# playing with the new printer



## btboone (Apr 6, 2008)

I got a T66 3D wax printer from Solidscape, and it made the wax model for this ring.  It starts as a CAD file and is output in an stl (stereolithography) format of tiny surface triangles that the printer software can read.  It then slices up the model into tiny height increments like a CAT scan.  It will print those layers, one on top of another using jets of molten wax about as fine as a spider web until the full part is done.  It mills the surface flat inbetween each layer and lowers the table to get ready for the next level.  It takes tons of time to do, but it can run unattended overnight.  The finished wax part is then sent off for casting.  This one is stainless steel, but my subsequent ones will be titanium.  Titanium has to be cast in a vacuum because it tends to light up like fireworks in the presence of oxygen.  The ring took tons of hand finishing.  I left the upper part beadblast because it's about impossible to polish between the posts.  The shape is something that really can't be made by any other method.  I'm trying to make parts like that in a new series of rings.  I'm printing some pen parts now too.


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## TellicoTurning (Apr 6, 2008)

> _Originally posted by btboone_
> 
> I got a T66 3D wax printer from Solidscape, and it made the wax model for this ring.  It starts as a CAD file and is output in an stl (stereolithography) format of tiny surface triangles that the printer software can read.  It then slices up the model into tiny height increments like a CAT scan.  It will print those layers, one on top of another using jets of molten wax about as fine as a spider web until the full part is done.  It mills the surface flat inbetween each layer and lowers the table to get ready for the next level.  It takes tons of time to do, but it can run unattended overnight.  The finished wax part is then sent off for casting.  This one is stainless steel, but my subsequent ones will be titanium.  Titanium has to be cast in a vacuum because it tends to light up like fireworks in the presence of oxygen.  The ring took tons of hand finishing.  I left the upper part beadblast because it's about impossible to polish between the posts.  The shape is something that really can't be made by any other method.  I'm trying to make parts like that in a new series of rings.  I'm printing some pen parts now too.



Huh??
Makes sense to me.[][]


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## Tanner (Apr 6, 2008)

Wow Bruce you keep coming up with some great looking pieces.


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## rdunn12 (Apr 6, 2008)

WOW awesome work!


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## alamocdc (Apr 6, 2008)

That looks sweet, Bruce![^]


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## turned_for_good (Apr 6, 2008)

I would kill for one of those printers.  I think I first read about them in Popular Science or Pop. Mechanincs.


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## btboone (Apr 7, 2008)

The printer is a very cool thing.  It's not much bigger than a normal laser jet printer.  It was pretty expensive, so it will be quite a while before I see any return on that investment! [:0]

Here's the wax parts.  It actually prints both red and blue wax.  The red is a support structure to be sure the blue stays accurate.  It melts at a lower temperature than the blue, and gets dissolved away by some hot solvent in a bowl on a stirring hot plate.  The parts are supposed to be accurate to within .001" per inch.  Being real wax, they work very well for lost wax casting, whereas the models made by the laser hardening liquid polymer method sometimes have issues during burnout of the wax from the plaster mold.  This material burns out very well and doesn't expand with moisture.  It is very fragile though.


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## thewishman (Apr 7, 2008)

Elegant and beautiful.

Chris


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## Tanner (Apr 7, 2008)

Bruce, I have to tell you, you truely are at the top of your craft.  These blue wax part shapes are very inventive.


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## PenWorks (Apr 7, 2008)

Rapid prototyping is amazing. Especially if you know how to work it!
Great job Bruce. You always come up with the neat stuff.


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## Johnathan (Apr 7, 2008)

Different, unique, and amazing...it must be a Boone ring! (or pen)[8D]


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## fiferb (Apr 7, 2008)

Very Cool. Keep pushing the envelope, Bruce!


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## Rifleman1776 (Apr 7, 2008)

Very exciting stuff. I'm not a techy geek but love the results.


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## Malainse (Apr 7, 2008)

That ring is out of the BOX, Very cool..  I saw that printer for sale at Wallyworld..[)]


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## Ligget (Apr 7, 2008)

Bruce that is AWESOME, your at the top of your game just now![:0][]


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## NavyDiver (Apr 7, 2008)

Bruce, have you done one that looks like a turks head knot?


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## Aderhammer (Apr 7, 2008)

Very nice work Bruce.  These machines are cool as we have an stl machine in our engineering lab at my highschool.  I'm the only one in the class that's actually run it though(i'm to far ahead so i'm doing extra parts for my teacher)What specific CAD program are you using?  I'm trained in Inventor 2008 but may self teach myself Autodesk.


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## Ron in Drums PA (Apr 7, 2008)

Okay, I want one!


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## Nolan (Apr 7, 2008)

Can you put burl in those????     Awesome as always Bruce!!![:0]


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## btboone (Apr 7, 2008)

Nolan, funny you should say that.  We've been thinking of doing the Skewed Square ring with a wood inlay! 

Eric, I haven't done a Turk's Head knot as of yet, but I will be doing some sort of 3D knot as my next one.  Here's a picture of a simpler loop one I'm also working on.

Andrew, I use Inventor, Mechanical Desktop, and Rhino to do the 3D models.


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## Nolan (Apr 7, 2008)

> _Originally posted by btboone_
> 
> Nolan, funny you should say that.  We've been thinking of doing the Skewed Square ring with a wood inlay!



Thats what I want to hear.


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## papaturner (Apr 7, 2008)

Bruce you continue to amaze.........AWESOME ring.


Perry


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## aurrida (Apr 8, 2008)

wow! are you designing any new pens bruce? i always look forward to seeing what you come up with next.


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## btboone (Apr 8, 2008)

Darren, right now I'm doing one for Brian Gisi that he designed.  It's extremely detailed.  I've been too busy with rings to design a pen here lately.  They usually take weeks of design time.  I do have some sketchy concepts that I'd like to follow up on sometime though.  The biggest thing would be to come up with mechanisms that are part of the pen body.  Maybe something like a camera iris that has 6 parts that retract in a spiral fashion to expose the pen nib; stuff like that might now be possible.


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## aurrida (Apr 8, 2008)

now that would be truly unique, now i really cant wait to see that one.


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## broitblat (Apr 8, 2008)

Both the process and the result are really cool!  Thanks for sharing.

  -Barry


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## Rojo22 (Apr 10, 2008)

Very cool stuff!


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## btboone (Apr 10, 2008)

Come on by if you want to see it Robert.  It's a really slick machine.


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## ashaw (Apr 10, 2008)

Bruce
Nancy and I had a wonderful time Thursday.  You are producing some fantastic rings.
I love your shop, it is a tool mans heaven.  Keep up the great work.


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## Rojo22 (Apr 15, 2008)

> _Originally posted by btboone_
> 
> Come on by if you want to see it Robert.  It's a really slick machine.



Bruce, I would love to come by when I get some time!  I will send you an email, when I get a Saturday that is open. Woohooo!


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## btboone (Apr 15, 2008)

I think my next project will be a ring that's a working adjustable wrench.   Should be cool.


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## twoofakind (Apr 16, 2008)

Those look neat Bruce, it really opens up the possibilities for your rings(which were superb to begin with).
Andy


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