New propeller?

burgundyben said:
A 3D printed prop in NAB for has passed certification for use on a commercial vessel.

http://gcaptain.com/worlds-first-3d-printed-ship-propeller-receives-class-approval/

HiETA in Bristol are ramping up 3d printing of parts to automotive volumes.

Could we now start to see cost effective applications of 3D printing for mobo owners?
Click to expand...

Hi,

Thank you for sharing this interesting technology news. Hopefully the future will bring a suitable 3D printer for a boater, it would be convenient to print a spare part at sea from different materials.:)

NBs
 
These people just down the road 10 mins away from my marina have been doing CNC ,a while .
There does not seem to be any economical way to produce a propeller. They need to draw a return on the cap ex .

Is this a lot different to a 3 D printer , it’s a machine which cuts them out in 5 axis out of a block ?
. What does a 3 D printer bring to the party for leisure boat propeller s ?

Just curious,that’s all .

https://www.francehelices.fr/class-s-propellers.htm
 
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I beg to differ Ben, its effectively a 5 axis mig welder. I was involved in trials with a very similar machine at VCL in east Kilbride.
This is a development of conventional weld overlay machines used to deposit Usually a Stainless steel on to a carbon steel based metal, although in this intance its laying down Nickel ALuminium Bronze as a base metal.
DMLS uses a laser to solidify a powdered metal.
 
Solidify is perhaps an odd choice of words, it’s really more like welding, but on a small scale.
The laser creates a small melt pool, but as the layers are shallow (typically 0.04mm) it can move quickly.

The really interesting machines (to me at least) have a powder bed, laser and a milling head, they can scan a layer then machine the profile, even if it’s internal

E9291EDF-2920-47BD-891F-5735CE70B2B1.jpeg
 
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