That looks like it might work. Its 9pm here so I'll print it tomorrow and see how it turns out, it might need to have the top part extended but I can handle that part, I'll post up how it turns out.

Oh btw is this just one side? I can't open it on my home computer.

Yeah just one side... you'll have to mirror it for the other. (I can send you an opposite if you need)

here is a quick update. GV_Brake_Duct_3inch_v02.3ds

I forgot to flare the bottom to suit the radius where the opening merges with the front lip. Its really hard to see in the photos so I have no idea if I got it right. It will be interesting to see how well it fits, if at all! lol

For some reason my cross sectional averaging didn't end up that smooth this time... if it fits I might redo that section.

I'll try and get in early tomorrow and get it printing. Updates/Pics tomorrow

Prototype for the R-Package complete. It's nice and light... will see if it fits tonight. It's great to be able to start with an idea, quickly model something up and then hit print and you have a complete useable part. There will be a big future for this sort of manufacturing.

https://lastpixel.app.box.com/repres...4sr6dj5zx8mtjx

https://lastpixel.app.box.com/repres...4sr6dj5zx8mtjx

https://lastpixel.app.box.com/repres...4sr6dj5zx8mtjx

Again, the 1000props button is missing... well done!

This is so damn cool. Excited to see it on the car!

In for a set for the gv lip. 3 inch duct

Printer was clogged up today, so test parts will be printed tomorrow morning or late tonight. I have to work around the paying customers so it may take a bit to get sets out but I know you and Nial want a set. I'll probably get enough made to pass around the local guys. I don't want to deal with shipping.

In for 2.5 sets. Lemme know how much $$ if you need it.

Will do, I posted in our local cr thread too. Will be sub $20 for sure. I have to work around the real paying customers so I can't give an ETA.

This is fantastic, props! Can you link to the file for this version as you did the GV?

My duct fits well... I have a custom radiator hanger that gets in the way a little so I'm going to reposition and turn the output so that the hose can fit with more clearance to the tyre at full lock.

In terms of the 'R package' version, do people want to trim the back off the lip itself or would you rather a solution that just fits to the stock lip? My one is already trimmed so the model I have currently will need modifying if people want to fit directly attach to stock.

I have found someone locally who has a GV lip, so I can test fit and adjust it here to suit. I'm currently printing that model so I should be able to test it over the weekend.

Lastly, I'm happy to print them here and ship individually or lots in a single box. Shipping will be fairly pricey though so it would be far cheaper for someone to print them in the USA and distribute. Alternatively you could take my model to a print place and pay to have it made.

Here is the current model: R_Package_Air_Duct_v01

Just note: this model is specific for my car which is trimmed back. I'm also going to be changing it a little so only download if you want to have a play. It's not ready for production. (this applies to the GV duct too)

I'll need around a week to test fit them and finalise, and then I'll release 2 variants of each (2.5 and 3") in both the trimmed R package, non trimmed R package and GV.

Thank you for all the info and file sharing, very generous.

When you say trim the lip, do you mean the portion that rolls underneath from the leading edge?

I typed out a message then figured a diagram would work a lot better. Excuse the bad drawing.

https://lastpixel.app.box.com/repres...3nk2z140k8bu5k

So I cut the red bits off as I have a custom splitter and radiator mount that gets in the way. If you look at my model it's printed on a diagonal to mate up to the diagonal cut. It needs to be flattened and shortened to work on the stock lip.

The benefit to cutting it back is that my 3D part is fixed closer to the bumper itself which means the mount point is stronger. The negative is that your hacking up a perfectly good lip to do it. I'll make a version that mounts over the stock exit, just need to find someone who hasn't cut up their bumper. I might have kept the offcuts actually.

Nice design. Well done sir.

What material are you guys printing these ducts in? ABS?

I'm printing in pla plastic just because I have lots and it prints well. Abs might be a better choice as it is stronger, more flexible and has a higher melting point. The negatives to abs is that it is more sensitive to UV damage and is a bit tricker to print well.

Pla for this purpose should be fine. The parts are very strong given their shape and they wont see any heat.

I haven't had a chance to do any more on these yet. I spent all weekend painting a car... I'm glad they are small! I have printed the GV lip duct but I am yet to test it on a car.

Pretty stoked to see a test. I have like 5 or 6 local guys wanting some.

I was thinking at least ABS. From the little research I did PLA ducts would become soft and deform with the car sitting on hot pavement on a hot day. These ducts are to be used for track day applications after all. It might not be 300 degree engine compartment heat, but less than 12" off of hot baking asphalt can get pretty hot in the summer.

