3d print for yacht

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Can 3D printing transform the way boats are designed and built?

From spare parts on demand to click-and-buy tenders, 3D printing is transforming how boats are designed and built, discovers Tristan Rutherford

Espen Øino holds a 3D-printed model of a yacht up to his laptop camera. “We use 3D printing for quickly printing out models to evaluate,” explains the celebrated naval architect. “The more you look at a virtual model on a screen the more you feel the need to physically touch it and feel how the hull shape is.”

Øino states that 3D printing “is going to revolutionise boatbuilding”. Circuitry could be printed inside a hull without cable trays. Local geometries and structural arrangements will not be based upon accessibility for a welder or engineer to do their job. “It’s really promising because once we have different printing heads with different materials you can optimise structures.” The timescale? “Don’t get too excited,” warns Øino. Printing entire superyachts are still some way off.

Last December the excitement was palpable as one of Scandinavia’s best-selling runabout models powered along Sweden’s blustery west coast. But this version of the 4.2-metre Pioner 14 Active was different. It had been printed in just three days, entirely in one piece. No moulds, no tools and minimal labour required. The build wasted just four per cent of raw material.  The boat could have been printed in sky blue or shocking pink. The style-conscious Swedes chose black.

In the three leading yacht manufacturing nations of Italy, the Netherlands and Turkey, dozens of designers, shipyards and service companies are using 3D printers to create models,  parts and entire boats in very different ways. It’s a fragmented market buzzing with ideas, yet one that’s breaking convention with every passing month.

Also last December, Rotterdam startup Tanaruz clicked “print” on the tender of the future. Tanaruz’s runabouts (from €15,000, and 4.5 metres to 7.5 metres in length) look like the eco-chic offspring Nike and Apple, with swooshing lines and ice-white interiors. The range envisions a voyage without fossil fuels. Solar panels are seamlessly integrated into the boat’s design and can maintain the digital display, trip data and 48V electric engines, which are backed up with a rechargeable battery. The company’s third hull, printed in March 2022, putters down the Rotte River at its top speed of six knots.

Tanaruz imagines a Tesla-like world without brokers too: models are customised via an app (toggle to vary length, colour, cushions and power pack) then delivered by truck two weeks later across Europe.

Naval architect and Tanaruz co-founder Alexey Shifman explains the allure. “With 3D printing, I don’t need welders or specialists with different knowledge,” he asserts. “I don’t need to build a shipyard; [all that’s required is] one or two people working around a printer.” In the 3D future, bigger boats won’t blow the budget. “With a GRP boat, if you go from five to 10 metres you need four times more people. If we printed bigger it simply doesn’t matter.”

Key to costings at Tanaruz is the company’s belief in a circular economy. Around 99 per cent of the boat is made from recycled polypropylene left by factories across Belgium, mixed with discarded glass fibre. Both waste materials are incredibly cheap. Its Track Motion printer made by Swiss-Swedish robot manufacturer ABB (the pricey bit at around €350,000) eats up to 30 kilograms of plastic flakes an hour, while building the boat layer by layer. Although a 500-kilogram, five-metre-long boat takes around 60 hours to produce, as printing curves and corners takes patience – even for a robot.

Here’s the fun bit. “We can shred and reuse each Tanaruz boat five times,” explains Shifman. “A client can recycle a boat back to us to reprint into one that’s bigger, smaller, a different colour or design for a small fee. It’s a closed circle.” With Tanaruz’s tech, it would be practical to change your little electric tender every couple of years.

Across the Netherlands, Feadship uses 3D printing to speed up the production process, says lead exterior engineer Jitze van Zelst. “More than 10 years ago we started with small items.” In particular objects that took too long to produce elsewhere or were tricky to procure by other means, like bespoke stainless-steel fittings for a railing. “On one recent yacht we installed 100 of these 3D-printed brushes for cabinet door knobs,” continues van Zelst. Feadship owns its own printers and a network of 3D-printing specialists. “In the future, crew might be able to print their own spare parts on board.”

Note that most yacht spares will have to be printed in metal, which comes at a cost. While a 30-centimetre-long resin printer can be snapped up for €2,500, a similar-sized unit to print in aluminium or stainless steel can easily touch half a million euros. Yet 3D-printing converts state that the process is like printing money. Firstly as there is so little waste, and secondly as so little material is needed because handrails, drains and other deck items can have an 80 per cent hollow latticework interior, thereby paving the way for lighter boats too.

The naval architect who can best envisage a printed metal future is Greg Marshall . “When we learned that GE was printing turbines, that was our big watershed moment,” remembers the Canadian yacht designer, who started experimenting with 3D printing around  18 years ago. “We flew down to Concept Laser [a German manufacturing company with a subsidiary in Dallas] and were just blown away by what they were printing in metal.” Marshall says that metal printers, the largest of which can currently craft an object around 75 centimetres long, are best used when designers wish to combine a huge amount of complexity with minimal material outlay. “My belief is that artists are going to rule the 3D-printed world,” because any shape is possible to produce. “We’re not buying this from a manufacturer. We can have [the design] suit the boat exactly how we want.”

There’s a second factor in the metal printing stakes. As materials are used so sparingly during the printing process, “in the next 10 years” printers might be able to produce an entire boat from titanium, which has the greatest strength-to-density ratio of any metallic element. “Because titanium doesn’t corrode, all of a sudden you can make tiny little pipes to do all sorts of things,” continues Marshall. These include “drain details in the decks themselves or miles and miles of cooling lines that take seawater, blow it through the boat, and keep all the decks cool.” The technology is already there to print hinges on doors or sinks in the heads, with the possibility to physically print wiring into a boat so that a shipyard doesn’t have to draw cables. To build a full-sized boat, “what you have to do is increase the size of the machine. That’s just a scaling thing.”

Printing in metal opens up other opportunities. “We can go down to three microns (.003mm),” explains Marshall. This creates the quality of production in terms of measurement and cutting that one might expect on an iPhone and a more complex finish possible than on a GRP-moulded boat. Better still, if a designer wishes to colourise their titanium prior to printing, a paint job could become a thing of the past.

