We are really excited to share a quick sneak peek of the first Shapeways 3D Printer operating in New York City…
This is not yet our ‘Factory of the Future’ in full effect but we were too excited at having the first Shapeways 3D Printer operating in New York City that we had to share… The first 3D Printer in operation is a 3D Systems ProJet 3500 plus which we use to 3D Print Frosted Detail and Frosted Ultra Detail which is a UV cured Acrylic.
As you watch the video of the 3D Printer in action, laying down layer upon layer of acrylic resin you will notice occasional flashes as the UV light hardens the acrylic resin. At the same time as the acrylic resin is laid down wax is also laid down as support material which is why we can 3D Print complex forms with overhangs, under-drafts and moving parts as they are supported by wax.
Once the build is finished (this can take several hours) we remove the tray from the 3D Printer and put it on ice to remove the 3D prints from the build platform. From here the 3D prints go into an oven to melt the wax support material from the acrylic parts, then into a ultrasonic bath to clean of the final wax residue.
As you can see we are getting a really beautiful, clean high resolution finish from our first 3D Printer in NYC. Those who order FUD 3D prints from within the USA may notice a little difference in the quality of their 3D prints Made In NYC…
Great: I hope my current Order is one of the first to benefit from the output of his machine.
What a great replica of New York City! It looks like it’s made out of sugar crystal…I’m ashamed to say I would probably try eating that 😛 haha.
Bad puns aside, check out this TINY CAR designed by David Sun….look closely and you’ll see it has SHAPEWAYS on its roof! This amazing level of detail is possible printing in Frosted Ultra Detail…with our brand new 3D Systems ProJet printer loc
“Those who order FUD 3D prints from within the USA may notice a little difference in the quality of their 3D prints ”
So, how does one ensure their FUD prints get made in NYC or are they all geting made there now?
Does anyone realize that so-called 3d printing (rapid prototyping) is 30 year old tech and not the “next big thing”? It was the next big thing in 1985.