Even standard ABS will be pushed to its upper temperature range. I was wondering if anyone has the ability to try Nylon or Polycarbonate, even High Temp PLA?

Even if the first ones are PLA just to see if it can be done, it would be great to see some pictures!

PLA glass transition temp is 60 deg C = 140 deg F
ABS glass transition temp is 105 C = 221 deg F

Using PLA brake ducts on a 100 ambient day is usually closer to 120+ track surface temps and would concern me. I would go with ABS just to be safe if you plan to leave it on for a while.

Any update on the GV lip version Madjak?

in for 3" r package ducts

Whoa if this is still a thing I would totally love to get my hands on a set of GV 3" ones, I'll be doing a ducting job this spring when we get the car in the garage. In for a set!

Sorry guys, been away on a motorsport weekend and had to spend last week getting ready. I gave the GV lip version to another mx5 owner to test fit and haven't heard back yet. He has been busy too. I will find out soon if it needs modifications.

If anyone wants the 3d models pm me for a link. They aren't final but you can do a test fit if you have access to a printer.

So my buddy who is willing to print this for me sent me this information. What do you guys think material wise?


"I could print it out of ColorFabb XT (PET) co-polymer which has similar thermal properties to ABS ColorFabb - XT Co-Polyester Filaments produced from Amphora 3D? Polymer by Eastman Chemical Company. I don't have any on hand but it usually ships within a week and I get a 10% discount so a roll would be about $40.

Otherwise he could try Alumide (nylon powder mixed with aluminum powder) from shapeways https://www.shapeways.com/materials/metallic-plastic. It would have similar thermal properties but would cost around $80."

I don't care what it's made of as long as it fits the gv lip and has 3 inch outlets

I have no idea why you felt the need to answer my post with an answer that had nothing to do with the question. Thanks for the :2cents:

Does he have both an SLA and a FDM printer? I've never heard of the alumide one but one of the material characteristics says it can be brittle which is no bueno.

I'd go with the ABS type stuff.

I have had dozens of hollow parts FDM printed. If you go that route you will want 3mm wall thickness and an acetone vapor bath to help bond each layer together as one surface.

I have been going back and forth with him trying to pick out a good product. We spoke about using the Carbon option. XT-CF20
ColorFabb - colorFabb XT-CF20

This has a higher temp resistance, closer to an ABS option. However, this also means that I am picking up SS Nozzles for his printer. I am not sure if this is overkill. Maybe I would be fine with a regular XT option???

Would you still have 3mm thick walls with the XT-CF20?

:werd:

Or just use a squirt bottle with acetone and wet the entire part and let it air dry. It takes some practice to learn how much is the right amount of acetone to smooth out the part nicely. My vapor bath just takes way to long to heat up and I'm impatient so I often use this method.

I have tried that several times but I always get delamination and surface cracking. I think the rapid change in temp as the acetone evaporates causes the ABS to warp on the surface. My parts have always been rough sanded to ~220 grit before doing anything with the acetone, that might contribute to the surface weakness.

Really? I haven't had any issues like that yet. It might have to deal with the quality of ABS your using. I had a roll once that was terrible and always seperated and was

What setup are you using the vapor bath? My decision to use a crock pot was a terrible one.

I have an electric hot plate (I do this outdoors) and two of these aluminum stock pots:
16 Qt. Standard Weight Aluminum Stock Pot

I epoxied a flange onto one of them to make mating them together easier. The other pot is used as a lid and has a hole drilled in it so I can run a string and suspend the parts. The trick is getting the part out very carefully and hanging it somewhere to dry. The ABS stays soft until all the solvent evaporates out.

My neighbors are very tolerant of seeing me in the driveway with elbow length gloves and a respirator.


Edit:
On the crockpot issue. I am guessing it doesn't get hot enough. I have had the best results with the vapor bath when the acetone is very hot and making a lot of vapor. Better results from a lot of vapor and brief exposure than a little vapor and long exposure. Did your part in the crockpot start to deform?

Thanks for the info. I might have to switch to one of those.

It gets hot enough. It just takes a very long time to heat the very thick (3/4" or so) ceramic pot up to temperature. Like 1+ hours. I've found freezing the part helps the acetone vaporize on the surface alot easier too. I've had abs bead up and run from excess acetone and leaving it in for too long of a time when I first started experimenting with it. I'm sure if the parts were large enough I'd see deforming.

Brake duct test print. I'll try and fit these later today.