What about the holy grail of 3D printing on board a yacht? “They just loaded [a 3D printer] on one of the big aircraft carriers,” he continues. “It’s not an inexpensive  way to produce parts, but if you’re in Antarctica and you don’t have a choice…”

In Milan, printing experts Moi Composites have floated yet another 3D business model: bringing the latest printing deck directly to shipyards. The backstory is that three sea-loving scientists spent years creating their own specialist printing materials. These are mainly based around fibreglass, carbon fibre or Kevlar, mixed with a resin that solidifies directly after printing – imagine the world’s most expensive printer cartridge. Other firms have struggled with generic plastics. Their conventional printers melt coils of plastic that harden slowly and frequently get doused in the dust – a nightmare in terms of finish.

“Our materials are also much stronger and more lightweight, as well as resistant to chemicals and heat,” says Moi Composites’ chief technical officer Michele Tonizzo. To prove it, they printed a one-of-a-kind boat called MAMBO for the Genoa Boat Show in 2020. The vessel is a wave-like sculpture capable of 26 knots, crafted by robots that worked through the night to push nautical engineering to the limit. “It’s not supposed to look conventional,” says Tonizzo, but more of a showpiece of what 3D-printing technology can produce. “[ MAMBO ] is elegant, crazy, and it would have been impossible to achieve with normal methods.”

Could a shipyard send Moi Composites a set of naval architect drawings to print out? “We did a project with Sanlorenzo to produce parts for its newly designed boat and shorten the time to market,” Tonizzo says. “We are also enabling manufacturers to print parts by themselves by providing them with our 3D-printing system.”

Tonizzo claims that while he has the space to print an entire small boat “it’s better to install a machine directly at a shipyard where the experts are”. Potentially Tonizzo and his colleagues could test a yacht concept in Milan, tailor the machine to a shipyard’s needs, then transport it to Livorno or Ancona and train people how to operate it. The price of this? Tonizzo remains tight-lipped, but it’s likely to be similar to the price of a snazzy apartment in Milan.

Back in the Netherlands, Marnix Hoekstra, co-creative director at Vripack , enjoys a daily dose of 3D. “Earlier this week our team designed some railings,” he says. “We couldn’t decide on the scale so we just printed them off.” A webcam was recently positioned above the 3D office printer, allowing Vripack staff to print around-the-clock from home. “Recently we used it to print an art piece to install on a yacht that was impossible to make by hand.” The complete steering console of a yacht has also been 3D printed.

Hoekstra shows me a set of superyacht models that his colleagues have printed out. “Here is a 60-metre currently in build with Alia Yachts . Next to it is a sportsfisher in build with Royal Huisman .” At Vripack, blocks of each 3D model are printed then glued together – “a bit like how you build a ship,” laughs Hoekstra. By making precise printed samples, “three or four feet in length”, the Vripack team “can judge sheers, angles, the flare of a bow. You get a good visual compared to virtual reality. It’s an actual model.”

Will 3D printers be installed inside every engine room in future? “ Gene Machine , an Amels yacht, has 3D printers on board,” continues Hoekstra, as does the Nobiskrug Artefact , but he believes the process of printing tough-as-nails spares is “still a bit more talk than practice”. In the future that might change. “What everybody will find out is that the printing itself isn’t difficult because the machine does it.” Hoekstra believes that younger crews will be trained to use the tech. “We’re already seeing scanning apps on the new high-end phones,” he continues, which could photograph a broken bolt or propeller. “From that scan, it automatically transfers to a printable model,” which could be sent to a printer on board.

So will we see entire yachts printed with no moulds, little waste and few staff in the near future? “Yes, I have no doubt,” says Hoekstra. “They can print food, so there’s no end to the materials used to print. Anybody who thinks differently will be disrupted. With quality labour being so short, robots will take over  many tasks.”

First published in the November 2022 issue of BOAT International. Get this magazine sent straight to your door, or subscribe and never miss an issue.

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3D Printed Radio Yachts

How To Design And 3D Print Rigid Lightweight Yachts To Go Racing

STL File Downloads: Print Your Own Yacht, IOM, RG65, 65 Class, Nano, Footy

 print your own yacht: stl file downloads.

Welcome to the download site for files developed throughout this project and others. 

These are many of the files that have been designed, printed and trialed in various radio controlled classes for 3d printing in small and large printers.

If you have any good designs you are happy to “float” to others here, please feel free to send  the STL files to me at: [email protected]

Make sure your name is on the files so that you can be credited with their design.

All   files supplied here are copyright free.

Note: these are all zip files  and need to be downloaded as such.

And…probably a good idea to read through the notes here before you launch into the printing.

The basic items needed to produce a racing yacht are supplied, but things of a specialist nature will be up to you. In some cases there are multiple parts to choose from. For instance there is the Keel Box I use on my RG and there is also one designed for Dragon Force keels and bulbs… because there are a lot of them around and good for beginners to easily get into the sport. In fact the rig I have always used on my lovely RG (yes the design you have here) is taken straight over from a DF but using my own sails. There are multiple rudder tubes and open and waterproof servo supports to suite a variety of yachts also.

Plus the advantage of digital technology is that parts can be resized in the Printer software to fit other yachts. If you haven’t already done so, I strongly suggest you invest in what is considered the best and fastest 3d printer software package: Simplify 3D at  www.simplify3d.com/

So if something doesn’t quite fit, just adjust on the 3d software. You don’t have to redesign from the beginning. Make it bigger, fatter, thinner….

All of the items listed here have been designed to be printed without 3d supports . Just change the orientation to find flat spot to place on the table.  Hulls can usually be started from the bow or the stern, the deck angles are all determined to allow for solid 3d printing and no need for bridging.

If you see things on the images that are not in the files, it is because I most likely don’t use them any more. The latest versions have been thinned right down to keep the weight as light as possible. For instance I have stopped using pot surrounds because the new PLA+ (mentioned elsewhere) is very rigid and strong. Do yourself a favour and get hold of some to try out.

Please be patient with all this, things will evolve as time goes on. 

A. Files from Bill Hagerup and Selwyn Holland

General Rudder design

Bulbs for you to resize to your yacht

Waterproof boxes for winches and servos

Nano plus bits and pieces

RG65/65 Class plus bits and pieces

Footy plus bits and pieces

IOM Sabre a lovely fast design

B. Detailed description of the pin, sheeting and deck layout 

C. Files from other 3d printing radio control enthusiasts.

Happy to host your special files here .

