Innovative 3D printer on Kickstarter, to be sold at $347!!!

[Fat Tone]

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/pirate3d/the-buccaneer-the-3d-printer-that-everyone-can-use

I don't have a use for it but I really want one. Definitely worth a read.

[Brian Ellis]

Interesting! Anyone want to kill themselves with a gun?

[VJ]

I doubt this uses a filament appropriate to make a gun. The gun really needed a pro-grade 3D printer.

I do wonder about the development of this. Imagine if you would just buy the inner workings of a keyboard or mouse, and then get the plans to 3D print the buttons and covers. Easy to replace if they get too dirty (just print a new one).
Nokia already supplied the 3D print-file for one of their phones, to allow users to print new covers, so it is not that far off.

I also wonder if this might not be the future for board game manufacturers. Most boardgames have some cards (can be printed with a good printer) and tokens (which usually are so simple in design that a 3D printer could manage).

[Brian Ellis]

I doubt this uses a filament appropriate to make a gun. The gun really needed a pro-grade 3D printer.

Do you think this would stop some idiots? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLd6UFudCFE

[VJ]

True... but there are plenty of ways for people to kill themselves...

Meanwhile, an alternative mouse cover is available:

http://www.pyottdesign.com/statial01.html

Guess my idea was not that far off...

I do wonder about environmental aspects: if people just start printing things, it may become a more disposable item than anything they would buy. And a lot of prints might fail. All arguments leading to more plastic in the garbage...

[Brian Ellis]

The standard filament for this printer is a polylactic acid (PLA) which is fully biodegradable (depending on the pigments). Rather the opposite, parts made with it would have a very limited lifetime, especially in places with a humid climate. Much less so would be the use of an acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) filament, which the makers say is dicey on their machine. It would require a heated platen. ABS has the added advantage that it can be treated to allow electroplating, to give a metallic finish plus the added disadvantage that its vapours are quite toxic.

[VJ]

Interesting, I did not know that it is biodegradable...

They are getting more economically beneficial according to some studies:

http://gizmodo.com/household-3d-printers-can-pay-for-themselves-in-a-year-986593950