Attachment 234380
Attachment 234381
Attachment 234382

Those look much prettier than the fiberglass blobs I just made. I'll post pics when I am done. I only have 2" ducting and got impatient waiting for 3d goodness

They need a bit of work. Madjack. Let me k ow if you need measurements or anything. If you could pm me a 2.5 inch version that would he great too.

Attachment 234373
Attachment 234374
Attachment 234375
Attachment 234376
Attachment 234377
Attachment 234378
Attachment 234379

They look like they fit the form fairly well. Considering it was modelled from photos and a couple of dimensions I'm surprised it needed only a little trimming!

It's a little hard to see where I need to adjust the model. Would you be able to sketch on my 3D viewport images where it needs modification? That last photo looks as though the top lip doesn't extend forward enough.

I'll pm you my email address. It's a public holiday here on Mon but I can tweak it Tuesday and get you an update.

If anyone needs a test model for the GV lip I will have my NA bumper off the car and can modify a prototype and/or take pictures as needed. The top part is smashed but still pretty close on the bottom of the bumper.

Madjak and I have been working on it a bit. He is pretty busy right now though.

yeah sorry guys... been a bit busy trying to get my track car sorted for weekend of motorsport next weekend. After that I'll have some spare time again.

I am going to be doing full 3d scan of my car in about a month (using 4 kinect v2 sensors). I can post the files from that so that people can build a more accurate model.

Could I do a scan of the air inlet with a single kinect?

You could but I don't find the kinect v1 to be accurate enough for much in terms of critical measurements and parts fit. The data is too noisey.

I meant a single v2 kinect

My dream is a nextengine 3d scanner and a decent 3d printer, are there any of the latter in the <$500 range that are capable of printing parts this size reliably?

I built a early rep-rap printer that was largely useless. It was the steel allthread with printed clamping nuts, except they were extruded plastic versions. Sloppy piece of crap couldn't lay more than 1/2" before going all lopsided...

I personally think the up mini is the only printer worth its money in that range

I'm moderately happy with my Printrbot | Affordable high resolution 3D printers. I think I need a heated bed though.

You can do photo-modelling quite accurately with a good setup. So you place markers on the surface you want to track, and then you take a series photos in a circle around the surface and use software to either photo-model or track the markers.

I use an application called Syntheyes to track marker information and can get accuracy around the 1mm mark for most surfaces. I use this at work to place 3D accurately into helicopter or drone footage, or to modify objects moving in the video footage, like people's heads.

When I get some spare time, I'm going to make some 3D printed canyards for the front spoiler. I'll use this technique to get an accurate surface model of the front spoiler and wheel arch and then model over the top in 3D for the canyard. This process should be fairly accurate and reduce the number of iterations required to get the model correct.

I tried using a 3d webcam, a laser level, a printed grid, and a free program called david3d. If I had worked with it more I imagine it would have worked great!

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1432623407

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1432623407

This was what seems like ages ago though, half a decade. I had great plans to build a rotary table and a servo or gear driven motor for the laser sweep.

No go on a car though, though they had a structured light scan option. If only I had a projector!

So how did those duct adapters work out for you guys? Did they hold up over the summer?

Not sure. Madjack got real busy. I'm not very good with solidworks. They were close but I haven't used them yet.

I've had some ducting sitting on my bench for 2 months waiting to be installed I just haven't had a chance to check fitment. I actually jacked my car up yesterday to have a look as I just need to tweak the R-lip ones to fit past my custom radiator mounts.

I'm going to trim my radiator hanger so I can check the fitment properly, but it looks like they would fit a stock car nicely.

The GV-lip version needed some mods. Aidandj, I can have a look at it this week.

Also for 3D scanning, try Agisoft photoscan. It doesn't work too well with reflective surfaces though. Might have to get your car really dirty!

nice work. Once finalized, would these parts be used as printed, or used for a foundation to mold CF/FG?

Can someone print me a set ^_^

Did these ever get finalized? I will probably take a stab at it soon with an expanding foam pour followed by a 3d scan. I'll share the scan volume when I do.

Also, on the subject of scanning- For the cost photogrammetry is the way to go. I have worked with data from high end lidar systems, kinect scans, and good photoscan setups. The photoscans are the best option for relatively small parts where super tight tolerances aren't needed.. Agisoft photoscan works very well if you prep surfaces, take careful photos, and spend some time editing the point cloud. This example is about 100 photos and I spent 20 minutes cleaning up the point cloud. You can get better results with more time editing the point cloud and masking your photos, but for dimensional reference this is plenty.

https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1465315608

Clean model built from scan reference:
https://www.miataturbo.net/attachmen...ine=1465315608

This is amazing. How can I get into this line of work?