3D printing fun

[Sean'O]

Howdy friends,

I found a few posts on 3D printing but thought I might start a thread to consolidate the bits and pieces I make for the my R32 Skyline and update the original post as I go.

I only recently got into this hobby and for some of those obscure parts which are difficult to locate part numbers, or are no longer in production, the 3D printer is a pretty useful resource, albeit there will always be some cosmetic limitations.

I'll list model files on my Printables account for those with their own printers so you can download and print at your leisure.

If anybody has any ideas on parts they can't locate and want me to have a crack at making something, feel free to post below and I might be able to help out 🙂

• BNR32 wheel caps : https://www.printables.com/model/808878-bnr32-nissan-skyline-r32-gtr-wheel-centre-cap
  
  

Cheers,

Sean

[DaymoR32]

Loving your printables name 😆 "i was tryna save time!"

[Sean'O]

Exactly ha ha XD

That movie has aged terribly ha ha, I do miss my old Nokia to be totally honest 

[DaymoR32]

haha, its still a cracker though!

yeah days where simpler when you could actually text and drive as you didnt have to look at the phone when it had buttons 😆

[Sean'O]

Poor kids these days will never know ha ha 😉

[Sean'O]

Howdy friends,

So this evening I had a need to remove the rear compressor turbo pipe (long story, but I'm replacing it due to a bolt snapping off in the pipe and managing to then snap an extraction bit in the broken bolt, fun times -_-). The rear bolt is a bit of a bastard and very little room to get good leverage. I was able to get a 12 mm socket onto the bolt head, but none of my ratchets were able to fit, so I put together a "stubby" socket wrench to get it out and it worked surprisingly well 🙂. In the past I've "made" tools by cutting down spanners and bending them with a torch etc, but this 3D printed wrench was way less effort.

I'll be keeping this one in my "special tool draw" from now on for sure ^_^b

https://www.printables.com/model/868973-half-inch-stubby-socket-wrench

[GTSBoy]

Plastique? So there will be a limit to how much torque you can apply. I guess the short length probably plays well with that. You chose the length based on the room you had available to swing it in?

I've made something similar with round bar, heated up and bent sharply, then a little spray with the MIG to fill out the corners of the 3/8" square and some filing to shape. I've also seen it done just using a short length of 3/8" square bar (or there are double ended male 3/8" socket accessories which can do the same thing) and a bit of plate with a 3/8" square hole broached through it to use as a handle that you can slip over the square drive.

You could probably do the job you had to do with a 12mm box spanner too. You know, the sort that you get for spark plugs on whipper snippers etc. Box spanners are beneath scorn most of the time, until one saves the day.

[Sean'O]

On 09/05/2024 at 2:26 PM, GTSBoy said:

Plastique? So there will be a limit to how much torque you can apply. I guess the short length probably plays well with that. You chose the length based on the room you had available to swing it in?

I've made something similar with round bar, heated up and bent sharply, then a little spray with the MIG to fill out the corners of the 3/8" square and some filing to shape. I've also seen it done just using a short length of 3/8" square bar (or there are double ended male 3/8" socket accessories which can do the same thing) and a bit of plate with a 3/8" square hole broached through it to use as a handle that you can slip over the square drive.

You could probably do the job you had to do with a 12mm box spanner too. You know, the sort that you get for spark plugs on whipper snippers etc. Box spanners are beneath scorn most of the time, until one saves the day.

Yep PETG (Polyethylene terephthalate glycol), my 'go to' plastic, printed to precisely how long I wanted 🙂, about a finger length ha ha.

I would usually grind up something but since I've got the printer I thought I might give it a try and it worked beautifully ^_^b

So with regards to torque, there's a little bit of science behind the orientation of the print, fill density, fill pattern and number of external perimeters which can increase the strength dramatically, but you still need to work within the constraints of the material and the orientation of the model for sure. I certainly wouldn't be making a breaker bar out of plastic, but this little bugger is very strong for it's size that's for sure.

[Sean'O]

Howdy all,

A mate of mine picked up an R32 GTS-T recently and it had a very... colourful... gear knob that needed to be replaced immediately 🤣

I put together a replacement which is reminiscent of the Nismo offering, which I also really like both the feeling and design. I basically took what they did and optimising for 3D printing, with the exception of the top chamfer, where I prefer a filleted design, despite it not printing quite as clean.

If anybody needs another thread size for the locker or if you prefer a top chamfer similar to the Nismo one, I'm happy to put something together for you and as a side note, I was really impressed by the TPU lock nuts. Originally I was going to use steel and then found out the ones I had on hand were sadly M10 1.5 pitch, rather than the required M10 1.25 pitch, so I had to get a bit creative rather than wait for the bolt shop to open.

In the picture it looks a little bit 'rough' at the top due to the layering printing on a curve, but in reality it's not very noticeable at all and honestly feels pretty good in the hand.

https://www.printables.com/model/910138-nissan-skyline-r32-gear-knob

Regards,

Sean