UTAH (and Surrounding Areas) BS Thread

Yes Sir!

Its not the best, but for larger items, it offers a pretty good resolution. Here are some pics of when I scanned my spindle. I ultimately wanted to build some beefy 4x4 spindles but Camburg beat me to it. My cost would have been roughly the same as what camburg charged ~1500$.

I bult a turntable to spin the spindle as it is scanned. This software works better the more times an object is rotated. So I put the Kinect on a tripod and then raised it to different levels as the spindle was turned.


More info on https://skanect.occipital.com/


Scanning is easy, its all the point cloud manipulation you need to do after to actually engineer something.
Scan Item-> Get point cloud data and create a mesh -> import mesh into solidworks.

Solidworks doesnt work with meshes very well so the mesh is just a starting point. You basically need to create an assembly that has your mesh, and then you add a blank part to that assembly that you can design your part off of. What the internet doesn't tell you about 3d scanning is all the post processing that is required in order to re-engineer something off of a scan.

If you just want to scan an object or person, and then create a .stl to 3d print, that is quite easy.

 

I was also trying to build my own long travel kit back in the day.. Our basement remodel took over.

This kit would of had flipped uniballs. You gain more travel and are limited by the CV angle instead of the Uniball cup. You can easily get 14+" by flipping the uniballs.

The sketches dont look like much but the UCA and LCA mounting points and CV angles are just the start. Then adjusting the control arm lengths to account for bump steer while still not binding the CV.

If I had a CNC plasma available, this would be a fun side project as an upgrade from my Chaos kit. Not having the required equipment make prototyping hard for this type of thing. You know it won't work the first time.

 

Okay, so quick stupid question... What kind of material are you using that would stand up to the stresses of a cast or machined steel part? And isn't there any worry about the part breaking in a situation where people might be harmed?

 

Steel. MIG or TIG welded together with some gussets would be more than sufficient. Camburg’s spindles are just MIG welded mild steel. All just plate steel cut on a laser or waterjet and then bent, assembled, and welded.

 

3D printed steel??? I thought they could only do plastic. I guess the tech has changed...

Or have I just lost the entire thread of the conversation?

 

No just mig or Tig mild steel. Titanium can be 3d printed but those machines cost 100K. When I was looking into doing my own Long travel kit it would have just been out of Laser cut or plasma cut mild steel. Chromoly is also an option, but not required.

Pretty much all vehicles are made out of Mild steel with some aluminum parts. The tacoma frame is only 1/8" - 3/16" thick.

What I was talking about in 3d printing was new headlight bezels to mount some Jeep Headlights. I would 3d scan the stock headlights and then build my own prototype which would require a 3d printer to get the correct body contours.

 

Yep, then they did a shitty job at getting them powdercoated. Overspray everywhere on the machined surfaces.

 

Yeah, and I'm assuming the headlights would be plastic... so maybe that is where I got lost. You started talking about spindles and I'm going "WHOA there!!!"

So just to be clear... you are talking about a machine that lays a Tig or Mig bead to built a part...

And I'm having trouble getting my brand new 110 wire feed Lincoln welder to lay a bead... (facepalm)

 

For doing the long travel kit I would have built a jig and then welded the joints myself. That's how all long travel kits and upper control arms are made. No machine. It's all done by hand. Even companies like total chaos and camburg do the welding by hand.

The jig keeps the parts in place to maintain alignment. Doing it by hand, you need to let the part cool and alternate stitching the weld joints to prevent warping.

A lot of science is behind welding and welding method.

Can't go wrong with welding steel, the weld strength is essentially the material strength. Aluminum is a whole other beast. Aluminum loses about 2/3 of its strength at the welded joint. You can get this strength back by heat treatment but that is hard to do for large pieces.

 

We switched from headlights to spindles. You cut flat sheets of steel and then weld them together. You don’t 3D print anything of it.

 

That pisses me off so bad. Not that I really care about the paint because I’m going to mess it up anyways, but if you’re going to do it and charge me then do the shit right.

 

That’s impressive. I’m sure there will be a day when 3D printers will be in every home that wants one.

 

Probably in the next decade it will be sitting in garage right next to your tool box like a gaming console next to the TV in the living room.

 

This!!!
I am loving my new Miller 211 but there is more to know then meets the eye when it comes to being a competent welder/fabricator.

 

Millers are such great machines. Ever since I borrowed my brother's 215 I've been trying to justify needing my own.

 

Any mechanic recommendations for a trans drain and fill?

 

I like Star Boys in Draper. Learned about them when Geoff Beers said that's where he takes his own truck for oil changes etc. Not sure you can get much better of a recommendation.

 

I agree. I have done a lot of 3d printer research lately and I might end up building a kit to get my headlight mod started. The printers from $1K- 6K don't offer much except for a help line you can call. Print quality is roughly the same. I am pretty mechanically inclined and I have a large background in mechanical/ electro assemblies. I don't mind tinkering with the printer to get it right.

For larger parts the filament printers are the way to go. For intricate/ detailed parts, a Resin printer would be what you would want.

Hopefully in the next 10 years, metal printers (laser sintering) will be cheap enough to have at home.

 

A couple of years ago I bought my Hobart 212. Hobart is the budget Miller. I wanted something I could easily get parts for without paying a premium. The drive wheel actually says Miller on it.

The response is similar to the Miller I grew up on. I run the Argon /C02 mix with it.

 

I've had three Lincoln welders now, and the first two were trouble free and did everything I needed (no gas) so I bought the third expecting better. But the wire surges and nothing I have tried has made it consistent. I'm beginning to suspect a cheapening of the manufacturing process to use cheaper parts to save money (beancounter syndrome) which it seems all good companies go through occasionally.