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3D Printed Wheels

3D Printed Wheels

Old 01-20-2015, 09:17 PM
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Default 3D Printed Wheels

I know that it is possible to 3D print a wheel for a touring car, but would it hold up in racing conditions?
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Old 01-20-2015, 09:25 PM
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Originally Posted by snoopyrc
I know that it is possible to 3D print a wheel for a touring car, but would it hold up in racing conditions?
My guess would be....NO.
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Old 01-20-2015, 09:37 PM
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Several of us have been printing various parts and struggling with durability.
Our parts printed using PLA have been too brittle, wheels would be toast with that material.
ABS is good but too flexible for wheels, you would have to be pretty beefy to make it work.

Test and let us know how you did.
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Old 01-20-2015, 09:41 PM
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They are printing houses, human jaws, all sorts of things. I think it can handle racing.
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Old 01-20-2015, 09:57 PM
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Originally Posted by hanzo3
They are printing houses, human jaws, all sorts of things. I think it can handle racing.
No it can't. I own Pro One Tires www.facebook.com/proonerc

Making wheels is more difficult than you think. There are many factors other than designing a cool wheel. The plastic used with 3D printing will not hold up. I have experience with 3D printers while working at my job (Microsoft).
Our wheels are injection molded with specific materials that hold up to the beating they take, the gluing process and mounting.

Steve
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Old 01-21-2015, 07:03 AM
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Thanks for the input guys. I guess the general consensus is "almost but not quite."
Hopefully the technology will be capable soon. I would like to be able to make US Vintage Trans Am and USGT wheels with BBS honeycomb patterns and Shelby AC Cobra patterns.
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Old 01-21-2015, 07:16 AM
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I saw a post where a guy had a .45 cal 1911 style pistol where all the major parts were printed. If that is possible then a metal prototype or master copy might be possible for injection molding.
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Old 01-21-2015, 09:10 AM
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Originally Posted by hanzo3
They are printing houses, human jaws, all sorts of things. I think it can handle racing.
While many things are possible, would 3d printing R/C wheels for racing be practical and/or cost effective? Probably not.

Post a picture or links of the wheels that you are trying to duplicate and maybe someone has seen them in 1:10 scale in the past. I recently found some 1:10 Firebird Bandit style wheels online, which surprised me. Maybe the wheels you want exist already.
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Old 01-21-2015, 09:49 AM
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I have made wheels in ABS on a Dimension 768 SST and in PLA on a Makerbot 2. They come out fine but are not durable enough for racing. They would be fine for drifting or driving in the street as long as you are careful. You probably could make some strong enough for racing but they would be ugly and heavy.
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Old 01-21-2015, 10:07 AM
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Greetings.C.P.E.-Crawford Performance Engineering does make wheel sets for the clod buster/ monster truck type vehicle. Though it's a differing genre of RC vehicle, 3D printing is possible ,but not as applicable as a composite type wheel that's cast or CNC'd. for TC racing-my $.02 in the spirit of the entreprenuere, try your hand at it if you're so inclined or so equipped.
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Old 01-21-2015, 10:15 AM
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Originally Posted by IndyRC_Racer
While many things are possible, would 3d printing R/C wheels for racing be practical and/or cost effective? Probably not...
Well, I'm glad to be wrong based on some of the responses. It is a least nice to know that I can at least get someone to make one-off wheels

So now that we know wheels can be made, do we know if they can be metal plated?
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Old 01-21-2015, 01:04 PM
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A Dutch invention is possible to print a skull just as hard as a real one:
http://www.cnet.com/news/woman-gets-...you-can-watch/


So yes, with the right materials (and printer) it is possible.
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Old 01-21-2015, 01:35 PM
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Originally Posted by Roelof
A Dutch invention is possible to print a skull just as hard as a real one:
http://www.cnet.com/news/woman-gets-...you-can-watch/


So yes, with the right materials (and printer) it is possible.
It's possible yes. But not practical. It's not about being hard enough. You need flexibility (a certain amount) in a wheel, you need it to be durable, and you need it to be light. As stated 3d printing methods will not yield durable enough results. You could use other materials but then you have issues with cost and weight.
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Old 01-21-2015, 01:41 PM
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wouldnt be verry cost efficient annyways....
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Old 01-21-2015, 01:59 PM
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It's possible to 3D print a rim with at least the same performance as a injection molded rim.
The problem is costs at the moment, a set will come in at around $200.

Two months ago I purchased my own, professional (SLA) 3D printer to speed up prototyping.
To calibrate (roundness) it I printed a RC rim:



The small flashings are from the supports which are needed during printing.

Because 3D printing gives complete freeness in terms of design I'm pretty sure you can design a rim which is much lighter but still has the strength to be used.
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