3D printing parts

Mashmaster

Active Member
We inherited some more beat up hulls for our Sea Scout ship. All have holes, some of which I can put my hand through.

Anyway, I will be needing replacement coamings and rudder heads/cheeks. Has anyone tried to 3D print these? The coamings aren't structural but are big so would need to be printed in pieces. But the rudder head they sell is plastic anyway, I could print that in ABS, do you think it would work?
 
Certainly an interesting idea, especially for the rudder heads that are obscenely priced by LP. I’d only do it if the boats are sailed in a small area where they can easily be rescued if the rudder heads break. It would be best to have a really good sailor test them in high wInds before letting kids use them. That testing would also probably help defend against lawsuits in case of a true disaster with the 3D parts. The first time Vanguard tried them if I recall was at a worlds and a lot of them broke. They then reengineered them and they are much sturdier.
 
Probably right, I need to research the tensile strength of the printing layers.

$90 for a piece of plastic with the pintle/spring mechanism seems crazy. Anyone got used rudder heads they are looking to get rid of?

What about the coamings?
 
I have many coamings for sale but the shipping cost is very high as they are considered oversize foy USPS and UPS. How many are you looking to buy? Maybe a stack of them would cost close ti the cost to ship just one. Let me know. $30 ea, =- shipping.

Alan Glos
Cazenovia, NY
 
Mashmaster,

I would be happy to sell you 4 decent Sunfish coamings for $30 ea.+ shipping. I usually charge $45 - $55 each. Contact me directly at: [email protected] if interested. Colors? I have a variety.

When you say "...for the kids," what are you referring to?

Alan Glos
Cazenovia, NY
 
So you want 4 Sunfish coamings, correct? Do you care what colors they are or do you plan to paint them before installing them? What addresss are they being shipped to? Let me know and I will pick them out, box them up, get a UPS quote and bill you for the total.

Alan Glos
Cazenovia, NY
 
Been looking for someone to try printing the Depsersia drain plugs. The trick
would be to have enough printing resolution to do the threads.

The overpriced plastic rudder cheeks they sell could be engineered better. The
reinforcement webbing allows cracks in the corners. Thicker webbing, a few
gussets in the corners, a little trial and error and you may have people
beating a path to your email. Maybe better engineering for the same price?

If you are looking for used rudder heads, try to find the Aluminum ones, they
are pretty much indestructible.

The splash rail is structural as it keeps the hull from flexing. That said printing
one in sections might not stay together long. It also has to have the stiffness
of the original fiberglass. I would say, drain plug and rudder cheeks for sure,
splash rail not so much.
 
If you are looking for used rudder heads, try to find the Aluminum ones, they are pretty much indestructible.

The splash rail is structural as it keeps the hull from flexing. That said printing one in sections might not stay together long. It also has to have the stiffness of the original fiberglass. I would say, drain plug and rudder cheeks for sure, splash rail not so much.
Yeah...Recalling the member who showed pics of an ugly salt-corroded casting.

Before I had a chance to advise doing some power-sanding, the member decided to restore it!

(A good move--IMHO) :)
 
An attempt at 3-D printing of the DePersia drain plug screw-in caps is worth a shot. The original part ranks high on the list of most often lost Sunfish parts and I saw one sell on E-bay once for $50. Keep us poisted. You may be on to something of benefit to the legions of metal bailer fans out there.

Alan Glos
Cazenovia, NY
 
I have 27 coamings available. I have ben able to ship these for cheaper rates if I go to the right post office. The trick is to package them up like a boomerang and convince the post office to measure the length of the boomerang and then the box dimensions 5"x5". Otherwise they measure the wing span and the depth and height and all of a sudden shipping is $60 instead of $25. If you want some coamings that need a little repair I could donate them to you, you just pay the shipping. I also have rudder cheeks available but have to sell those at $100 each (aluminum or plastic).
 
I did 3D print the boom and mast end caps. My son did it for me at a library near his apartment. They charged for the material only which was $1.50 per piece. They were not smooth as the printer was not high quality, but they looked good for only 6 quarters.

I have also investigated making cast aluminum rudder cheeks as well. I would have to pay about $2500 for the mold and then about $45 per part. Then I would need to drill all of the holes, include the pin, spring, washer, etc and the tension spring posts. So I determined it was not worth the effort.
 
Does anyone have a file (STEP) for the rudder cheeks? I have seen files for spar caps and even a rudder but not the cheeks.

My son prints many items with his 3d printer using ABS plastic; I would love to give a go at sunfish parts. Having seen what he does for his nerf guns and robots for school competitions, I think this could work.
 
RE: coamings--
I would just cut the coaming in half at the "V", nest the two pieces side by side as well as possible, and mail. At the destination tape the two pieces to the deck in the proper orientation, glass the seam at the V, rattle can with your choice of color, and install w/ pop rivets or your choice of fasteners.
 
Have you considered printing with nylon? It has almost
double the tensile strength of ABS. I'm pretty sure it
would make cracking almost impossible.
 
An attempt at 3-D printing of the DePersia drain plug screw-in caps is worth a shot. The original part ranks high on the list of most often lost Sunfish parts and I saw one sell on E-bay once for $50. Keep us poisted. You may be on to something of benefit to the legions of metal bailer fans out there.

Alan Glos
Cazenovia, NY
Do you happen to know where to get the CAD files for 3D printing a DePersia bailer? Or the drawing for one with dimensions? A friend lost one and I trying to help her out.
 
The only problem with Nylon is layer adhesion, layer seams are where parts often crack with Nylon. ABS and Tough PLA may actually be better due to this. However, PETG may be the best because it is somewhere in between the layer adhesion of ABS and PLA and the strength of Nylon and ABS. I am printing the part now on an ender 3, will post pics when done printing. The first file is my design in Solidworks, and the other is the model in Cura after slicing.
 

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Additionally, my 1962 Sunfish has a DePersia, I may be able to get the dimensions from it and 3D print it, but 3D printing is not great for waterproof conditions.
 
True, testing may need to wait though since I have a 1962 model (hoping to trade up) without the new style gudgeon; the cheek plate is reinforced but plastic is still plastic. As for the bailer, I am not sure either. Both are definitely worth the try at making as it is much cheaper( If the pintle is machined from stock ST. Steel and springs are purchased from a store?).
 
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