MrObsessive Posted February 10, 2023 Share Posted February 10, 2023 After the third or fourth revision, I was finally able to get this wire wheel file to cooperate and print properly. The wheels are out of a 1956 Corvette SR2 file which I converted to be printable months ago, but I haven't printed it yet. I wanted to get a head start on the wheels as they can be used for other cars, and now at least I have a set for the Corvette when the time comes. Some pics of the wheels, and of the 3D file/drawing I'll be printing in the not too distant future. I actually did about 40 wheels on the build plate.......some didn't make it as the spokes are very thin as can be seen. Once cured though, the spokes are a bit tough, but of course handled to roughly are prone to break/fracture. I had a number of spinners that came out well the first time I attempted these wheels in November, so I don't have to worry about those. The second pic is the wheel and tire under a '64 Pontiac Banshee convertible I had designed and printed months ago------those wheels aren't intended for that, but I wanted to get an idea of scale, as the SR 2 will be printed in 1/24th. The printable file drawings of the SR2............ 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leo64 Posted February 10, 2023 Share Posted February 10, 2023 Those wheels came out really nice. The SR2 looks good too, it would be nice to see one of the later SR2's with the headrest/fin behind the driver. Steve A. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted February 10, 2023 Share Posted February 10, 2023 (edited) I've always been impressed by your work, but the more I see of your 3D stuff, the more impressed...and inspired...I am. Not blowing smoke up your backside, just stating the truth. Is there any possibility you'd sell sets of these (at a suitably exorbitant price to make it profitable to you)? I believe there are serious modelers (besides me) who'd happily pay a premium to get pre-printed copies of these and some of the other otherwise unobtainable models you've designed, refined, and printed. The AMX / Gremlin show-car comes to mind... Edited February 10, 2023 by Ace-Garageguy 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LDO Posted February 10, 2023 Share Posted February 10, 2023 So…are you a fan of Duesenbergs??? 😎 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted February 10, 2023 Share Posted February 10, 2023 (edited) Wow - those look amazing! The way the spokes are interlace (like on the real car) cannot be accomplished with photoetch, or even with wire laced wheels). I've been watching your posts Bill and I am amazed how 3D printing has totally changed the focus of your hobbies. You live up to your screen name! Randy from Model Builder's Warehouse made and sold 3D printed wire wheels, but I guess he ran into some problems because after I bought them couple of times, he stopped offering them. Too bad because, those were pretty good too. I agree with Lee that it would be great to get some of the Duesy (or other similar vintage) cars wire wheels 3D printed. Edited February 11, 2023 by peteski 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucky 130 Posted February 11, 2023 Share Posted February 11, 2023 I agree with "ACE", I can see those on many, many, models. Superb work. The SR2,looks great also. this is gonna be fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GLMFAA1 Posted February 11, 2023 Share Posted February 11, 2023 Great add on. Would work well on Route 66 tv show Corvette. Just need two prong knock offs. Now all we need is the Luggage rack with suitcases and sleeping bags. greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheveuxroux Posted February 19, 2023 Share Posted February 19, 2023 Very nice! I've drawn an alloy wheel as part of a SolidWorks class; never considered a wire wheel. As I am just starting to experience how to position one of my own drawings and how a file is printed, I can't help but be curious how the software handles supporting those thin wheel wires. Are you able to post any photos of how the wheel appears as removed from the printer? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted February 20, 2023 Share Posted February 20, 2023 . . . or how the slicer shows the wheel with the supports in place? I suspect that the spokes are self-supporting due to their angle. I think the supports will only be needed for the rim and the hub. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheveuxroux Posted February 21, 2023 Share Posted February 21, 2023 (edited) I have positioned some support structures prior to printing thicker PLA unsupported material - for instance: tabs and the wire spokes would presumably not be at all at the same angle when positioned for printing, I am guessing that at least some spokes require support- however tenuous. A computer screen shot of the part as positioned for printing would be helpful, even there are no photos of the part as retrieved from the printer. Edited February 21, 2023 by Cheveuxroux 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrObsessive Posted February 26, 2023 Author Share Posted February 26, 2023 (edited) Here's a pic of the wheels when they were on the build plate. One caution----ABSOLUTELY NO SUPPORTS ON THE SPOKES. That's asking for trouble. You want the wheel parallel to the build plate with the supports on the rim and hub ONLY. Edited February 26, 2023 by MrObsessive 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheveuxroux Posted February 27, 2023 Share Posted February 27, 2023 Thank you for the photos and advice! Beautiful work! