

time to get to work!

http://mtv.mtvnimages.com/onair/beav...g?quality=0.85

Uhhh hhhh hrggg Hhuuhhh - You said 'Tooling' Huhhh Huhhhh....

I would imagine this is a high end industrial printer. Do you mind sharing the price tag, or the general price for a machine such as this? I've been reading reviews on printers for at home, and I'm still undecided. Do you have a personal recommendation that you could make for a home unit that's has some nice bells and whistles but doesn't have the price tag of an industrial version?

Thank you!

minte, how long does it take y'all to get an entirely new system like this online and making you money?

i want one :(

Here's the amazing machine:

i think you need one of these

3D printer?

Free cock rings all around

Not for Texans... I think it's maximum Z- capacity is 9"

nice purchase!

:1orglaugh:1orglaugh thats awesome

That was one of the concerns when I decided to get one. THey made it sound like you had to go to MIT for a semester to learn to use it.

It arrived this morning with FEDEX at around 10am and we made our first part which was the canned software makerbot emblem right after lunch. The 2 white pieces are pieces we already make in production and those were off our own solidworks models.

It's honestly one of the easiest machines to use that I've seen in years.

i need to pistols please :helpme

This is not a highend industrial machine It only acts like one!

With shipping and a couple of coils of plastic it was $3120.00


They make a single head for around $2. But having the ability to change durometers and colors in a part was well worth the extra. I did the research on these and the makerbot offered the largest size of part you can make, by a large margin.

If you ever need to outsource some Solidworks/Inventor work, let me know. :)

That's a nice price tag. I set aside 5k for an initial investment and have been reading reviews, forums, and articles every day looking for the perfect machine. I'm in no rush, and rushing at the same time. I know prices will come down in the future, but competition will rise. It's an interesting time for this industry.

We've been using outside sources for SLA part for about ten years and honestly, I wouldn't want to be in that business. These new generation of 3-d printers are nearly as good as machines that cost $1/4m in the early part of the decade.

Minte, does the sharpness/detail of the piece get better than what's shown ?
http://mintesfiles.com/gfy/makerbot_01.jpg

I am sure it will. The type and diameter of material and the speed and resolution is part of that learning curve.

How about a review? I've been thinking about investing in a 3d Printer.

I grew up doing machine work, step dad was a machinist. I'm thinking of getting this and making custom Harley parts. http://shopmasterusa.com/

I will in a week or two. We need to get some experience and really put it through the paces.

Makerbot is a consumer product. My Dad set his up the day he got it.

What's the difference between these plastic-fed printers and the industrial powder based prototypers? I have a $10,000 off coupon for a powder one..

I think this is amazing and will change the world in our lifetime.

Eventually people will be making their own parts in their own houses. No need to run to Home Depot to replace a part for my crapper like I did this weekend...

i mean in the production chain, how long till it's cranking out x # of widgets per hour for customers.

fully online and contributing to the bottomline.

Mostly the size of part you can make. Of the consumer based units, Makerbot has the largest parts envelope there is. Industrial SLA machines can do much larger prototypes.

I would bet it's more of a gadget for Minte and his company, but I'm sure they'll find some uses for it.

It really is simple. If you have your file ready to go, the machine could be pumping out whatever it is you want in a matter of hours.

My dad has only recently become somewhat computer literate. He rocks his Makerbot.

FYI, because this might be of interest to you but there are a few DIY film gear guys who've come up with neat gadgets or handles and what not, and are making and selling them on their Makerbots.

I would imagine he will end up finding lot of uses for it.

I used to work on both ends of that business. One place was an electronics manufacturing company. They spent a lot of money getting custom parts made for jobs. They would just a need a few and paid a premium price. I also worked at a small machine shop that mostly built custom parts.

Having a machine like this could eventually allow them to make many of the custom parts they need and save them a lot of money and time.

I don't know that they're made to withstand that sort of constant use. But I wouldn't be surprised.

It's a solid little machine.

Yeah, I don't know enough about them to know how well they stand up in an industrial setting, but they are pretty cool.

I saw a video a while back about a company that makes prosthetic for people who have lost limbs and how they are now making them using a 3D printer. He said the coolest part was that if someone has a part on their limb break they can just make a new one right then and have it that day instead of having to order it and wait for a few weeks or longer to come.

I would love to play around with them, but would probably end up just using it to make a sex doll of Jessica Alba :)

We have a urethane casting department and the biggest challenge for them is having a good core sample to make the molds around. Today we have to spend many hours of intricate cnc machining to get that done. We are right now building a new injection molding division and the ability to do a rapid proto in house will work well as a sales tool.

We all do...

I believe it will change the future of plastics manufacturing as much as CNC technology has. If you can go from a 3d model and make hundreds or maybe even thousands of parts and not have to spend 5 figures and 90 day lead time on an injection mold it will be a major change in how things are produced.

That would be a very cool sales tool. Being able to knock out a sample quickly and cheaply could be an invaluable asset.

This is the only real viable fiction I can think of. I was wondering why you bought it, sounds like it will be definitely worth the cost now.

nice,
can it print gun ?

whats its price tag like?

yes. it can

This is not a highend industrial machine It only acts like one!

With shipping and a couple of coils of plastic it was $3120.00


They make a single head for around $2. But having the ability to change durometers and colors in a part was well worth the extra. I did the research on these and the makerbot offered the largest size of part you can make, by a large margin.

Can it make another machine that can make things though?

It only melts plastic.. It would be difficult to make manufacturing machines without some steel in it.

Last I looked the machines were 2-3K but the plastic was around 50.00 per KG. if you aren't selling the items you make, 50 per KG for the plastic gets pricey fast. Maker bot debuted a new 3D scanner last year which is due out soon and the rumor is later this year they will debut a machine capable of recycling your printed items back into plastic to make a new item. The moment someone makes a unit for 2-3K than can scan 3D items and recycle items back into reusable plastic... the entire world will change.

does it require a CAD drawing to work from or can it take direct input similar to a CNC lathe/mill?

So far we have only used 3d model from Solidworks into their operating system.

cool stuff