How good is 3d printing?

[MaxtheNinja]

How complex can you 3d print something? I am wondering if I can get a 3d printer to print my own bbs for airsoft, would that be possible?

[fred_dot_u]

FFM printing is not well suited for spherical objects. A sphere is a single point contact on the print bed, which won't work, as it will break loose and fail the print. If you use the usual raft and/or support methods, you'd be increasing the labor and time involved, reducing the value substantially for such small objects.

If the "weapon" could tolerate cylindrical objects, it would be more practical, but the weapons do not.

SLS printing, which uses a laser to sinter nylon powder would work. The un-fused powder provides the support. There's no lateral forces involved to shift the print and the build volume can be fully used by carefully nesting the spheres.

SLS printing, on the other hand is more expensive than almost anything else. The powder is expensive and the printers start at US$5,000.

[airscapes]

when you can buy 5000 for $20 not really worth it.. I don't think you would be able to print a perfect orb.
3d printing works by laying down a strips of plastic one layer at a time building up the item. so round balls would not work all that well and even if you could print the balls accurately it would take a very long time to print enough to be worth while.. cheapest printer worth buying would be $150. You might still enjoy 3d printing so look into it for other items. search https://www.thingiverse.com to get an idea of all the possibilities!

[kris_brat]

The most advanced printers out there are capable of reproducing- they can print the parts required for a 3D printer. A bit of human intervention (surgery) and a new printer is born.

[paulschoon]

on the topic of printing out airsoft stuff with printers, how nice of a printer would you need to print good parts for an airsoft gun

[MaxtheNinja]

Okay, so it wouldn't work. I was hoping because that would just be cool! I am wondering though if there is a use for 3d printing somewhere in airsofting. Like printing custom parts? I know that Glock parts are hard to come by...

[paulschoon]

Well, they're not THAT hard to find... Elite force came out with their Glock 17 and 19s and there were always replacement parts available if you looked hard enough.

[MaxtheNinja]

Yeah, but they were always out of stock and on some weird Asian website. Even the new Glocks, they are all out of stock...

[paulschoon]

The Elite Force Glocks are available on modern airsoft, but they are out of stock elsewhere. I do get your point though.

[Emil123]

While you can't print BBs, you could print pretty much any part of the airsoft gun that doesn't need to be metal.