Impressive !
I will show the picture to 3D Synergy
I just got my first roll of PTEG… stuff is strong but really sticky lol.
I’ve just pulled my first rudder from my 3d printed moulds in PLA - done on a very cheap machine.
I’ll update my thread but I’m very happy with the results -I got an extremely good shape but not so great finish which is exactly what I was expecting from my machine. It has catapulted my rudder quality in leaps and bounds.
Previously my best attempts were heavy, fat, and irregular.
Here are the moulds, I’ll show the rudder in my thread as there are disclaimers about many things in the final product lol.
I’ve almost finished the new printer with it’s aluminium frame so hopefully I can start getting progressively better finishes.
Hi guys,
Is there any more info on the “Nano” class of 3d printed hulls mentioned here
https://3dprintedradioyachts.com/little-guys-footy-nano/
It looks like the perfect thing for me to test on. I understand from the website that it’s not a finalised class yet, but would it be possible for there to be a base, approved design made available with STL’s ready to print eventually?
It would be brilliant to have a design that is available “Ready to Print” to see and test my printer.
As a class it would be brilliant for us in South Africa as the exchange rate fluctuations are crazy.
I’ll use Esun for comparison purposes - PLA is R340, ABS R389 and PETG is R484
1m x 1m 163gsm FG twill is R63
1mx1m 200gsm Carbon Twill is R365
So the 3d printing is a nice option to get multiple boats out at a set price. And If we are all using the same sort of materials we aren’t running at a weight dis-advantage.
It also looks like a great size for me to print boats for my kids/nephews and nieces 
The Nano rules will be posted soon…Henning is very busy at the moment, so please be patient until he can get to it. The rules will be posted on the IRSA website https://www.radiosailing.org/.
Meanwhile, the Nano you saw is my design, and a few are being built by Selwyn and friends for testing. I suggest you ask Selwyn through his site if he could share files with you. I don’t have his STL files. If you have the software to convert from IGES to STL, you are welcome to email me billhagerup@hotmail.com and I will send you the hull file…IGES isn’t a format that is allowed to be uploaded here.
Bill
Hi Bill,
just profiting that I’m on RCSailing.
I sent 5 days ago a mail to Selwyn with a couples of questions, hope he will reply.
claudio
Ohh, come on Bill, another design, man.
I’m still working on your last RG65 (thanks to family) and now I have to stop everything and start a new one …
For some odd reason I can’t avoid building your boats … At least for this one I just have to let the printer go. So can I have the files please?
My mail is gio06226 at yahoo dot com … Thank you.
BTW, any idea how to expand the saber to a US1M?
Brilliant thanks:)
I sent Selwyn a mail today asking for some tips:)
I’m busy making some upgrades to the printer, then I’m officially on operation 3d printed yachts of doom 
I’ll give Selwyn a try for the Stl’s with your blessing and if I can’t get them I’ll give you a shout!!
I just got a note from Selwyn who’s been printing a couple of Footy hulls for me. Some months ago, we did some experiments with printed wing sails. They worked, but weren’t faster than conventional sails, so we dropped the idea.
Today he wrote, “just broke a new record and printed an ultra thin beautifully bonded (and waterproof) Footy at 0.21mm thick skin. Was incredible to watch whilst building. In reality too thin to build with, but a great technological breakthrough… think wing sails Bill. I still haven’t lost that dream.”
He loves to keep pushing the boundaries of what is possible…you never know to what it might lead. I couldn’t have found a better partner to pioneer this technology.
that’s awesome.
I just got a 0.2mm nozzle that I want to try out for fine detail like that.
I got Claudio’s 3b ready to print with and extra layer around the trunk section for strength and then printed the gluing strips to correspond with that as per Selwyn’s recomendation.
I took it a step further and actually made the strips to fit inside the hull without cutting them. I’m keen to get this first one done and start messing with braces keel trunks and mast supports as part of the actual print.