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted February 28, 2023 Share Posted February 28, 2023 That is very interesting. Thanks for the photo Bill. I assume that there are also bunch of supports for the hub. I also see that there are some print failures, but hopefully not too many. I wonder if the failure rate was what made Randy from Model Builder's Warehouse stopped making and selling them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted March 1, 2023 Share Posted March 1, 2023 4 hours ago, peteski said: ...I wonder if the failure rate was what made Randy from Model Builder's Warehouse stopped making and selling them? My guess would be complaints about the fragility. IIRC, Casey was apparently having "fragility" complaints on the gorgeous wide-five '36 Ford wheels he was making...of which I was lucky to get a few sets, and haven't had an issue yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bainford Posted March 1, 2023 Share Posted March 1, 2023 Bill, that is some crazy impressive work. I continue to be blown away by what you and others have made possible with 3D printing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrObsessive Posted March 2, 2023 Author Share Posted March 2, 2023 On 2/28/2023 at 6:17 PM, peteski said: That is very interesting. Thanks for the photo Bill. I assume that there are also bunch of supports for the hub. I also see that there are some print failures, but hopefully not too many. I wonder if the failure rate was what made Randy from Model Builder's Warehouse stopped making and selling them? Yeah, there are about five or six supports under the center hub. That is one of the reasons I wouldn't be making these readily available on eBay for example........the spokes ARE fragile and while someone like myself would know how to deal with parts like this, your average builder who just sees pretty wire wheels may not be. Also, these were not easy to get the file to cooperate. It was a number of tries to get a decent set, and it's why I filled the build plate up with as many as possible, because I knew there'd be some that wouldn't form properly. On 2/28/2023 at 10:29 PM, Ace-Garageguy said: My guess would be complaints about the fragility. IIRC, Casey was apparently having "fragility" complaints on the gorgeous wide-five '36 Ford wheels he was making...of which I was lucky to get a few sets, and haven't had an issue yet. That's what I want to avoid------folks complaining about spokes breaking too easily. Just to get them inside what may be a slightly tight fit inside of a tire, you have to handle these with kid gloves and then some. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 33 minutes ago, MrObsessive said: That's what I want to avoid------folks complaining about spokes breaking too easily. Just to get them inside what may be a slightly tight fit inside of a tire, you have to handle these with kid gloves and then some. Parts this fragile should come with a "no return" policy like many electrical and electronic parts do. Idiots who hook things up wrong and burn them out don't get a refund for their stupidity. Idiots who can't grasp the obvious fact you can't put any pressure on those tiny spokes shouldn't be catered to either, and just to make sure, the parts should be labeled with BIG RED LETTERS explaining just that...and nobody will read the warning, but at least the manufacturer is covered in advance. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lucky 130 Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 Mr. O, those are beautiful. some of the best wires I've ever seen in any scale. I've watched your work for years, but never seen your 3D work.I'm hooked. If you ever sell them, let me know, I',, buy what I can afford. Thanks for showing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteski Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 While those wire wheels with very fine spokes look amazing, why not make the spokes slightly thicker? They would still look good, and be mode sturdy. Probably easier to print too. Randy's wheels had slightly thicker spokes, but with the interlaces spoke layout, they still look amazingly well. I really wish these were available again. It would also be rally nice to have larger diameter 3D printed wheels for the '20s and '30s cars like Packards and Duesies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace-Garageguy Posted March 2, 2023 Share Posted March 2, 2023 (edited) 3 hours ago, peteski said: ... It would also be rally nice to have larger diameter 3D printed wheels for the '20s and '30s cars like Packards and Duesies. That would indeed be nice, but what I'd REALLY like to see is printed wires with integral back-face rims, that were designed to reside in actual machined alloy outer rims. As fragile as printed spokes are, it can be daunting getting a perfect finish on a painted or "polished" rim without damaging spokes. Separate machined (or even printed) outer rims would solve the problem, though the relationship of the outer spokes to the rims might need some tweaking to look almost right...depending on the lacing of the real wheel being represented, of course. Those shown below could work well with machined outer rims. These, not so much. NOTE: Some real Borranis have polished alloy rims, and chromed or stainless or painted spokes. It's a subtle but noticeable difference in color and reflectivity, all but impossible to achieve with one-piece printed wires. The best model wires I've seen to date used printed rims with integral nipples (that had .010" holes printed in), and were then hand-laced using nylon monofilament...but that's way too much hassle for anything other than top-tier models for competition. And then there's the question of how to get the best "chrome" finish... Edited March 2, 2023 by Ace-Garageguy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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