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ScubaLawyer
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3-D Printer

Fri Feb 02, 2018 9:10 pm

Completely unrelated to diving - vintage or otherwise...

My 13 year old son is now a devotee to the game of Dungeons and Dragons and plays with his friends after school on a regular basis. He asked me if I knew anyone with a 3D printer. As a father I naturally asked why? Apparently, the manufacturer of the game has a program to be fed into a 3D printer to create a custom character or something or other. His computer skills out-match mine by light years so I'm not exactly sure what he is taking about. Anyway, he asked if I would put the word out to my diving friends to see if anyone has access to a 3D printer that could print this character for him and what the cost would be.

Signed,

Thoroughly baffled and befuddled father trying to help his son master the dark arts, Mark.
"The diver who collects specimens of underwater life has fun and becomes a keen underwater observer. .. seek slow-moving or attached organisms such as corals, starfish, or shelled creatures." (Golden Guide to Scuba Diving, 1968) :D

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couv
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Re: 3-D Printer

Fri Feb 02, 2018 10:54 pm

Mark,

I've not used one yet, but there are 3D printing "services" available in my area. Google "3D services your town" and a plethora of places should show up.

E.g. https://www.yelp.com/search?cflt=3dprin ... guel%2C+CA
A sincere THANK YOU to all at VDH who make this wonderful resource available and to all the thoughtful contributors.

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ScubaLawyer
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Re: 3-D Printer

Fri Feb 02, 2018 11:03 pm

Thanks for the info Couv. I'll check it out. Mark
"The diver who collects specimens of underwater life has fun and becomes a keen underwater observer. .. seek slow-moving or attached organisms such as corals, starfish, or shelled creatures." (Golden Guide to Scuba Diving, 1968) :D

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Bryan
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Re: 3-D Printer

Sat Feb 03, 2018 9:55 am

He should ask around in the community of his local friends and at school. Many of the STEM programs at jr and high schools are teaching 3D drawing and printing and it may be something they would do as an experiment. Several of the parts in the website store were 3D printed but the service is expensive and requires precise files. For game pieces I doubt minor dimension discrepancies are that big of a deal but when you print tight tolerances all you can do is scrap it and start again even if you are a fraction off. The first 3D printed DSV sample was $600.00 for the inner and outer tube only and it wasn't quite right the first, second or third time...... :cry: :cry:
Doing it right should include some common sense, not just blindly following specs and instructions. .Gary D, AWAP on SB

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ScubaLawyer
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Re: 3-D Printer

Sat Feb 03, 2018 11:43 am

Thanks for the info Bryan. I'll let him know. When he gets an idea he pursues it to the ends of the earth so I have all confidence he'll figure it out. Should have seen the look on his face when I told him my wallet was closed and he had to earn his own money for this project. :shock:
"The diver who collects specimens of underwater life has fun and becomes a keen underwater observer. .. seek slow-moving or attached organisms such as corals, starfish, or shelled creatures." (Golden Guide to Scuba Diving, 1968) :D

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t1tan
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Re: 3-D Printer

Sat Feb 03, 2018 9:18 pm

My town recently opened a new library that has a 3D printing lab, just another idea for where to find possible access.

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Ron
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Re: 3-D Printer

Tue Feb 06, 2018 7:21 pm

Just in case anyone else reads this (and speaking generally):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/STL_(file_format)

Stl files are files that depict 3d items as data. You can use one in a 3-d printer via software like any of the following:

Adobe Acrobat 3D, a 3D exchange solution that inserts 3D content in PDF file format.
Adobe Photoshop, an image editor and 3D rendering and printing package.

Then, your printer poops out a 3-d object. It's really, really cool.

You can create your own Stl files or use others supplied to you. In this case, you load your D&D file and out poops a character :)
The impossible missions are the only ones which succeed. -JYC

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Creed
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Re: 3-D Printer

Tue Feb 20, 2018 5:36 pm

I've built one and own a second that I got as a Black Friday deal.
If you want a plug and play experience, just hit Fry's(or your equivalent) and grab what printer is in your price range. My son loves his XYZ DaVinci JR. (https://www.amazon.com/XYZprinting-Vinc ... B00V3J8JEG)
(Link provided to describe it. You can find better prices that that.)

If you(or your son) want to learn more, pick up a kit for a Prusa i3(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prusa_i3). I'm about to upgrade mine to the Mk3 variant.
They are not hard to build, and will give you a good understanding of how the whole process works. The kits are relatively cheap(https://www.ebay.com/itm/Auto-Level-3D- ... SwCWFY8I1e). I built the original with my son, and he's now studying engineering in college. Coincidence? Probably, but it was still fun to learn ;)

I would offer to print it for him, but my old one was knocked around in the move last year(hence the rebuild and upgrade), and I think that my son's is being used for a lot of engineering class projects. Feel free to PM me for my email address, and you can send me the file. If some time on the printer opens up(say, spring break or so...) I could try to print it. Won't make any promises, as a lot of files don't slice well(it's the process of converting a model file into the G-code needed to actually move the head and extrude plastic), and it sometimes takes a good amount of work to clean up a model for printing.

But I would never stand in the way of a young geek who likes both D&D and 3D printing! (Spoiler alert: I'm a middle aged geek who likes both D&D and 3D printing...)
"Haul the sheet in as we ride on the wind that our
forefathers harnessed before us
Hear the bells ring as the tide rigging sings.
It's a son of a gun of a chorus" - Jimmy Buffet

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ScubaLawyer
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Re: 3-D Printer

Tue Feb 20, 2018 5:59 pm

Thanks for the offer Creed. It looks like he is getting an cheap 3D printer for his birthday in April but I will keep your offer in mind if things don't work out. He has some STEAM gift cards and he is already attempting to code his own creations. I'm just gonna stand back with a fire extinguisher at the ready. :D
"The diver who collects specimens of underwater life has fun and becomes a keen underwater observer. .. seek slow-moving or attached organisms such as corals, starfish, or shelled creatures." (Golden Guide to Scuba Diving, 1968) :D

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