[MakeLV] Newbie

Sun Jul 29 17:59:42 CDT 2012

Dave,

Thanks for the suggestion.  I have a lathe, mill, and have made gears  and 
splines.  Cutting a worm wheel is a piece of cake, if you can get a  steel 
replica of the worm.  You just gash the correct number of notches in  the 
wheel, set it up on a pivot on the lathe table.  Gash the worm to make  it into 
a cutter, and hob the finished part.  

But, I took down the drive unit and inspected it.  Both the worm and  worm 
wheel would need replacing.     Another gear is cracked  radially, and will 
be next to fail.  I don't want to undertake finding  or making all of those 
unavailable parts.  My garage is HOT in  August.

Tomorrow, I raid the sugar bowl for funds to have a new one put in.

Thanks for sharing my worries.  Feel free to ping me for whatever help  I 
might be able to provide.

Pat

===================================

In a message dated 7/29/2012 3:05:06 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
david at davincisciencecenter.org writes:

Also,  depending on your machine shop skills, Matt has a lathe  available.

Dave

On Sun, Jul 29, 2012 at 2:55 PM, <_JWDoyleJr at aol.com_ 
(mailto:JWDoyleJr at aol.com) > wrote:

There was a day when I would accept a short-life part, but my  aching body 
complains so much about the lifting of the unit that I  don't want to do it 
again -- ever.  (Last Fall, I lifted more than the  rated load for my back, 
and broke it -- compression fracture of  vertebra.)  Life is too short to 
torture yourself.

I explored the parts suppliers, and asked if the newer parts could be  used 
on the old machines.  Answer was, "NO" but I may order one to see  if it 
can be modified.  They look exactly like the one you  printed.  If all else 
fails, I may be back with you for a sample.   <grin>

========================

In a message dated 7/29/2012 1:43:59 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, 
_david at davincisciencecenter.org_ (mailto:david at davincisciencecenter.org)  writes:

Pat,  

I printed it on a MakerBot Thing-O-Matic 
_http://wiki.makerbot.com/thingomatic_ (http://wiki.makerbot.com/thingomatic) .  The newest  MakerBot is 
~$1800 and comes pre-assembled  (mine was ~15 hours of  assembly).  They are not 
hard to use at all if you are not hyper  about the output, but some people 
find they are very fussy to tune for  optimal performance.

I printed Ellis's gear in ABS.  3-D  prints are strong in the plane of the 
layer, weak between layers.  We  haven't tried Ellis's gear yet, but he was 
confident it was strong  enough.  An ABS gear is by no means a replacement 
for a steel gear in  terms of durability, of course, but since you are 
printing your own,   you can just print a new one if it wears out in a year (or 
even in a  month) - it's about $0.10, maybe less, for the plastic and 
electricity to  print one. 

Dave

On Sat, Jul 28, 2012 at 10:48 AM, <_JWDoyleJr at aol.com_ 
(mailto:JWDoyleJr at aol.com) > wrote:

Dave,

Thanks for your prompt response.  I don't know a printer  owner, 
personally, but there are job shops in the area who would do the  job for hundreds of 
dollars, I suppose.  Looking at this as an  excuse to buy a new toy, what 
kind of printer did you use, and what  kind of learning curve is involved in 
getting one up and running?

My take on the art and science is that it is relatively easy to  make 
objects from fragile materials, but much more difficult to produce  durable parts 
like gears.  What material did you use for Ellis's  gear?

Pat

======================================

In a message dated 7/28/2012 9:25:44 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, 
_david at davincisciencecenter.org_ (mailto:david at davincisciencecenter.org)  writes:

HI Pat and welcome to Make Lehigh Valley.  I'm the guy who  printed the 
garage door part and I'd be happy to print the part for  you as well, but it's 
likely going to be a month before I can get to  it because I run teacher 
workshops and I'm booked solid for the next  three weeks. If you know someone 
else with a printer, I'm sure Ellis  or I can send them the part file.  

By way of intro, I'm a  geologist and civil engineer turned science 
educator.  I work at  the Da Vinci Science Center in Allentown.  My interests, in  
addition to 3-D printing, are in model railroading, gardening, Arduino  and 
other microcontrollers for automated science data collection and  citizen 
science, djembe drumming, and pretty much anything mechanical  (automata, 
robots, tools, etc.).

Dave Smith

On Sat, Jul 28, 2012 at 7:08 AM, <_JWDoyleJr at aol.com_ 
(mailto:JWDoyleJr at aol.com) > wrote:

Let me introduce myself to the list.

I am a retired USAF officer with degrees in aero engineering  and 
mechanical engineering, plus an MBA.  I have tools and  projects related to 
metalworking -- lathe, mill, welding, etc.

I found this list while searching for a part for a Sears garage  door 
opener, and found that I was not alone in seeking a pat that  Sears no longer has 
available.  (81C14)  Following that  lead, I found that a MakeLehigh lister 
had arranged to replicate the  part using a 3D printer.

So, there was a convergence of my real-world need for a gear,  and my 
latest obsession -- 3D printers.  I hope this goes far  beyond my need for a 
little gear, and on to a lively discussion roup  interested in all applications 
of new technology.

Pat

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484-664-1002 x111
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