3 ms·
What they did at SpaceX, at least if I recall correctly, was use a powder metal bath and a platform, then would use a laser to melt a pattern into the top of th
by Sir_Cmpwn 7y ago
What they did at SpaceX, at least if I recall correctly, was use a powder metal bath and a platform, then would use a laser to melt a pattern into the top of the powder, then retract the platform a bit, shake it up to get powder evenly distributed again, then go over it again with the laser for the next layer. This design allowed for extremely precise, flight-grade hardware to be printed, and doesn't seem especially out-of-reach for a dedicated hobbyist either.
- antisemiotic 7y agoThat's just garden variety selective laser melting, nothing specific to Space-X. Though I've never heard of "shaking it up", the standard way to apply powder is to use a moving arm with a powder feed. For a hobbyist, I'd expect these could be a problem: * Lasers that can melt metal are expensive and dangerous. * Optics for such high powers are also expensive. * Atmosphere control is a must, you don't want oxygen near metal powder under a laser. I think at this point it would be better to start your own company and earn money from it, it seems a bit much for a fun garage project. EDIT: There was a hobbyist project for an electron beam 3d printer posted to HN some time ago, maybe that would be more achievable (at least the beam shuts down itself if air enters the working area. The potential for implosion seems nasty though).
- ofrzeta 7y agoThey are using EOS machines https://www.eos.info/systems_solutions/metal https://www.eos.info/systems_solutions/metal