Hello everyone,

We’ve certainly received our share of snow recently!  The winter break gave 3D Lab staff time to clean up the lab, fix and improve equipment, even have time to explore new things to make!  Lab staff Carter make good use of the time, learning how to operate the Roland MDX-40A, a CNC router capable of carving into cylindrical stock as well as flat material.  The lab is restocked, the machines are humming along, what better time to get your projects made in the 3D Lab!

Speaking of snow, engineering students dream-up interesting machines to handle the white stuff.  Students below built this cute, motorized snow plow!  It’s meant for serious business as its all metal body is welded.  Forget wheels, movement is handled via tank treads.  It even sports a hopper for spreading salt in its wake.  The plow’s small size will clear snowy paths for squirrels looking to steal your birds’ sunflower seed.

On a more active note, Tristan invented an adapter a while back to film his adventures in snowboarding.  This boot mounted bracket allows a rugged GoPro camera to record the action going down the hill!  Various iterations were needed, mostly to handle the rough ride on the boot.  That’s where 3D printers shine; design tweaks can be quickly printed a tested.  The camera adapter was printed in ABS plastic for best strength on our Taz 3D printers.  While PLA plastic is tougher than ABS, the former will crack and break when its limit is reached.  ABS allows a bit of bending before it fails, making it stronger overall.  Tristan had a great time working up the perfect adapter and taking his snowboard & camera to the slopes to test it.

Back in the 3D Lab, 3D printer filament can be supplied on various spool sizes.  1kg is the most common size/weight, though some spools can have 3kg or more of filament at reduced cost.  Some 3D printers require a particular spool shape or size, making it tricky to use generic filament with them.  The 3D Lab has six different brands of 3D printers (each with unique capabilities), so sharing filament among them is no easy feat!

Enter Josh and Chris!  They built a filament spooler out of wood and 3D printed parts, allowing filament to be transferred from one spool to another.  Since a typical spool contains 1,000 feet of filament, their invention uses a hand drill to speed the transfer.  Later on, we upgraded the spooler to a design that is completely 3D printed.  This latter design is only hand cranked, but supports a larger variety of spools.  It’s what we use today.  Check-out the design on Thingiverse.com if you are interesting in building your own!

The 3D Lab continues to provide free services for the community with our digital fabrication equipment and materials.  Feel free to contact us below if you have a project that we can assist with!  Click here for a complete list of equipment. 

We also do road trips!  If your school, community group, or business would like a 3D printing demonstration and ideas about careers in engineering, please send an email to tjh1@uakron.edu.

Stay tuned later this month as we introduce more interesting folks who participated in the latest Maker Faire!

Until then,

Tom

Habitat For Humanity’s First 3D-Printed Home in the US https://www.cnn.com/2021/12/26/us/habitat-for-humanity-first-3d-home-trnd/index.html
Top 10 Companies in 3D Printed Food
https://all3dp.com/1/3d-printed-food-top-companies

What’s to do during a snowstorm!  Bake cookies with one-of-a-kind 3D printed cookie cutters! https://all3dp.com/2/3d-printed-cookie-cutters-10-great-curated-models-to-3d-print

Maker Faire Wayne County 2022 is happening!  May 21, 2022.  It’s our fourth year at Wayne College and is an unforgettable experience. Space is limited, so apply today to participate!
https://waynecounty.makerfaire.com

Maker Monday is postponed out of COVID19 precautions.  Please check www.schantzmakerspace.com for future meeting dates, workshops, and activities as some dates have changed.

We offer a free “listserv” that allows to you ask questions to members in the makerspace. It’s great for sharing ideas, forming friendships, and helping & advising each other. To join, send an email to listserv@lists.uakron.edu with “SUBSCRIBE MAKERSPACE-GROUP” in the subject line.