General Rudder Design

This design was very early on in our research and turned out to be a great all round rudder. It has been used on everything from the Footies to the prototype 10R. Big advantage is simplicity of construction and you can vary the size to help fine tune the boat. 

All I do is use a stainless core rod and a single solid carbon rod to add a bit more rigidity. All rudder printing is in “Vase” or “Spiral” mode (the same), this gives you a light hollow shell to work with.

General Rudder size to fit any sized yacht (Hagerup Holland)

Bulbs for you to resize to your ya cht.

Both shapes appear to be efficient at the speeds we use in the smaller RC yachts. Fill them with the finest lead pellet you can source. Add a small amount of epoxy then some lead, let it settle, then repeat until full. Be patient, it takes time. I could not pick any difference in performance between these and a traditional lead bulb. Yes, there is more volume but you get an excellent shape and can determine the mass you wish before printing. Make sure there are no air bubbles left in the bulb, this gives unwanted bouyancy.

Bulb A (Holland)

Bulb B (Smith Holland)

 About 18 months ago, I designed a set of waterproof boxes for the winch, servo and receiver in my yachts. These went through various stages of development as you would imagine. It is now very hard for any fresh or saltwater to get to the electronics, as a result my yachts have been completely free of electronic issues and corrosion. I still coated the exposed metal items with vaseline or similar long term oils before sealing and this acts as a second line of defence. I see all around me people having corrosion issues, but this appears to have solved the problem for me. 

As an example supporting this move, I unfortunately had an incident that filled one of the IOMs half full of water due a few months back, lucky to get it back to the wharf. I drained the water out, went home and pulled the waterproof containers apart and there wasn’t a single drop of water in any of the boxes. A great result.

There are two sets

1. IOM and bigger yacht boxes .

They are all the same for convenience and set up for Guyat Winches and Hi Tech servos. Part of the easy “lego style” approach to the RC yachts. They can be kept together in what I call ‘The Stack” or glued in seperately, however you wish. Use them for your other designs, why get you electonic bits wet if you don’ need to.

Please note. Depending on your 3d flow set up and nozzle size, you may have to play around with some resizing to get the boxes to fit each other smoothly.

Box Winch base v7 63×63 2mm wall (Holland)

Box Winch base v7 63×62 1.5mm wall (Holland)

Box Winch lid v6 1.5mm thick wall (Holland)

Box Servo lid (Holland)

Box Servo base (Holland)

Box receiver lid v1 (Holland)

Box receiver base v1 (Holland)

Box receiver lid v2 (Holland)

Box receiver base v2 (Holland)

2.Smaller Yachts: RG65, 65 Class, Nano, Footy

These yacht sizes tend to use the same servo type for both winch and rudder. So the set are the same… just make two of them and offset the vertical stack a bit to allow for the rudder horn to swing underneath the sheeting arm. 

Box Servo lid v2 (Holland)

Box Servo base v2 (Holland)

Nano Bits and Pieces

Nano Hull NanoSwing 2 (Hagerup Holland)

Nano Keel Box V8 Nano 40x4mm slot with supports and finished (Holland)

Nano Keel standard 300mm size to fit (Holland)

Nano Rudder (shrink to size) (Hagerup Holland)

Nano winch servo shelf blank Holland

Nano shelf modular v2 Holland

Nano rudder support 8mm diam round 3.3mm inside hole Holland

Nano rudder servo shelf blank Holland

Nano rudder deck washer 15x2mm 8.7mm hole Holland

Nano foredeck strut (Holland)

Nano back stay fastener (Holland)

Nano back plate (Holland)

RG65/65 Class Bits and Pieces

Dragon Force Keel version. The keel box was designed use a DF keel so anyone wanting to get into an RG65 quickly and easily could transfer their DF gear over and start sailing. 

The Deluxe “Go Fast” set up with 3d printed keel, bulb and rudder. This is a more traditional RG65/65 Class design with a keel to fit. Use carbon rods down the middle to give it stiffness. Fill the bulb with fine lead shot and epoxy mix (bit at a time). A bit more volume but the shape is very efficient and I can’t tell any performance difference between this and a lead bulb. Size the bulb on your 3d software to get the exact mass you want.

RG65 Hull Alpha Sabre (Hagerup Holland)

RG65 Keel Box V10 48x5mm slot with supports and finished (Holland)

RG65 Keel Box for Dragon Force keel V6 Holland

RG65 General Rudder file size to fit (Holland)

RG65 Winch arm Holland

RG65 Shelf V9 open blank stepped Holland

RG65 Rudder support internal 3mm hole x 10mm diam Holland

RG65 Rudder internal support 3mm hole Holland

RG65 Ram wheel Holland

RG65 Ram mast clasp Holland

RG65 Ram Holland

RG65 Glue pot v2 20x10mm Holland

RG65 Box Servo lid v2 waterproof change to fit base Holland

RG65 Box Servo base waterproofchange to fit lid Holland

RG65 Foreword support strut v2 tappered 4mm hole (Holland)

RG65 Back stay fastener (Holland)

RG65 Back plate (Holland)

Footy Bits and Pieces

The Footy is one of Bill’s favourite yachts.

These two hulls represent the final stages in our research for an optimum hull shape and lightness for these little fellas. The main differences is around the bow, the “submarine” was designed for quick recovery and less “tripping” when knocked down while running … they seem to spend a lot of time under water going down wind because of their huge sail area to water line length. 

The other hull is a more traditional shape with a sharp tumblehome. Try the difference and let us know what you discover.

The above hull is an example of what can be done with a smallish printer. Bill Short produced the two parts of the hull seperately using the printer software and then sleeved them together. Very nicely done for his first attempt. The other “bits” also came out nicely. The Footy is a great sailing yacht and an easy one to start with.

Hull FootySwing2 v2 (Hagerup)

Hull FootPrint6. submarine bow (Hagerup)

Footprint Rudder1 (Hagerup)

Footprint Fin (Hagerup)

This is the latest IOM prototype from a longish development period going back over two years. As stated elsewhere, we were very reluctant to release a design until the right material had been found (PLA+ from esun) and the boat was competitive.

