Printing in Plastic: Build Your Own 3D Printer

James Floyd Kelly · Patrick Hood-Daniel

Jun 2011 · Apress

About this ebook

Printing in Plastic: Build Your Own 3D Printer is your gateway into the exciting world of personal fabrication. The “printer” that you’ll build from this book is a personal fabricator capable of creating small parts and other objects from drops of molten plastic. Design a part using a modeling tool such as Google SketchUp. Then, watch while the fabricator head sweeps back and forth and upwards, depositing plastic in all the right places. You can build anything from a replacement tab to hold a bookshelf in place, to a small art project, to a bashguard for your bicycle. If you can conceive it and design it, you can build it, and you’ll have fun doing it!

Printing in Plastic is aimed at creative people comfortable using power tools such as a table saw, circular saw, and drill press. Authors James Kelly and Patrick Hood-Daniel lead you through building a personal fabrication machine based upon a set of blueprints downloaded from their website. Example projects get you started in designing and fabricating your own parts. Bring your handyman skills, and apply patience during the build process. You too can be the proud owner of a personal fabricator—a three-dimensional printer.

Leads you through building a personal fabrication machine capable of creating small parts and objects from plastic Provides example projects to get you started on the road to designing and fabricating your own parts Provides an excellent parent/child, or small group project What you’ll learn How to assemble your own 3D printer The ins and outs of design software How to design and produce three-dimensional parts made from plastic How to replace small plastic parts in household objects How to create art objects Who this book is for

Printing in Plastic is aimed at creative people comfortable using power tools, such as a table saw, circular saw, drill press, and so forth. The book is aimed at those who want to create and fabricate tangible objects from plastic. Crafters, carpenters, electronics hobbyists, and others comfortable working with their hands will find the instructions easy to follow and the projects rewarding.

Table of Contents What to Expect Hardware and Tools Tips & Advice Cutting the Parts I Cutting the Parts II Advanced Cuts and Drilling I Advanced Cuts and Drilling II Advanced Cuts and Drilling III Advanced Cuts and Drilling IV Beginning Assembly Sub-Assembly Work Adding Structure Motors and Movement The Extruder The Filament Feeding Mechanism Mounting Electronics Final Assembly Check Software I Software II Trial Run I Trial Run II Self-Replication Troubleshooting

Ratings and reviews

Very very badd

About the author

James Floyd Kelly is a professional writer from Atlanta, Georgia. He has written numerous books on multiple subjects, including LEGO robotics, open source software, and building your own CNC machine as well as a 3D printer. He is the editor-in-chief of the number one MINDSTORMS NXT blog, The NXT Step (TheNXTStep.com), where he is joined by fellow NXT experts who share their knowledge and designs with other robot fans around the world.

Patrick Hood-Daniel is a hobbyist. By day, he is an urban designer trained in architecture and city planning at the University of Miami and the University of California. But in his spare time, Patrick puts skills from a previous career as a computer programmer to good use in building and operating computer numerically controlled (CNC) fabrication machines. He is the creative force behind BuildYourCNC.com and is well-known for designing CNC machines that can be built at low cost by normal people, without any special or expensive tools.