So much geeky fun lol.
Glad to see you jumping in. As we get more people involved, I’m sure we will discover new techniques and tools for both printing and assembly.
Exciting stuff.
Selwyn found a good research paper on PLA: “Poly(lactic acid) fibers” by D W F A R R I N G TO N, Consultant, UK, J L U N T, S D AV I E S, NatureWorks LLC, USA and R S B L A C K B U RN, University of Leeds, UK.
One of their observations should correct any misconceptions about UV resistance. They say, “Unlike other synthetic fibers, PLA does not absorb light in the visible region of the spectrum; this leads to very low strength loss compared to petroleum-based fibers when exposed to ultraviolet light.”
Bill, PLA does not absorbs light in the visible region, and UV is not a real issue. The real problem is heat, it can take very little to melt and deform a thin piece … I’m using 3D printed fly reels for some time now (2 yrs.) and just leaving them few hours in the car can deform the PLA and lock the reel (I just print a new one). The one I made from resin seem to hold the heat much better.
some additional readings :
http://nicklievendag.com/filament-guide/
http://www.emerginginvestigators.org/2013/11/the-effect-of-uv-treatment-on-the-degradation-of-compostable-polylactic-acid/
Good point, Gio…not a good idea to leave a plastic hull in a closed car on a hot day. Or your dog either
I’ve been playing with PETG.
The heat tolerance is up there with ABS and it’s got an amazing “feel” when finished - very rigid yet bendy if that makes any sense whatsoever.
I have had no warping at all like ABS prints.
Only issue I can see at this point is the added density compared to PLA - ABS would be ideal for us in terms of the weight but the warping is just so annoying.
New printer extruder carriage is almost finished printing and then the fun begins
Hi Andrew,
Warping as you said is a very disturbing factor, but apparently there are several suggestions on the Net !
One of Selwyn’s most important traits in this endeavor is his persistence (his wife might say he’s stubborn.) It will probably require many tests and refinements to get the printer geometry and print settings right for the material you decide to use. Once you get the right combination, things go more smoothly. Not every print will be a success, though. There are any number of things that can go wrong, and the longer the print, the more likely bad stuff can happen. Selwyn is still learning as we try new ideas.
A tip from our discoveries, and an example of the engineering/design relationship: We found that Selwyn’s printer did not like large flat surfaces using pla with the settings needed for good finish. Decks were wavy. Though it functioned fine, it was not visually satisfying. So Selwyn talked to his extraordinarily talented designer 
who came up with shapes that reinforced the deck area and made for a more attractive printed result. The technology requires some different design thinking in order to maximize the results.
Bill,
Selwyn sent me a quick “Hi, got your message - will reply when I get a chance” message
Do you know offhand if he’s printing the deck/foredeck seperately? Or is the whole hull section in a single hit?
I am now chasing an issue with my extruder and have asked the boffins for help. Apparantly I might have a partially clogged nozzle that is giving me issues 
Claudio,
The warping is a pain with large, thick flat surfaces in ABS. I’m hoping I can get the thin walls of a hull dialed in without issues.
I have built an enclosure using 20x20 aluminium with sliding perspex sides to cut down drafts - it definately helped out. Annoyingly my original cardboard box had better heat retention than the perspex - This looks great but doesn’t function as well so - go figure:(
Next step is to move the controller electronics below the building bed or outside the enclosure. The cooling fans on them are moving too much air around inside the print area for my liking so that may be contributing to the issue.
And finally I should get a little temp controller like the brewers use to control heat (stc1000) and set that up to maintain air temp around the build but that’s for later lol.
You just described me there
My wife knows that if I head into the room with the printer that I’m a lost cause.
I think people should be made aware that 3d printing is not for the faint of heart at this point.
I am extremely stubborn with things like this and I have pulled my hair out on countless occasions and just walked away for two days.
The learning curve is quite steep but the community is brilliant and you get really fast, helpful advice when you ask.