So, introducing the Beta Sabre from Bill Hagerup . I’ve been sailing this design since mid 2018 and love it. It seems fine across the spectrum of conditions from short chop, long wavelength and flat ponds.

Beta Sabre 3D (N0. 46)

I hope you enjoy it as much as I am. 

In combinations with the waterproof boxes shown earlier, almost all the bits and pieces you need are here as STL files. You will need to make your own 10 mm thick bumper and create a stern or bow plate by printing 4  or 5 layers of a hull and stopping to give you the shape to glue in place.

Don’t forget the “lego” nature of all this, please feel free to use the fittings for your other yachts as you wish. They are all copyright free and we are gifting them to the RC community to help promote our beautiful sport . We will all win from you guys going out there and making this all happen.

I have often read: “When All Else Fails…. Read The Manual”

Well we don’t have a manual here, so how about: “When All Else Fails… View The Construction Pictures”.

Rather than try to explain everything, have a good look at the set of images below showing the various key construction processes. If you are unsure, please feel free to ask at: [email protected]

The STL files are at the end … yes you may need to do some minor resizing as needed. This is easy through a program like “Simplify 3d”.

This is what you get to make the following:

A couple of things to be aware of:

• The keel is designed around the latest Craig Smith fin design. If you can’t get this keel and have another, no problem, just work out you dimensions in cross section and change the slot profile until it fits. Then trim you keel head to fit inside the box. The last item is to fit the holding bolt in the right spot.
• The keel box support struts are telescopic to make them easy to install. Follow the pictures to see how it is done. To hold them in place I bend a small strip of PLA and add to the sliding section to give some tension to hold the head in place before the gluing.
• When using epoxy, add some filler until it is slow to flow. This helps strengthen the adhesion. Straight epoxy is not as good by itself. Also prepare the surface by rubbing with methylated spirits (ethanol) to remove the slight greasy surface that comes with 3d printing then sand both surfaces with a relatively coarse sandpaper. Try to keep the epoxy volume to a minimum. The PLA+ and epoxy adhere strongly.
• The boat appears to be nicely balanced with the battery pack ahead of the mast as shown. But it is up to you how you wish to set all this up. 
• The rudder rod and sheet are run through the false transom at the stern. Once the position of the hole is worked out and made, I use vinyl tape (not insulation tape) to add extra support for the movement. I did this originally as a short term solution and have been using it ever sense. Easy and waterproof.
• When cutting and creating holes in the this PLA+ run the Dremel or drill at the lowest possible speed to stop the plastic from melting. This material cuts very nicely. I use heavy duty scissors for flat sections.
• Main pot size : 95x80mm (to allow the keel box to maneuvered and turned in there to put into place plus room for the waterproof servo and winch boxes) 
• Battery pot size : 40x43mm (to allow the battery box to be epoxied to the hull… if that is where you want it)
• Receiver pot: 35x35mm (just big enough to get the receiver box in there)
• Wait until you have the keel installed before setting the rudder. This means you can install the rudder exactly parallel to the keel fin. Allow a slightly larger hole at the top of the deck to give you the option of lining up the rudder to the keel… however you do that, clamps etc.)
• When attaching eyelets and deck fittings, I run a few drops of epoxy into the hole before screwing/inserting the item. Any items with stress on the deck (ie sheet return) should have support underneath. The sheet layout I use is basic but but very effective and you can see this in the photographs. Again up to you.
• Most will almost certainly be slicing and sleeving in some shape or form depending on the printer. I’ve added some images showing how to sleeve two sections together. The sleeve is made by printing a section of the hull (30-40mm wide) and then cutting a small slice out to allow it to fit neatly inside the two sections.
• Finally, the blue Sabre below is 160mm wide and the red Sabre is 170mm wide. I also have a 145 mm wide one. Which is the best? In waves and short chop, the wider ones appear to be better but in light air on flat water, the narrow one seems to be faster. The beauty of digital files is you can choose your width and dial it up on the 3d software. Let us know what you discover.

Before and After

Dremel cutting tools are worth their weight in gold. Remember to run the cutting tools and drills as slow as possible to stop melting the plastic. PLA+ cuts easier than normal PLA.

How to get the Keel Box in.

• Place a layer of epoxy on the hull floor ready for the base of the box
• Enter box down at an angle
• Slide into the hull
• Turn around
• Lift up into the position to slide forward
• Lift the deck carefully to allow the Keel Box to slide forward into place.
•  Place the spring loaded struts into place at 45 degrees.
• Epoxy all in place

Multistep drills are very useful when creating holes on the deck

Sleeving is an easy and strong way to get sections connected. Simply print a section either side of where the join will be, then cut a small slice out to get it to fit inside the two sections. Alternatively, shrink the sleeve a tad until it fits neatly inside without cutting a slice. Finally, epoxy together.

Making the rudder . This image shows the bent internal 4mm rod and the carbon tube insert to add to the stiffness. The rudder shell was formed using the single layer “spiral” mode.

The finished product.

Hull IOM BetaSabre V3 (Hagerup Holland)

Keel box v8 (Holland)

Stern plate v4 (Holland)

Rudder shaft tube 4mm shaft v2 (Holland)

Rudder increase size to fit IOM (Hagerup Holland)

Keel case support strut lower section telescopic v1 (Holland)

Keel case support strut upper section telescopic v3 (Holland)

Glue pot v2 solid 20×10 mm (Holland)

Box for battery v2 (Holland)

Bow internal strut v3 fitted base and top (Holland)

Bow external strut v5 horizontal 461x8x10mm tapered (Holland)

B. Detailed description of the pin, sheeting and deck layout

This description is for the IOM Sabre 3D. Just scale the process down for the smaller RC yachts.

First, if you haven’t please make sure you print with PLA+ from Esun. You should be able to secure a supplier either in country or internationally.

OK sizes for fittings. I use very basic layouts, and therefore rarely have things go wrong.

Front pin for A rig jib swivel depends on where your sivel is on the boom. The pin is 310mm from the front of the mast, this gives a small clearance to swing past the mast. 

