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PCMusicGuy is kind and generous enough to send me one of his newest revisions. Once I receive it, I want to return the favor by giving someone his original red prototype that is pictured in this thread. It works perfectly.
PCMusicGuy is kind and generous enough to send me one of his newest revisions. Once I receive it, I want to return the favor by giving someone his original red prototype that is pictured in this thread. It works perfectly.
So, who wants it?
Very kind of you. I'll take it. Let me know how much shipping is to 07034 and I'll cover it.
Sorry for the long delay between updates. When I initially tried printing in ABS, I faced many issues. Mostly, the plastic wouldn't stay stuck to the glass bed while building the parts, and the layers were not very strongly bonded together.
After trying many different temperature settings and tricks, I decided to enclose the whole printer so that it would have a higher ambient temperature while printing. There is many benefits to this when dealing with ABS apparently.
I still had to fiddle with settings and tricks to get things printing at acceptable quality. I've been swamped with my day job the last couple months, but I did finally get it working well.
This is what the current latch looks like in ABS.
For those interested in what the printing setup looks like, here is a picture.
Thanks so much for the update PCMusicGuy. This is a great thing you're doing for the community. Can't thank you enough for your generosity in sending me your newest model .Truly appreciate it. Nice setup too.
Looking forward to receiving it and I will get the original latch out to 5knives once I do.
My understanding is that there are a lot of broken latches out there for the earlier models. When I look at the replacement latch pictures on Cultrag, it looks as if it is a slightly different design that has extra supports for the little piece that always breaks. I can certainly make a bunch of these and sell them, just as long as people understand that the finish of these will have the layer lines and won't be smooth like an injected molded piece. What would everyone think about a $15 to $20 price point? That would include shipping. Shipping would be anywhere from $3 to $7. Flat rate envelopes are $7 these days at the post office. There may be some cheaper options and I'm exploring that as well.
Thanks for the update and R&D on this PCMusicGuy. I'd be in at the price point you are talking about. Give me a PM when you're ready to go into production.
Just an update. Shipping is right at $3.50 through the post office. Pretty reasonable. I would just need to buy some of the little bubble mailer 4 x 8 or 6 x 9 envelopes in bulk so that they are not $1 a piece. I currently have ABS in black and blue (a brighter blue). If anyone wants a latch let me know. I saw that these things have gone to just over $50 now. It was closer to lower $40s when I started this learning process.
Last edited by PCMusicGuy; Sep 12, 2018 at 11:04 PM.
Reason: Grammar
My understanding is that there are a lot of broken latches out there for the earlier models. When I look at the replacement latch pictures on Cultrag, it looks as if it is a slightly different design that has extra supports for the little piece that always breaks. I can certainly make a bunch of these and sell them, just as long as people understand that the finish of these will have the layer lines and won't be smooth like an injected molded piece. What would everyone think about a $15 to $20 price point? That would include shipping. Shipping would be anywhere from $3 to $7. Flat rate envelopes are $7 these days at the post office. There may be some cheaper options and I'm exploring that as well.
Please put me down for a black unit. I have a 2006. Let me know when ready and I'll PM address and let me know how you want payment-PayPal? Thanks
How in the world do so many of you guys break these? Why is it so friggin' hard for people to open a simple latch on a car? I can't believe how so many people can be so clums.........
Just an update. Shipping is right at $3.50 through the post office. Pretty reasonable. I would just need to buy some of the little bubble mailer 4 x 8 or 6 x 9 envelopes in bulk so that they are not $1 a piece. I currently have ABS in black and blue (a brighter blue). If anyone wants a latch let me know. I saw that these things have no gone to just over $50 now. It was closer to lower $40s when I started this learning process.
Not sure how this would work with your price point, but you can get USPS to send you boxes FREE of charge.
The boxes are free, but they charge you a flat rate, regardless of weight. That doesn't work out in anyone's favor on an item less than 1 oz. Cheapest flat rate envelope shipping starts at $7.
Wanted to give you guys another update. I've been working towards improving the finish quality on the parts. I know I won't hit injection molded quality but if I can make the part better, why not?
Since everyone enjoys pictures over tons of words, I thought I would share the progression of this project with you below. Just a hint, but the matching wording appears at the bottom of the picture. That's they way the forum handles picture comment uploads apparently.
Where it all started. First print was at a Maker Space using red ABS. It worked ok, but some edges were sharp and need a bit more refinement. PLA plastic held its shape for a couple of days, but after experiencing the Texas sun in the parking lot at work, it started to warp. It worked for 3 weeks until the latch portion broke. First successful prints on my personal printer out of black ABS. I'm still using one of these in my car.
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