Internal gear

[Gordon]

I made some 3D printed gears for my South Bend lathe which lets me cut metric threads. I have used them a only few times but they have worked well.

I have not looked into metal 3D printing but as I remember there was a way to do this in a home shop using a high temperature kiln. If there was a way to do this in a home shop it could be a great asset.

 

[Gordon]

I just looked at Amazon for metal filled filament. This is 60% brass powder. It does not make a machinable print but it can be polished so it could be used for appearance on a model. It is also available in stainless, iron and copper. It is about twice the price of standard PLA for half the weight. Interesting thought at least.

https://www.amazon.com/Protopasta-P...prefix=3d+filament+metal+brass,aps,190&sr=8-3

 

[krypto]

The thing not being mentioned here is that the gears on the Elmer Engine are 48 DP. It's trivial to print lathe change gears and such, but a good print of these fine gears is much more challenging:

https://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/threads/3d-printing-an-engine-frame.33948/post-381854

That was using a 0.3mm nozzle and the tooth resolution of that gear was what I would consider possibly adequate for a running setup. You probably need to use a 0.2mm nozzle for better results. I think the chances of getting a metal-loaded filament consistently through one of these small nozzles is very low.

Why do you want to make another engine when you sold off the first one?

 

[timo_gross]

I printed PLA gears for a friend's lathe about 5 years ago. They are still working fine—just black PLA on my 2016 Qidi X-one printer.

That is amazing, I have older PLA prints that just self destruct without any other reason than beeing old. Maybe because it is warm and humid all the time.

 

[timo_gross]

The thing not being mentioned here is that the gears on the Elmer Engine are 48 DP. It's trivial to print lathe change gears and such, but a good print of these fine gears is much more challenging:

https://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/threads/3d-printing-an-engine-frame.33948/post-381854

That was using a 0.3mm nozzle and the tooth resolution of that gear was what I would consider possibly adequate for a running setup. You probably need to use a 0.2mm nozzle for better results. I think the chances of getting a metal-loaded filament consistently through one of these small nozzles is very low.

Why do you want to make another engine when you sold off the first one?

Rumor says filled filaments damage nozzles earlier. (possibly not too much issue)
I was able to print some 0.7 module gears with the 0.4 mm nozzle. The gears on the other post look quite decent.
I think smaller than 0.5 module the resolution of the belt drives becomes also an issue, even if the nozzle gets smaller and smaller.
The advantage of the 3d printed gears is that we are not limited to the usual sizes of cutting tools, but can adjust modules to any odd size and as long as Gordon will keep the crank throw and the ratio constant he can go for a larger tooth size with a smaller tooth count, the diameter of the ring gear is probably not important.

 

[Gordon]

Why do you want to make another engine when you sold off the first one?

I sold 20 different engines because none of my daughters/son in laws/ brothers/wife etc. have any idea what any of my engines or machines are for or what they are worth. I am sure that when I die they are not going to have a clue as to what to do with any of this stuff so I thought that I should thin it out. Needless to say I was not about to just sit in the house to watch TV or go play shuffleboard so I kept building more engines. Since then I have made several engines that I initially made from a casting kit by making new drawings to make them from bar stock. That has slowed down production appreciably because I had to learn Alibre 3D and making them from bar stock is a much slower process. Since I do not have to make production rate or answer to anyone I am getting the satisfaction of working in my shop and doing something that I enjoy. It would be interesting to see how others are handling old age and how they are using their time.

 

[Gordon]

The advantage of the 3d printed gears is that we are not limited to the usual sizes of cutting tools, but can adjust modules to any odd size and as long as Gordon will keep the crank throw and the ratio constant he can go for a larger tooth size wiht a smaller tooth count

True. There is no reason to be limited to the usual MOD or DP pitch. I made a 4" rotary table and made the gears with a home made hob and made the gears fit the size and made the pitch so that the table rotated to make 10 to 1 ratio to make the dials read in .01 increments. I don't remember what the pitch ended up as but it was some odd number to a couple of decimal points.

 

[Richard Hed]

Why do you want to make another engine when you sold off the first one?

I sold 20 different engines because none of my daughters/son in laws/ brothers/wife etc. have any idea what any of my engines or machines are for or what they are worth. I am sure that when I die they are not going to have a clue as to what to do with any of this stuff so I thought that I should thin it out. Needless to say I was not about to just sit in the house to watch TV or go play shuffleboard so I kept building more engines. Since then I have made several engines that I initially made from a casting kit by making new drawings to make them from bar stock. That has slowed down production appreciably because I had to learn Alibre 3D and making them from bar stock is a much slower process. Since I do not have to make production rate or answer to anyone I am getting the satisfaction of working in my shop and doing something that I enjoy. It would be interesting to see how others are handling old age and how they are using their time.

You do know, of course, that people who retire, then go sit in front of the tv, die within two years of retirement--usually, a lot die earlier. Those with nothing to do after retirement that have nothing in their heads and no ambition to do something die very quickly. I suppose that's why you are in your 90's but look like 35

 

[Gordon]

You do know, of course, that people who retire, then go sit in front of the tv, die within two years of retirement--usually, a lot die earlier. Those with nothing to do after retirement that have nothing in their heads and no ambition to do something die very quickly. I suppose that's why you are in your 90's but like like 35

I am a firm believer in keeping active and continuing with what you enjoy. You are a little off on the age though. I am only 84. Also I am not sure what would happen with my marriage if we were together 24/7. I don't tell her how to make quilts (about 75 in stock) and she does not tell me how to make engines (about 15 in stock).

 

[Richard Hed]

I am a firm believer in keeping active and continuing with what you enjoy. You are a little off on the age though. I am only 84. Also I am not sure what would happen with my marriage if we were together 24/7. I don't tell her how to make quilts (about 75 in stock) and she does not tell me how to make engines (about 15 in stock).

Yes, I know how old u r. But I have to put in a joke or two.

 

[Gordon]

I just printed out the gear in PLA and it looks good. I got sidetracked because I had made some modifications to my Anet A8 printer and the Y belt tensioner broke so I had to cobble things in order to print a new one.

 

[Steamchick]

Age is like distance on a car's odometer. Totally irrelevant. What counts is the life the car has seen, and maintenance and abuse during that life. During retirement I have learned a lot about technical design of boilers, gas burners, etc. None of which was a part of my engineering career. And through this forum I have "met" some great people, real experts, and a lot of fun guys doing stuff. I probably spend a significant part of my time at the local club teaching non-engineers about the engineering of what they are doing. Getting others to do in 2 or 3 times the time it would take for me to do has been a frustration, compensated by the reward that they have learned how to do that something properly.
Iv'e been 37 for a few decades, and hope I can stay 37 for a good while longer!
I don't count the achievements I have had, just the fun I had doing those things. I have always been srlfish. I like fun. So I have had to drag others along to things that I think are fun, and usually have kept them as good friends who still enjoy that fun! That's achievement.
K2