The sheet post is approximately 210mm behind the mast in the centre of the deck and set in a tube secured to the bottom of the hull. 

The side stays are just behind the mast on the sides and and in line with the front edge of the keel. Please make sure you secure all pins with something solid below the deck… I glue three or four layers of PLA sheeting underneath with superglue if I can’t get the pin down through something solid like a strut. Drill a slightly undersized hole for the pins, test screw them in then remove and then drop a small amount of epoxy into the drill hole before finally securing them. Works well, nice and strong.

The rudder shaft is 55mm from the stern in the centre of course. Backstay pin is set in the backplate at the stern. The sheeting and rudder shaft are run out through the 45 degree bulkhead at the rear through deck and a sheet of sticky back or high quality insulation tape. The tight fit keeps it all water tight. They really do work, the trick is lining up the holes to set them straight through… good luck, a bit of thinking required there.

The sheeting is swivelled (returned) at the stern and starboard side stay. The side stay has two pulleys, one for the sheet and the other for the elastic for tensioning. This is a basic layout that works well and is mostly above deck to see if anything is going wrong. 

Images attached below to help you visualise this.

That is the system I use for the Nano, RG65, 65 Class, IOM and 10R. The only differences are the dimensions.

Good luck and hope this helps.

Happy to host your special files here.

7 Best 3D Printed Boats in 2023

Written by: 3DSourced

February 20, 2024

3D printed boats have seen a lot of developments in recent years, and have yielded some impressive results, overall showing a lot of promise for exciting and environmentally friendly vessels.

In this guide I’ll be showing you some of my favorite examples of companies making huge waves in 3D printing boat technology, everything from upcoming luxury liners to customizable sloops made from recycled materials.

Solvit3D – 3D Printed Boat Parts

Top 3d printed boats projects, 3dirigo – the largest 3d printed boat from the university of maine.

• Company: University of Maine
• Price: Not For Sale
• Where to Learn more: 3Dirigo and Guinness World Records Official Site

University of Maine Composites Center research team broke three Guinness World Records with 3Dirigo, the largest 3D printed boat to date , weighing 2.2 tonnes and measuring 7.62 meters.

Created in just 72 hours with a plastic-wood cellulose mix, this milestone was achieved using a 3D printer developed in partnership with Ingersoll Machine Tools. This wasn’t the only example of such a partnership, as the University of Maine’s Advanced Structures department has since worked in military equipment development in 2022 .

Capable of additive and precise subtractive manufacturing, the printer can prototype for defense, civil, and infrastructural applications. With a capacity to print objects up to 100 ft long, 22ft wide, 10ft high, and a rate of 500 pounds per hour, UMaine has found itself a real game changer.

The same 3D printer drew the attention of the US Army Combat Capabilities Development Command for deployable shelter systems production, with the UMaine presenting a 3D printed army communication shelter alongside 3Dirigo.

Tanaruz Boats – Customized 3D Printed Boats

• Company: Tanaruz
• Price: $16,000+ (Price varies depending on model and customization options)
• Where to Buy: Tanaruz Boats

One of the biggest advantages of 3D printed boats is customization. Dutch start-up company Tanaruz offers fully personalizable 3D printed boats made to order via their app.

From this app you can select the model, shape, color, and even engine type to get exactly the boat you’d like using additive manufacturing to maximize efficiency and precision.

With the cost-cutting advantage of 3D printing, the Tanaruz team makes their boats very affordable for most customers without sacrificing quality. For just a €500 (~$556) deposit, you can reserve your dream 3D printed boat.

Pegasus 88m – The Carbon-Neutral Superyacht

• Designer: Jozef Forakis
• Price: Not Yet Released
• Where to Learn More: Pegasus 88m

The Pegasus 88m is a 3D printed ‘superyacht’ that even in 2023 only really exists on paper, but is still well worth talking about. Designed as a completely carbon neutral 3D printed luxury boat, it was conceived with nature a the forefront of designer Jozef Forakis’ mind.

Solar powered panels power electrolyzers that convert seawater into hydrogen, which is then stored in long-term tanks for later fueling. This means the Pegasus 88m can harness the power of the ocean for theoretically unlimited power, removing the need for fossil fuels entirely.

The Pegasus 88m is designed to look like a cloud as it floats on the water. Using a clever mirrored design, the idea is for the frame to reflect the ocean and great the illusion of invisibility.

While still a work-in-progress, we recommend keeping an eye on this exciting, albeit likely unaffordable, 3D printed boat project.

Hydra – The World’s First 3D Printed Aquatic Drone

• Company: AI Seer Marine
• Learn More: Naval News

UAE company AI Seer Marine specializes in unmanned boats, and they unveiled the final version of their 3D printed vessel, Hydra, in 2023.

The 5 meter (~16’ 5’’) Hydra is effectively a proof-of-concept that additive manufacturing can play a key role in boat construction. AI Seer Marine uses the lightweight nature of 3D printed frames and parts to enhance speed and efficiency as well as cutting costs along the way.

The project has been underway for some time, and only recently been unveiled as close to finished. You can see the first active trials of the Hydra’s prototype below.

Those of you familiar with boats will recognize the Hydra employs a ‘stealth’ shape, intended for use in naval ISR (intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance) missions. This means that it likely won’t be available for sale, but it’s still a cool project to keep an eye on.

Autonomous Ferry – 3D Printed Ferry For Paris

• Companies: Roboat, Holland Shipyard, and Sequana Développement
• Learn More: Holland Shipyard

The collaborative effort of innovation partners Roboat, Holland Shipyard, and Sequana Développement has born this concept for the autonomous ferry designed to carry tourists and athletes along the Seine river in Paris in preparation for the 2024 olympics.

The model builds on previous Roboat builds of self-sailing and docking passenger vessels in Amsterdam, as you can see in the video below.

Offering visitors and locals alike a unique and futuristic experience in small-scale aquatic travel, the three companies hope this ferry will showcase enough features to be a great step in the future of 3D printed autonomous boats, possibly even replacing bridges.

The companies are being quite secretive about their 3D printed ferry so far, but Olympics-goers are looking forward to experiencing the boat for themselves. And at a planned size of 9 x 3.9m (29.5 x 12.7′), it promises to be the world’s largest 3D printed autonomous ferry ever made.

