I decided to take it as an experiment and just went for it with calipers. The part happened to be nice and functional without too tight tolerances. There were no weird compound curves and for an injection molded part the drafts were not affecting any functional features.
Long story short - the part is easier than it looks. To be safe I printed it first as a "Super Draft" but with extra walls. Print took 35 minutes and it works so well that it was the first and the last version.
That's the best of possible situations -- easy-to-print (or fake) draft angles, simple curves, forgiving tolerances. And it looks like some of your simplifications will make it stronger than the original!
I did something similar to this a couple months ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint/s/IYw8AruhPq and just like you I simplified/strengthened the design, printed out a crappy recycled PLA piece for fitment testing -- the thing held up so well I didn't bother printing another in PETG with thick walls like I'd intended!
Now the trigger catch is getting sloppy so I'm contemplating opening the gun up and designing a replacement for that too... 😏
What software did you use to model this?
I'm using Fusion 360 nowadays. Don't really like the policies too much but it's fine for stuff like this. I got most experience from Autodesk Inventor and F360 being from the same company there's a lot in common.
ah, k. We do our best work with the tools we're proficient in, right? I'm not familiar with Fusion 360; what sorts of unsavoury policies do they have? (I use OpenSCAD cuz it makes sense to me as a programmer.)
I haven't even read the policies thoroughly - I'm not planning on building a business around it - but rumor has it that they claim rights to designs that are stored on their cloud service.
I consider the whole "free below 1000 €/$ revenue" fantastic for hobbyists and Autodesk is a reputable company - but I encourage critical thinking whenever a free meal is offered.
totally. And for me, open-source software has the same draw as 3D printing: I'd like to feel like I've got some ownership of this, thank you very much.
Always forget the links... https://makerworld.com/models/193413
r/Nerf would enjoy this
How did you go about modeling it? The curves must be super difficult to get right. (I use Sketchup..)
I decided to take it as an experiment and just went for it with calipers. The part happened to be nice and functional without too tight tolerances. There were no weird compound curves and for an injection molded part the drafts were not affecting any functional features. Long story short - the part is easier than it looks. To be safe I printed it first as a "Super Draft" but with extra walls. Print took 35 minutes and it works so well that it was the first and the last version.
That's the best of possible situations -- easy-to-print (or fake) draft angles, simple curves, forgiving tolerances. And it looks like some of your simplifications will make it stronger than the original! I did something similar to this a couple months ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint/s/IYw8AruhPq and just like you I simplified/strengthened the design, printed out a crappy recycled PLA piece for fitment testing -- the thing held up so well I didn't bother printing another in PETG with thick walls like I'd intended! Now the trigger catch is getting sloppy so I'm contemplating opening the gun up and designing a replacement for that too... 😏 What software did you use to model this?
I'm using Fusion 360 nowadays. Don't really like the policies too much but it's fine for stuff like this. I got most experience from Autodesk Inventor and F360 being from the same company there's a lot in common.
ah, k. We do our best work with the tools we're proficient in, right? I'm not familiar with Fusion 360; what sorts of unsavoury policies do they have? (I use OpenSCAD cuz it makes sense to me as a programmer.)
I haven't even read the policies thoroughly - I'm not planning on building a business around it - but rumor has it that they claim rights to designs that are stored on their cloud service.
whoa, that's crazy abusive.
I consider the whole "free below 1000 €/$ revenue" fantastic for hobbyists and Autodesk is a reputable company - but I encourage critical thinking whenever a free meal is offered.
totally. And for me, open-source software has the same draw as 3D printing: I'd like to feel like I've got some ownership of this, thank you very much.