Useful stuff..

[davehills]

I have recently discovered a material called "Polymorph" which may be of interest for making plastic parts, especially brackets and stuff.

It comes as white granules which when placed in really hot water turns clear and becomes a sort of putty consistency. Once cooled it turns white and goes rock hard again and is pretty much the same consistency as nylon. It can also be drilled, sawn and sanded (slowly, to avoid melting). It can be re-moulded as many times as you like,

Obviously, it can't be used anywhere that gets hot but is useful for making replacement plastic parts, especially where it can't be seen.

Google 'Polymorph' for details. It's not expensive and can be found on eBay, amazon etc.

[Gadgetman]

It's a fun stuff, yeah, but the heat sensitivity can be a problem in the summers or near heating systems.

Personally, I prefer HDPE(think IKEA cutting boards) plastic. you can cut it, drill it, sand it...
(I happen to have a ShapeOko 3axis cnC mill in my garage. Cuts HDPE with ease.)
That is also available on eBay, but usually as sheets of 3,6,12, or 15mm thickness.

[davehills]

It's a fun stuff, yeah, but the heat sensitivity can be a problem in the summers or near heating systems.

Personally, I prefer HDPE(think IKEA cutting boards) plastic. you can cut it, drill it, sand it...
(I happen to have a ShapeOko 3axis cnC mill in my garage. Cuts HDPE with ease.)
That is also available on eBay, but usually as sheets of 3,6,12, or 15mm thickness.

I have access to a CO2 laser cutter and 3D printer which can be very useful too.

The other interesting material is "Sugru", but haven't had time to play with any so can't vouch as to how good it is.

[Gadgetman]

3D printers are fun... I have two( a large Dreammaker Overlord Pro that prints with filament, and a smll iBox nano which is supposed to print using resin and UV light) and are considering refurbing the Prusa Mendel I built years ago that never worked properly. (I have a 'Discov3ry' module for printing with silicone and similar materials)

[davehills]

Cool stuff. Have you seen the ones that 3D print in metal?

[Gadgetman]

Yeah...
Not for me, though.

I wouldn't mind taking that CO2 laser for a spin, though.

Here's a video of my ShapeOko 'going through the motions' and doing test cuts in plywood.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VEMYajG2...e=youtu.be

I had it dialled in to an accuracy of about +/-0.15mm before the recent rebuild. I'm hoping to get it close to +/-0.1mm soon...
My build-log is here:
http://www.shapeoko.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=2025
not too many pictures before about page 7, though.

[davehills]

out of my budget too, but fascinating kit.