3D Printing

[Ralph]

I tried a few searches and did not find any topics about 3D printing. I purchased a QIDI X-Plus printer a few months ago. I've kept it fairly busy mostly with downloaded files of small toys for my little nephew. I've done a few simple designs with FreeCAD but so far have only manipulated the built in primitives. I have much to learn yet on that front. My most recent print was a box to fit a Pi 1A that is itself in a small plastic case. My box holds the case from moving too much with some extra space to fit a 120 volt connection to a relay HAT. I have to drill a couple holes in the box (haven't learned to make holes with FreeCAD yet) and the whole thing will be nicely insulated. Sometime later I may redesign the case with holes printed.

To date I've only used PLA filament, mostly Hatchbox. The printer came with a second extruder for high temperature plastics, but for now I decided to stick with PLA. A few downloaded files were challenging to print correctly, but some research and tinkering with the advanced settings in the slicer solved a few issues,. Quite a few of the other settings are still best guesses.

One of the projects I look forward to is a 3D printed functional clock, but I think a little more practice is in order before taking that on. Any ideas, suggestions?

 

[Mervyn Haynes]

I look forward to is a 3D printed functional clock,

I saw online a saw years ago a 3D file for a digital sundial. That would be fun to print.
just found this.

Digital Sundial by Mojoptix

The episode in [ENGLISH]: http://www.mojoptix.com/?p=108L'épisode en [FRANCAIS]: http://www.mojoptix.com/?p=75Note: To see more inventions and contraptions, suscribe to Mojoptix on Youtube ![ ENGLISH ]Tadam !A Sundial displaying the time inside its shadow, with actual digits ! There is a tiny...

www.thingiverse.com

 

[Ralph]

Thanks for the link. I've had an interest in sundials but the problem I ran into was what to make them out of that would hold up to weather. I tried oak with marine varnish but eventually the varnish peeled and the end was near. From what I've gathered 3D plastics, especially the PLA I've been using is not ideal for outdoor use. On the other hand it is easy to just re-print something.

I did print a couple small flower boxes out of PLA that are outside day and night, so that may be a fair test of PLA vs weather. The one sundial I made that has survived outdoors 7x24 for a couple years used a ceramic tile as a base. Many carbide wheels on my Dremel later I made somewhat noticeable lines to mark the hours. Much more time and bits later I drilled a hole on the tile's center and used a brass wire and nuts to form the gnomen (sp) and bent it to the proper angle. It's not winning any art awards!

I've had a couple ideas for 3D printed sundials, but so far my CAD skills are not up to the task. One idea was to have a rotatable arm with a thin gap to let sun through. You would rotate the arm until a 'sliver' of sunlight would illuminate a time scale. Not sure how moving parts would hold up outdoors though. Guess I need to spend more time learning CAD.

 

[PHolder]

hold up outdoors

One option, though much more expensive, would be to prototype with what you have, and then when you find something you like, send out the design to be 3D printed on a metal sintering 3D printer. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selective_laser_melting Some place like https://craftcloud3d.com/ would be the place to start for that, I think.

 

[SeanBZA]

Easier than sending out is to simply 3D print it, with a minimal infill, and simply use it as a pattern for lost PLA moulding, in any metal you care for that will survive. Brass and bronze are the most common, but a lot these days are alubronze, where a good portion of the alloy is aluminium in copper and tin, which comes up and looks like brass.

 

[PHolder]

Easier than sending out

I know little about working with metal beyond what I have learned from "How It's Made" and the like on TV. What I have seen is people using chemically impregnated sand molds, crucibles, high temperature furnaces, vibrating tables, sand blasting, CNC trimming, etc. Sure one COULD have all that at home, but unless it's your business, how often are you going to be using it for something around the house... how many sun dials does one actually need??

 

[Barry Wallis]

how many sun dials does one actually need??

If you are on Tatooine, the answer is two.

 

[Ralph]

An interesting thought about metals. On occasion I see a download to use for a laser cutter of some kind. Long ago back in high school I did have a foundry class, so the mention of moulds and sand brought back some memories. I still have a nameplate we first patterned in wood shop, then cast in foundry. My class wasn't allowed to actually pour the metal but we did everything else.

It is amazing what is available to even a hobbyist today. Tomorrow I'll run the file for the digital sundial through my slicer and start a print. That is a very unique design.

Off topic for a bit, Barry, have you ever seen a movie called "The Grim Game" from 1919? It was lost until recently and is one of the few movies that actually had Harry Houdini in it. I seen it a few years back on Turner Classic Movie channel but it may be floating around if you search for it. One of his escapes from being chained in a prison cell was very interesting because you can see some of what he was actually doing to free himself.