Impacd Boats – Sustainable 3D Printed Sloops

• Company: Impacd Boats
• Price: $40,000+
• Where to Buy: Impacd Boats

3D printed boats don’t have to be big and flashy, they can also be simple but effective crafts to handle small-scale sailing. Impacd Boats offers customizable 3D printed sloops as comfortable and easy-to-ride boats for any lazy river fan to buy and enjoy.

The main mission is tackling carbon emissions and making a positive impact on environmental health. Their boats are 3D printed using recycled waste material, and even the decorative items included with their models are from sustainable origins.

Impacd Boats took inspiration from data taken from TU Deflt research into sustainability in aquatic travel , and developed a greener, more environmentally friendly construction process using additive manufacturing. Each boat even features an energy-efficient motor that is as silent as they are safe.

They only have two models available at the moment, but are working on the technology to release different kinds of sloop at affordable prices for anyone who wants to discover how to sail guilt-free.

• Designers: Alexander and Roman Schmidt
• Price: $1 – $16,694.85
• Where to Buy: Solvit3D

3D printed boats are exciting, but 3D printed boat parts are making just as much of a difference. Solvit3D specializes in 3D printed objects like boat parts and decorations, offering over 60 different examples from light fixtures to compass covers and even custom switch panels.

Brothers Alexander and Roman founded Solvit3D after discovering additive manufacturing’s ability to create complex geometrical shapes with speed and ease. The parts are light and highly customizable for any taste or any boat.

While they don’t 3D print entire boats, Solvit3D should be bookmarked by any sailing enthusiast for practical replacement parts and aesthetic upgrades at very reasonable prices.

Advantages of 3D Printing in Boats

3D printed boats have several key advantages including less waste, lighter weight, quicker and cheaper repairs, and lower carbon footprint.

Reduced Waste

Traditional subtractive boat production, such as CNC milling, results in a lot more waste than 3D printing , making additive manufacturing a more cost-effective and sustainable process.

It’s also worth mentioning that some woods used in boat production are unsustainably, and sometimes even illegally, sourced , further adding to the need for alternative materials and manufacturing methods.

Research in the sustainability measures in boatbuilding carried out in 2021 shows some frankly alarming statistics . Only 55% of companies have a sustainable sourcing policy for their building materials, while 40% claim to not have the budget to research or implement more environmentally friendly construction methods.

Lighter and Better Balanced Boats

Additive manufacturing yields boats that are lighter, faster, and better balanced due to the use of 10-30% infill . Projects like Rammses predict 3D printed boat propellers weighing 40% less than conventional ones. By 2030, lighter titanium could replace steel in yacht production.

Efficient Repairs

3D printing can expedite and reduce the cost of repairs by producing spare parts on-site , a strategy already utilized in the automotive industry.

Lower Carbon Emissions

3D printed boats are more environmentally friendly due to research into lighter, more efficient materials like aluminum alloys for propellers , which can be printed anywhere to minimize transportation.

This innovation is crucial for the maritime sector striving to reduce carbon emissions and waste material through CNC machining. Searious Business, a Dutch association fighting against plastic pollution, even plans to print a 3D boat from plastic waste like Impacd Boats are.

Future of 3D Printed Boats

The boat design industry’s future includes a growing shift to 3D printing, resulting in cheaper, better-performing, and more eco-friendly vessels. The technology will revolutionize the industry by 2030, according to expert Gregory Marshall , with potential applications ranging from self-driving canal taxis to futuristic super yachts, as seen in the innovative 3Dirigo project.

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• Digital Editions

3D printed boats: Why this radical custom yacht is just the tip of the iceberg

• Top stories

Could 3D printed boats become the next big trend in boatbuilding? Vasileios Sofikitis explains all…

You are at home, sitting at your desk. In front of you, on your laptop, is a bespoke 3D rendering of the boat you’ve just finished refining online. You lean back gazing admiringly at your design. The detailed online forms took you a couple of days to fill in but the result looks exactly like the boat of your dreams. OK, time to print it out.

Wait, what? It reads like a scene from a sci-fi novel but this might well be the reality of how we will all go about buying and manufacturing boats in the not too distant future. The current GRP boat building procedure is a complex, time-consuming and expensive process with limitations on the type of shape and structures that are achievable.

It usually starts by handbuilding or milling and fairing a perfect full size model from which the female moulds for the hull and deck can be created. These moulds have to be carefully aligned, reinforced and waxed before the gelcoat and multiple layers of glass matting and resin can be added.

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This then needs time to cure at a precisely controlled temperature before the hull and decks can be removed and the whole cleaning and waxing process starts again. But this won’t be the process for much longer if the latest advances in 3D printing are anything to go by.

Meet MAMBO (Motor Additive Manufacturing Boat), the world’s first 3D printed fibreglass boat. It was launched by Moi Composites at the 2020 Genoa Boat Show in October. The Italian start-up drew inspiration from the Arcidiavolo design of British power boating legend Sonny Levi.

They spent almost six months running hydrodynamic simulations on Autodesk’s cutting-edge design and simulation software to refine Levi’s multihull before settling on a final design that takes full advantage of 3D-printing’s capabilities.

Software breaks the shape into printable sections

As a result, MAMBO sports some very unusual design ideas both above and below the waterline that simply wouldn’t be possible with the limitations of the moulding process (you have to be able to remove the moulding without destroying the mould).

MAMBO features a radical three-pointed hull featuring an asymmetrical deck layout and intricate organic forms that play a role in both its aesthetics and structural integrity. It measures 6.5 metres long by 2.5 metres wide and has a dry weight of just 800kg.

A relatively modest 115hp Mercury Pro XS outboard engine provides the power. The aft bench, the shape of which resembles a baby grand piano, is a reference to Mambo, the Cuban musical genre. These unorthodox design solutions not only help differentiate the boat from other craft on the water but also showcase the seemingly limitless possibilities offered by 3D-printing.

