He'll be making some custom car parts. That involves dividing the model into chunks (with holes for steel alignment pins) small enough to fit within the working envelope of the 3D printer, then gluing the chunks together to make the master for a silicon mold. The glued pieces will need putty and sanding to hide the seams. But based on what I've seen produced so far, the amount of assembly work will be minimal.

Ed

Hello Ed,

if I read that you use PLA and your son will make some molds I recalled to a video on YT:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWVVSZP3Au4
Maybe an also interesting aspect:-)

Have a nice day
Karsten

Hi Ed - custom car parts is a great use for 3D printing!

- Michael

Karsten - That's an interesting video and his cast aluminum piece based on a 3D print came out better than I expected.

Usually a piece like that that mates to other surfaces in a precision application is cast oversize and then machined to the final dimensions. Because his piece is not very large or complex, it would appear easier to simply machine it entirely from a single billet. But maybe he didn't have access to a milling machine. A piece that has complex curves would be a good candidate for his process.

Ed

Hello Ed,

in opinion, it is fascinating to go back- with CAD and a 3D-Printer of corse - to a 5000 year old method.
I agree with you, that the part isn't the best choice, but the video shows very detailed the process - and
his result is impressive. Some day I have to test it ...

Have a nice day
Karsten