 

[Barry Wallis]

Off topic for a bit, Barry, have you ever seen a movie called "The Grim Game" from 1919?

Not only have I seen it, I have a copy on DVD. I also have another of Houdini's movies: The Master Mystery. I also have two wands (full size and mini) made from wood salvaged from Houdini's New York City townhouse.

 

[Ralph]

I didn't know Grim Game was on DVD (never thought to check). I believe they said he was in 5 movies. Quite a few years ago I tried going to the Houdini museum in Scranton. Between road construction and using the crudest of early GPS I didn't find it. That wand is pretty cool being linked to Houdini.
I'll have to look for that other movie. By coincidence a while back I was looking for a lock lubricant and found Houdini lube. No connection to the person I am sure.

 

[Barry Wallis]

I didn't know Grim Game was on DVD (never thought to check). I believe they said he was in 5 movies. Quite a few years ago I tried going to the Houdini museum in Scranton. Between road construction and using the crudest of early GPS I didn't find it. That wand is pretty cool being linked to Houdini.
I'll have to look for that other movie. By coincidence a while back I was looking for a lock lubricant and found Houdini lube. No connection to the person I am sure.

I'll look for my Houdini movie DVDs when I get home tomorrow and let you know the specifics.

 

[Ralph]

You got me thinking and I did a little internet searching. At least some of his movies are on Youtube which I'll have to watch. A while back on possibly the Discovery channel there were 4 episodes where they recreated 4 of his escapes. A modern day magician did the escapes, but some of the background research on Houdini's methods was interesting. The 4 tricks were catching a bullet in your teeth, buried alive, the water torture, and a Russian prison wagon escape. I seem to recall "Houdini's Greatest Secrets" being the name of the shows.

 

[Barry Wallis]

If you are looking for an interesting book to read on magic, I would suggest Joshua Jay's "How Magicians Think and Why Magic Matters." It has 52 essays on the subject and it is written for non-magicians (it doesn't teach you how to do any tricks). Check your private messages.

 

[PHolder]

How Magicians Think and Why Magic Matters

I did not know that this had become a sort of trope for book titles until my search found a bunch, from which I shall extract a few other titles:

The Science of Sleep: What It Is, How It Works, and Why It Matters
The Tree: A Natural History of What Trees Are, How They Live, and Why They Matter
The Exodus: How It Happened and Why It Matters
Weather: How It Works and Why It Matters
Religion: What It Is, How It Works, and Why It Matters
The Serengeti Rules: The Quest to Discover How Life Works and Why It Matters
The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters

 

[hyperbole]

Joshua Jay's "How Magicians Think and Why Magic Matters."

I think this is the book you're referring to: How Magicians Think: Misdirection, Deception, and Why Magic Matters by Joshua Jay

How Magicians Think: Misdirection, Deception, and Why M…

There’s a saying: The door to magic is closed, but it’s…

www.goodreads.com

 

[Barry Wallis]

I think this is the book you're referring to: How Magicians Think: Misdirection, Deception, and Why Magic Matters by Joshua Jay

How Magicians Think: Misdirection, Deception, and Why M…

There’s a saying: The door to magic is closed, but it’s…

www.goodreads.com

Yes, that's it.

 

[Ralph]

Thanks for the book title. I've been opening new tabs to visit after I sign off here. I like that picture of The Magic Castle, I have some reading to do. BTW, we have a server at work I would like to see disappear

 

[PHolder]

There was a YouTube video showing one of these that blew up recently. You might be interested enough to print your own?

Kokichi Sugihara's Homepage (Japanese)

(Unclear why it says the page is Japanese. He is, but that page is clearly not.)

@Barry Wallis You need to find a way to include one of these types of illusions in your magic act

 

[Barry Wallis]

Thanks. My friend Stuart Macdonald does magic with a mirror:

Note: This is his winning stage magic performance at FISM North America. FISM is literally the Olympics of magic (except that it is held every three years). This qualified him to compete in the worldwide championship in Canada at the end of this month.

 

[Ralph]

I downloaded the smaller 3D version to check out. What might be a movie of interest is Sherlock Jr., a Buster Keaton movie from 1924 (+-). While not magic he pulls of a great illusion in a movie house where he walks into the movie screen. Woody Allen copies it in Purple Rose of Cairo, but the Keaton version was better. I believe his ghostly image in the projection booth was done with the reflection from a sheet of glass, same as Charlie Chaplin did in The Circus. Keaton made a few experimental films doing trick photography, The Playhouse being one of them. Most or all of Keaton's films should be Youtube, worth checking out and under an hour each.