Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire 3D Print - Random Stuff

Figure I would start a new thread on 3D stuff rather than hijack the other thread. I have had a good time learning about 3d Printers and dinking around with them over the past 2 years. It wasn't until I started taking a few pics for the other thread until I realized how much I actually use the printer to make everyday practical stuff. Thought I would share with the group. First off, find that I make a lot of hanger brackets and mounts:

In the garden:






This is a dedicated sprinkler for watering a single specific plant / bush at the base.


Once you have a basic 3D design for a part, it is very easy to modify it, stretch it, shrink it to accommodate a new use.

I wanted a firm mount for my rain gauge in the garden.



As most are aware, T-posts have an "orientation". Once in the ground they cannot be rotated vertically. So I made the mount in 2 pieces...



.. with a splined coupling that allows me to rotate the rain gauge on 30 degree increments to allow for best viewing angle from the house.

And garden signs as well.





We are on our 3rd year of locally grown beef. I hate "patting out" hamburgers. So, a couple hamburger presses:



Small one = 1/3 lb patty. Large one = 1/2 lb patty.



Removable bottoms pop out to make it easier to get the burger out. Printed with ABS filament to make them food safe and dishwasher safe.

Do you have one of the 3d scanners as well?
I always though the combination would be great for small "out of production" parts in classic vehicle repair/restoration/maintenance...

A few more hanger brackets:

For long stuff. I got tired of having my trekking poles propped in a corner behind a door.



Now, to utilize the space that that I freed up behind the door:



For secure stowage to keep small things from rolling around on the bench / desk:



Double scalloped to securely hold 1" and 30mm main tubes:

Since this is technically a hunting and firearms related site...

Easy, peasy, light mount:





And with a light more effort, work in progress:



The cheek riser will actually sit significantly lower on the stock when I swap out the thick double sided tape for the thin 3m adhesive that God-A-Grip uses on their products. However, it is not a bad sight picture as is...

Finally, a project I have been working on for a year. Still work in progress. Most folks here know that I am left handed. Many know that I am VERY picky with regard to rifle ergonomics and fit. So, figured I would find a way to 3D print a stock that fit "me"... Significant undertaking. "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time..."

Step1:









Concept is to develop a modular design:
1) Center section tailored to specific make/brand/model/length/orientation of action. (Right hand, Pre-64 M70, .300H&H pictured)
2) Fore end options to suit the shooter. eg: feather weight, standard, Forbes/NULA rounded square, Biesen "wide oval", Rem Varmint, 3" flat BR.
3) Likewise, butt stock with low/med/high comb, LOP, wrist open/med/vertical, cast on/off...

Pick one from Column A, one from Column B, one from Column C. Use the magic of 3D design to merge/meld the three components. Feed it to the printer. And in a few days later, a truly custom stock. No need for a $25K-$50K custom mold for a one off design. Or, print the three pieces independently, and find an appropriate means to bond/fuse them together... Printing three separate pieces would allow the option to use different filaments and infill values for each sub assembly. eg: center section at 50% infill with carbon fiber filament. Fore end and butt stock from less exotic filaments at 20-30% infill.

For reference, the center section above weighs right at 4 oz at 20% infill, and is STIFF. I can not force any flex in the part.

As stated above, I have been a year, part time, getting this far. Long ways to go. But will update at significant mile stones...

Yes, I finally invested in a scanner for my latest project. There are some excellent videos of the scanner on the internet and vendor websites. HOWEVER, this is the one item I fear I may not get a reasonable return for investment. I have 6-8 hours into scanning various small objects. I have yet to get a clean scan that I would bother 3D printing.... It could totally be me.

Part of my rationale for the scanner was an eye toward repairing non-load bearing ag equipment parts that crack/break, etc.

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing.

I have a nephew with a PhD in glass engineering. He's a materials scientist for a large lab and some of his work is running around on Mars on the last rover. He said he's recently been switched to a new division developing ways to use 3D printers for making lots of new stuff in their work. He's getting paid big money for playing with company owned toys.

That barrel holder is a damn good idea.

What 3D printer are you using?

Company I recently hired on with is using 3D printers to create production tooling. I would be amenable to being paid "big bucks" to play with a 3D printer.



Thank you. Creality CR10 "Smart Pro" ... direct drive metal extruder and fully heated bed.

Orion,

Thank you for posting.

What CAD program are you using?

I really like you T-post mount. Cleaver yet simple, and looks stout.

Good post.
I've wanted a printer for a few years now. I built a CNC plasma table for my shop a few years ago so I already have a handle on the technical aspects and CAD. I think it would really add to what we can put out the door for product.

Using Tinker-CAD at the moment. Pretty basic, but easy to use. Have used Sketch-up in the past. However, cannot seem to get clean STL files out of Sketch-up that slice well with CURA. I will need to bone up on a more robust CAD tool for the fore end and butt stock assemblies.

"Stout" ... Rear storm door faces prevailing wind. Printed a drip guard to prevent rain from blowing in around the door. Used PLA resin which is the most "bio-degradable" of the 3D resins. Shown below after 1 year in service. Zero damage to the drip guard after two recent 70-80 mph straight line wind events that caused significant damage to roof and took down several nearby trees. The "sag" in the drip guard is due to deformation of the substrate it is fastened to...



Printed in sections. Joined with CA glue.

If you are already in the designer / builder / tinker mindset, you will have no issues ramping up 3D printing. Additive manufacturing: Instead of taking a block of steel and machining away what you do NOT want, you start with a spool of filament and add what you DO want...

You've made some pretty cool and useful gadgets. Reminds me of the saying about necessity being the mother of invention.

I've never gotten into it, but my 16 year old son is into 3D printing. He designs and builds a lot of things including an ashtray delete panel for his car that accepts accessory switches. This past Christmas he used the school's scanner to scan a Milwaukee drill, brought the file home and printed this motorized miniature "Lil'waukee" drill, battery and case for my gift.

We started 3D stacking steel in the past few years.

Think of a high quality MiG welder with a XYZ axis

Of course it isn't as clean nor is it acceptable as a finished part so there is still a lot of machining performed on these parts.

We've used 3D since the 90''s to create prototypes

Yep. Somewhere on the internet is picture of 3D printed (wire welded) crane hook that was stress tested to 80,000 lb load.

cool stuff. Always wondered if you could print a stock center piece that would take a wood forend and butt stock . Kinda a like an Omega rifle made by Homer Koon. It had a rotary magazine.

I shot some .177 pellets in my .22 cal Diana Bandit PCP pistol. Took out the first two aluminum wipes. Printed a monocore insert and tried it out today indoors at the club. Works fine, quiet.

https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5985238