A robotic arm prints out each segment using a continuous glass fibre filament impregnated with thermo-setting resin that cures instantly

In order to print MAMBO, Moi employed an innovative, remote cloud-based workflow process that helped leverage the best talents and facilities around the world. Two separate printers, one in Moi’s headquarters in Milan and the other in Autodesk’s manufacturing facility in Birmingham, UK, jointly produced MAMBO’s components, demonstrating another advantage of 3D-printing — decentralised manufacturing.

MAMBO’s greatest innovation however, lies in its 3D printing technology. It uses a patented process known as continuous fibre manufacturing (CFM) that extrudes a continuous stream of glass fibre infused with thermosetting resin, which instantly cures under the printer’s UV lights.

This continuous glass filament creates an immensely stiff structure, resulting in a much lighter but more durable hull. The use of CFM minimises waste, enhances precision, and enables the creation of shapes that would be impossible or prohibitively expensive using traditional methods.

By repeatedly going over and over the previous layer it slowly builds up into a single finished 3D shape that is lighter, stiffer and more complex than a conventional GRP moulding

Once printed, MAMBO’s components were sent to Catmarine’s shipyard in Miggiano, Italy, for final assembly. Here the different sections were laminated together using glass fibre matting and polyester resin and painted electric blue. The deck was covered with eco-friendly cork and its seats upholstered in white leather.

MAMBO suggests that 3D printing will appear first in smaller sportsboats and day cruisers . As printers become larger and quicker though, we could start to see bigger boats manufactured in this way. 3D printing is already being adopted in other industries as an alternative to the traditional, more expensive methods of lost-wax casting or plastic moulding, especially for complex shapes and small production runs.

Many boatyards are also starting to use 3D printing for low-volume parts and rapid prototyping applications.

The individual sections were printed at two different facilities in the UK and Italy

Even boat owners wanting custom pieces or replacement parts that are no longer available are starting to look to 3D printing as a solution, with companies being set up to answer this demand. The Italian firm Superfici exhibited just such an example of their work at Genoa, an innovative steering wheel design prototyped on a 3D printer.

There are still some limitations to 3D printing when it comes to the size, cost and scalability of large items such as boats. The assembly of many small components and the need for post print processing pose a challenge. The variety of materials used in boat-making, such as wood and stainless steel, neither of which are yet printable, also present problems. However, projects like MAMBO prove that most of these problems will eventually be solved.

When projects like MAMBO start to lure boat builders into the realm of 3D printing and how that will coexist with the art of traditional boat building, remains to be seen. However, the recent addition of glass fibre to the repertoire of 3D printing materials is certainly going to be a boon for recreational boaters.

Designs that are currently restricted to a virtual world of CGI renderings due to the difficulty of making them using conventional moulding techniques will soon become viable, opening up a world of new possibilities and disrupting boat building as we know it. The big question now is whether we, as consumers, are ready to press print.

First published in the February 2021 issue of Motor Boat & Yachting.

These sections were laminated together by hand

The completed boat gets a final spray paint, the finished mambo in all its glory complete with complex curves and an unusual three pointer hull, new fjord f480 first look: 40 knot capable 47 footer, navan s30 & c30 tour: exceptional new axopar rival, axopar 29 yacht tour: exclusive tour by the man behind it, latest videos, galeon 440 fly sea trial: you won’t believe how much they’ve packed in, parker sorrento yacht tour: 50-knot cruiser with a killer aft cabin, yamarin 80 dc tour: a new direction for the nordic day cruiser.

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3D-Printing and Boatbuilding

• By Kim Kavin
• Updated: November 9, 2020

Last fall, when the University of Maine announced that it had created the world’s largest 3D-printed boat, imaginations ran wild. The idea of pressing a touchscreen and having a boat spit out of a gigantic printer suddenly felt possible. The notion of having a boat designed in a newfangled shape became a realistic-sounding option. And because the team in Maine had printed the 25-foot boat in just 72 hours, dreams of having production boats fly off factory lines became the stuff of serious conversations.

Practically speaking, here in reality, things are moving a bit slower on the innovation timeline. Habib Joseph Dagher, who leads the project as director of the university’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center, says the most likely immediate outcome will be a new way to make boat molds in the 50-foot range. “We think some of the first products that will come out over the next year will be full-size or close-to-full-size molds for boats made of recyclable materials,” Dagher says. “We think what’s going to happen next is shipyards evaluating the molds and giving us feedback, so we can get the technology honed in and able to roll out on a commercial scale.”

It’s a baby step in what experts say will be leaps and bounds of creative uses for 3D-printing technology once it can be harnessed to its full potential. Additive manufacturing, as it’s also known, is now the stuff of tests and experiments in fields as wide-ranging as aerospace and dentistry. Researchers are figuring out all kinds of materials that can be 3D-printed, as well as all kinds of ways to build the 3D printers themselves. The US Army is testing ways to use the machines in fields of combat, to print replacement parts on demand. Carnegie Mellon University just got funding to create software that will identify components in a CAD file that can be optimized and built better, such as in a different shape to reduce weight. BMW recently opened an entire additive-manufacturing campus in Germany, looking to improve upon the 300,000 or so parts the company built this way in 2019.

“One day, we’ll all be printing boats without a mold,” Dagher says, “but we’re all going to have to wait a little bit for that.”

As far as boats go, advances are happening all around the world. At the IYRS School of Technology and Trades in Rhode Island, the Digital Modeling and Fabrication Program is heading into its fourth year. Jeff Elsbecker, who heads it up, says that to understand where 3D-printing technology is today, we have to think about printers from the 1980s.

“If you remember dot-matrix printers, I would say that 3D-printing technology is almost where dot-matrix printers were,” Elsbecker says. “We’ll follow that with lasers and jet printing and all kinds of things. I suppose the far end would be replicators like in Star Trek.”

IYRS is focusing on teaching students design fundamentals and the basics of the technology. By the time they start working in naval-architecture firms or shipyards a few years from now, everything will have changed many times over, but the fundamental skills will still be needed to use whatever form the technology takes.

“There’s so many people doing so many things, one of the issues is also getting the machines to communicate with each other,” he says. “It’s sort of like deciding whether to go with beta or VHF. It’s at that stage.”

Boatbuilders who are early adopters in the 3D-printing world are using the technology for things like components and molds, says Bill Kenyon, director of education at IYRS. One example, he says, is Brooklin Boat Yard in Maine. It’s mostly a traditional boatbuilding and repair facility.

