I get updates from Prusa from time to time concerning new developments/methods using the Prusa XL multi-material/multi-head 3D printer.
The 3D printing hobby is getting really impressive, with some fantastic new trends, as follows:
1. Prusa's 3D model download page had some impressive models that can be downloaded and printed.
You can also open models in a 3D online viewer, and pan/tilt/zoom right on the screen.
The models that are beginning to appear on the share page are ever increasingly sophisticated, and the offerings will continue to get better with time in my opinion. There are already some fantastic offerings available.
The XL's 14" cubed print area really opens up a lot of possibilities for printing larger objects, such as a 1-piece pattern for the V-8 engine block. Optionally, you can print multiple small parts located all over the printbed, at the same time.
2. Prusa's XL printer is capable of printing multiple materials on the same model, which can give some interesting advantages such as printing the supports in a different material than the part itself, thus allowing low adhesion between the support and part, to allow the support to break off cleanly without leaving any marks on the printed part. Look closely at the first image, and you will see a crankshaft imbedded in the support material.
3. Multiple colors within the same part (you can do this with a single-head printer by changing the filament color during a print, making sure not to interrupt the continuity of the filament as it is being fed into the print head).
4. The implications of being able to use some of these pre-made 3D models as a starting point for building model engines cannot be understated.
I really think this is where the hobby is going, and the possibilities are mind boggling given that I think we are at the beginning of the 3D printing/3D modeling era.
When you consider that these models, such as the V-8 engine print, could be used in a lost PLA casting process, then things get very interesting very fast, especially considering that some have proven the lost-PLA method with superb results using gray iron.
Here are a few items I found today.
Note the engine crankshaft that is imbedded in the supports that can be cleanly removed, since they are a different material with a very low adhesion value.
