3D Printed Fenders

[KTMracer]

After a few days of trying to make some fenders out of wood, I realized fenders would be 10x easier if they were 3D printed. Therefore after a ten minute mock up and a quick low-res print job, I made this:

I printed this really thick and with 10% infill, so I don't even have a good estimate for weight. These are 5.1 grams, but I'm guessing the 1 to 2 gram range shouldn't be too hard to reach.

I've hit a snag on my design though. I really want a set that looks like these:

Or Bulldogs:

If anybody would be interested in sending me some good pictures/dimensions of their fenders, I'd be willing to print them a couple sets as long as I can print a couple sets for myself. Don't worry, I won't sell your design or anything. I really just want some nice fenders for the scout race. Unless my schedule drastically changes, I highly doubt I'll be able to make any NPWDRL races this year. PM if your interested.

 

[Quicktimederby]

Very cool! I think 3D printing is going to take over the wold! I was very close to buying one this last Christmas. Money went to buying the league. Maybe this Christmas.

 

[aircooled]

Looks like the next new thing for 3D printing. Great job!

 

[~JBD RACING~]

New can of Worms lol

 

[HurriCrane Racing]

yeah, this is gonna happen soon. Only catch will be if the weight can be reduced.

 

[Kinser Racing]

New can of Worms lol

+1

 

[zigzag]

I am working on something similar - I think this will be a lot faster to produce, repeatable, etc.

 

[LostAussie]

Either 3D printing or a desktop CNC mill like pocketnc. Some of the different ones shown in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6g9eTP5H1Q look interesting as heads can be switch from mill to laser cutter to 3D printing.

Anyone doing any stuff with a CNC mill?

 

[bracketracer]

If I only had a spare four grand laying around right now! lol

Those machines are destined to be as common as a microwave oven in the near future.

 

[ngyoung]

So how many hours did it take for the printer to make this? To get more light weight try going the airplane route and just make a frame with ribs then skin it with vinyl or monokote. Or just make it a shell with ribs for integrity.

My prediction for 3d printers is that they will be end up like paper printers and the material will cost a fortune to refill.

 

[Vitamin K]

So how many hours did it take for the printer to make this? To get more light weight try going the airplane route and just make a frame with ribs then skin it with vinyl or monokote. Or just make it a shell with ribs for integrity. My prediction for 3d printers is that they will be end up like paper printers and the material will cost a fortune to refill.

Most 3D printers use a standard filament spool that can be made by several vendors. So, there's not the cartridge lock-in that you see with inkjets.

That said, I'm sure that some marketer someplace is trying to think of a way to fix that... /images/boards/smilies/wink.gif

 

[KTMracer]

This is the first finished car with the printed fender. The single fenders are Gee fenders from John, but the middle fender is printed.

 

[Kinser Racing]

Whoa man! That wheel gap on the front wheel is way to big.

Nice car!

 

[GravityX]

Interesting car! Are those mock up axles? They look painted.

 

[KTMracer]

I put some dummy axles in the axle slots before I sprayed it. I just stuck some junk wheels on those axles to get the full effect of how the fender fits. I'm not using those wheels or axles on the final car. In fact, you can see some super glue strings on the front wheel. /images/boards/smilies/wink.gif

 

[KTMracer]

Whoa man! That wheel gap on the front wheel is way to big.

Nice car!

Thanks for the heads up! I printed it with 1mm gaps front and back, but then I realized I could push the fender against the back wheel since it's dead. Now I have a 2mm gap. /images/boards/smilies/frown.gif What is a good gap and how do you plan on a gap for the front wheel if you haven't tuned it yet?

 

[TRE]

build them by hand out of balsa

 

[Kinser Racing]

Thanks for the heads up! I printed it with 1mm gaps front and back, but then I realized I could push the fender against the back wheel since it's dead. Now I have a 2mm gap. /images/boards/smilies/frown.gif What is a good gap and how do you plan on a gap for the front wheel if you haven't tuned it yet?

I was acccually joking about the axle sticking out. Your issue with that gap would be the biggest problem with having a pre printed, one piece center fender. There are wheelbase and wheel size variables to contend with.