Attention 3D Printer Enthusiasts! Product Idea

D

Dan Sarandrea (Phila)

Waitin' On Parts...
I know we have at least two 3D printer enthusiasts, jvandyke and geekdaddy.

Here's an idea that I thought of at the car show over the weekend. We had several showers pass thru so as each one came by, the targa came out of the frunk, onto the car, off the car, into the frunk, out of the frunk, onto the car, etc etc etc.

This drew my eye to the edges of the targa that lead into the nosecone. Even though Bertone thoughtfully supplied rub strips on the hinges to prevent damage to the edges of the targa, nevertheless over the years it seems that there was enough rubbing on the unprotected part of the hinges to wear the finish off the targa, and some white is showing. I assume the white is the core plastic of the top.

Sure I could probably put some adhesive felt or something on the hinges, but where's the fun and engineering in that? :):geek::mallet:

Would you guys consider checking it out and developing additional or replacement rub strips that cover the hinges better to help prevent damage to the finish of the targa?

I will post some pix later to illustrate.
 
Scraping on the hinges is a problem so not sure another engineered rub strip would help with that.
Need something to cover...softly.

just need a loved-one good with thread, fabric, foam & velcro..:)

 
Get a big golf umbrella

Dan,

A large golf umbrella will cover the targa opening. Roll the windows up, open the umbrella, then drop the handle down onto the hand brake area. Works great and is quicker than playing with the targa. If its windy you can sit in the car to hold the umbrella. :thumbsup:
 
What about replacement Tron center caps/covers?
I lot of folks here have broken ones and replacements are almost nil.
V/r, Mike


Nebraska Mike
 
Dan I'm with Greg on this one. A 3d printed part would be hard plastic. Might be able to print in rubberized plastic but me thinks soft fabric is better.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using Tapatalk
 
Jim,

Funny you should mention umbrella....at the show, one of the visitors, who seemed to know something about the car, said that a couple of years ago at a flea market, he bought a Bertone umbrella from a vendor, and never knew what Bertone was until he saw the name on my X. He said he never used it and was very willing to give me the umbrella! I gave him my business card, hopefully he'll call me someday.
 
If I'm not mistaken, early cars did not have those rub things on the hinges :(

I'm jealous - but hey! I'm just extra careful (although my roof has taken a beating on the sides a little bit).

Cool idea.
 
It sort of has been done.

The issue is the quality/capability of the materials and resolution of the printers.

The weave generally needs to be sanded, bondo'ed, sanded, painted and painted again.

At work we have a new higher resolution printer that uses nylon which is considerably stronger. Unfortunately I can't use it for "government work" though it would be just the ticket for making Tron wheel covers.

They still need extensive finishing to be visually acceptable for car use.
 
Yep, what Karl said. Probably easier to make something out of aluminum that works then all the hassle to make plastic work (poorly).
I think Dan got the prototype. He can use it for......a hat?
 
Can't wait for the 3D printers to evolve more. Great work on everything.
V/r, Mike


Nebraska Mike
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top