A New Zealand man is building a replica 1961 Aston Martin with parts created by a 3D printer.
Your first question is probably whether anyone could possibly build an Aston Martin using a 3D printer. The answer is, for the most part, yes. Now you really want to know how this is done so you can build one yourself.
To answer the first question fully, you cannot build the entire car with a 3D printer and plastic. The suspension, frame, transmission, engine and many components will need to be a bit more durable. However, you can build the body and interior and have a replica that is significantly less than the $150,000 plus price tag of a factory Aston Martin.
To build your car, you obviously need a 3D printer and a lot of plastic. You also need a considerable amount of time and patience. You will be building your Aston Martin four square inches at a time. You will need to be able to create a 3D image of the parts on a computer with precision. You can purchase a 3D drawing to make life easier.
Choose your starting point – the hood, trunk, body or a door. Once the entire part is created in a CAD program, divide the piece into section sizes your 3D printer can handle. The next steps are the time-consuming ones. You will be printing each small section of your car and carefully assembling it. If you create a mold for a frame, you can assemble and secure your pieces with ease. When each body part is done, or the entire body is complete, you have the fun of sanding, filling, prepping and painting.
This project is actually being done by a man in New Zealand. Programmer Ivan Sentch started his 3D printing project December 25, 2012. As of September 2013 and $2,000 worth of plastic, he is nearing 75% completion of the body of a 1961 series II Aston Martin DB4.
E3 Spark Plugs wants to point out that you cannot create a quality spark plug from plastic. A plastic plug will not survive the 40,000 to 100,000 volts needed for combustion. So, once you complete your new Aston Martin, put real E3 Spark Plugs in the engine and drive that vehicle with pride.
