Sastrei Posted September 19, 2015 Howdy all, Finally got some 3D-printed monorail working. Created a custom half-straight as well to fill the gap between the 10" and quarter-straight sections. -Stefan- Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
legoman666 Posted September 19, 2015 Cool, you should add more colors to the list of available choices, specifically, gray. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rail Co Posted September 19, 2015 I'm sure you could make a buck or two if you put these on shapeways along with many other track pieces if you make more! Great job. -Railco Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sastrei Posted September 19, 2015 Thanks! They are on Shapeways, available in black or white. Sadly Shapeways doesn't offer gray as a default color choice for some reason, and the parts are too big for their color-matching service. http://www.shapeways.com/shops/pitr Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
codefox421 Posted September 21, 2015 Thanks! They are on Shapeways, available in black or white. Sadly Shapeways doesn't offer gray as a default color choice for some reason, and the parts are too big for their color-matching service. Did you do anything special for printing in the black material? I just recently printed in Black Strong and Flexible for the first time, and the parts came out with inconsistent dimensions. (Possibly from a polishing process?) How is the clutch power on your black track segment, and if it's similar to standard LEGO clutch power, did you do anything special to achieve that? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
swedish_kitsune Posted September 23, 2015 I would like to buy them, but 40 € for a single straight piece is way too much for my budget. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
LEGO Train 12 Volts Posted September 24, 2015 Very nice work! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
marook Posted September 25, 2015 €39 for a single piece? You gotta be kiddin'... If it were for 10, I could understand it... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
coaster Posted September 25, 2015 That's the reality of 3D printing. For what it's worth, 5 years ago it would have been double that. And unfortunately, the studs being on the sides means you'd need action on the mold tooling, so you're probably looking at about $15-20k for tooling, get you down to about $.60 apiece, so break even is somewhere around 400-500 pieces if you injection molded it. Doesn't really become economical though till about 5000 pieces. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sastrei Posted September 25, 2015 (edited) Did you do anything special for printing in the black material? I just recently printed in Black Strong and Flexible for the first time, and the parts came out with inconsistent dimensions. (Possibly from a polishing process?) How is the clutch power on your black track segment, and if it's similar to standard LEGO clutch power, did you do anything special to achieve that? Polishing is probably what did it. It's mechanical polishing, so it abrades away the surface of the object, which screws up all the dimensions and tolerances. Only un-polished black and white are able to be selected for the parts I've got on Shapeways. :) Clutch power on the ends using deep studs (like those found on the monorail stanchions) is excellent, but clutch power against regular studs is good but not great. The tile recesses to lock the pieces together work very well though. I'm not sure why gray isn't one of Shapeways default material choices, but my only way to color match it currently uses a process for which the regular monorail straight is too large. I'll keep investigating! And yes, prices are higher than what I'd hoped, for exactly the reasons that coaster points out. :) Edited September 25, 2015 by Sastrei Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
codefox421 Posted September 26, 2015 Polishing is probably what did it. It's mechanical polishing, so it abrades away the surface of the object, which screws up all the dimensions and tolerances. Only un-polished black and white are able to be selected for the parts I've got on Shapeways. :) Clutch power on the ends using deep studs (like those found on the monorail stanchions) is excellent, but clutch power against regular studs is good but not great. The tile recesses to lock the pieces together work very well though. I'm not sure why gray isn't one of Shapeways default material choices, but my only way to color match it currently uses a process for which the regular monorail straight is too large. I'll keep investigating! And yes, prices are higher than what I'd hoped, for exactly the reasons that coaster points out. :) Thanks for the reply. A Shapeways rep explained that Black Strong & Flexible sometimes gets polished without warning. At those prices, you'd better watch out! The rep suggested printing in Unpolished White Strong & Flexible, which is guaranteed to never be polished, and pointed me to a DIY article for dyeing 3D prints. Could be useful for matching the light gray. http://makezine.com/...your-3d-prints/ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
9v system Posted September 27, 2015 $42 aud per straight piece that is just crazy why are they so much? They should be around $10 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Solscud007 Posted September 28, 2015 $42 aud per straight piece that is just crazy why are they so much? They should be around $10 To all the people who say it is too expensive: Have you ever printed anything through Shapeways? I mean uploaded your own file and have them print it? I have. The price is about right for something of that size and material. With the fine teeth you need a good resolution. You cant get that with ABS monofilament 3D printers like a Maker Bot. 3D printing is not as cheap as you think it is. However compared to funding a mold to actually cast plastic parts, it is cheaper in the overall cost. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sastrei Posted September 29, 2015 (edited) Thanks solscud007 :) To 9v system, yes I wish they were only $10 too. :D I've added two new pieces of inventory to the shop, narrow gauge straight track. http://www.shapeways...Train Track&s=0 One is a regular narrow gauge straight (oddly, LEGO has never made one, just the curves and ramps), and the other is an adapter, so you can transition to regular 12V single rails, since they are cheaper. Given that they don't come in black though, I'll try to add those as another item in the future. I did test and confirm that the pieces mate together with official LEGO narrow gauge track. They lock together quite securely. -Stefan- Edited September 29, 2015 by Sastrei Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Rail Co Posted September 29, 2015 I hope to reduce the price you have used a hollow design as it would use a lot less plastic and is still going to be strong if you leave enough plastic for the thickness of the walls. Great job on the Monorail designs though! -RailCo Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sastrei Posted October 1, 2015 (edited) Yes, they've been hollowed out at least as much as the official pieces. Tested it out for a show. Held up to two days of constant running with no apparent issues! Edited October 5, 2015 by Sastrei Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