“When I was up there in January, they showed us a bow chock that the guys had designed,” Kenyon says. “They worked it all up in CAD and sent it off to a company that 3D-printed a prototype. They got it back, tweaked their design, sent it a couple of times, and then the guy could print it for them in titanium.”

Similar experimentation is happening in Auckland, New Zealand, where Richard Booten, head of design at Yachting Developments, says the yard’s purchase of 3D printers led to all kinds of ideas.

“Once you’ve got the machines, you start thinking about what you can use them for,” Booten says. “A lot of what we use them for is printing hull components—anything that has a highly complex shape. We’ve done exhaust-tube fittings. We’ve done hull fittings. We’ve achieved all sorts of stuff. Anything we would traditionally have gone and built on a CNC at great expense, we have done that. It’s really saving us some money by doing that.”

Yachting Developments is also now using the technology to plan vessel refits, to help clients understand how a final component will look and feel.

“The boat in the shed at the moment that we’re doing a refit to, they’re putting a new screen on the helm console,” Booten says. “Before we committed to making something out of carbon or fiberglass, we are able to print that addition and melt the screen in it so the captain can see what he’s actually going to get in real life. I think we’ve printed two or three of them now, and he’s changed stuff along the way. It’s relatively inexpensive to do that. Before, you’d kind of do it on the computer screen, and everybody would peer at it. The real-life version can look a bit different, so this is a real advantage.”

What will come next for the technology in boatbuilding, he says, is anybody’s guess. Right now, 3D-printing materials don’t compare to

fiberglass or carbon in terms of strength for building hulls, but new materials are being developed all the time. Most boatbuilders can’t afford a mammoth-scale 3D printer of their own, so they’re limited by whatever additive-manufacturing company can do the printing off-site. Boatbuilders, like everyone else, are just trying to keep up with the technology and think toward the future.

“There’s people around the world playing with all sorts of stuff with regard to 3D printing,” Booten says. “There’s people printing houses. There’s people printing bridges with welders stuck on the end of robots. It’s only going to gain more traction as a process and in the industry over the coming years.”

Old and New

It’s an odd thing, hearing the name Nathanael Herreshoff mentioned in the same sentence as 3D printing.

Herreshoff, of course, is the yacht designer best known for his America’s Cup designs of the late 1800s and early 1900s. He died in 1938, a time when the V-8 engine and the metal-cutting contour band saw were bleeding-edge technology.

The 3D printer wasn’t invented until decades later, in the 1980s. But that’s not stopping the team at the IYRS School of Technology and Trades in Newport, Rhode Island, from using the modern tech to build a Herreshoff.

This past year, the team was creating a replica of a 100-year-old Herreshoff design. Some of the hardware that Herreshoff had specified on the plans was not to standard; it had to be custom-made. IYRS decided to make it with 3D printing, converting the original drawings into files the printer could read.

“They worked them up in CAD and printed a 3D pattern, and the pieces could be made out of bronze,” Bill Kenyon, director of education, says of the team that Jeff Elsbecker leads at the school.

Superfici, a company based in the superyacht-building mecca of La Spezia, Italy, is using 3D printing in myriad ways, such as to create the sailboat rigging shown above. Paolo Licinio Nazzaro, at right in the photo below, is the company’s co-founder and managing director. His team worked with the owner of an Amer 94 to create what they say is the first 3D-printed helm console. It looked just like a traditional console, made from regular design plans.

Next, Superfici worked with Sacs to design and 3D-print the helm console shown on the opposite page. This console is a shape that can’t be created with a traditional mold, and the multifunction display is integrated in a way that lets it be upgraded later.

Today, the company is thinking about ways to make entirely new boat hulls, with features such as integrated lights and fenders.

• More: 3d Printing , September 2020 , Technology , Yachts
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Professional BoatBuilder Magazine

Print yourself a boat.

By Dieter Loibner , Sep 10, 2018

A 3D-printed construction mold has potentially big implications for the boatbuilding industry, but the road won’t end there. The next step is taking this technology from tooling and prototyping to production of almost anything—human joints and organs, bicycles, cars, airplanes, surfboards, hardware, and, yes, entire boats. Forget Hanseyacht’s tongue-in-cheek press release from 2016 announcing it had printed a yacht from wood. If all goes according to plan, by the time you read this issue of Professional BoatBuilder, Livrea Yacht in Palermo, Italy, will be putting the finishing touches on a 3D-printed racing yacht , a Mini 650 intended to compete in the 2019 Mini-Transat Race. Yes, in this project they’re printing the actual boat, not just a construction mold, which is described in detail in the cover story of PBB 175,  Just Print It!

A rough rendering of what the 3D-printed Mini 650 might look like

Supported by the Lehvoss Group and Autodesk , Francesco Belvisi and Daniele Cevola, the principals of Livrea Yacht, who also founded the 3D-printing outfit Ocore , have been working on this radical approach to boatbuilding. They won Italy’s 2017 National Inno­vation Award for a new (and patented) material-deposition strategy that uses advanced polymers with carbon fiber reinforc­ements and an algorithm inspired by fractals , which the mathematician Benoit Mandel­brot called “beautiful, damn hard, [and] increasingly useful.” Mandelbrot expanded the concept of theoretical fractional dimensions to geometric patterns in nature.

Isogrids for more stiffness and strength

Taking a page from aerospace construction, Belvisi and Cevola used isogrids to add torsional stiffness and resistance to bending and buckling in the hull shell. An iso­grid is a partially hollowed-out structure with integrated triangular stiffening ribs.

A closer look at the isogrid structure of a 3D-printed hull-part for Livrea Yacht’s Mini 650

It’s super light and super stiff, but complex and expensive to manufacture. If the Italians can successfully reproduce it with a specially programmed 3D printer, that might change. To achieve this robotic dexterity, they turned to Alessandro Buscemi, a numerical modeling expert, who helped them write software code in the Kuka Robot Language (KRL) , which was necessary to generate what they described as “smoother movement of the [print] robot.” That was key to developing a new printing technique that departs from the sliced mesh and poly­gonal geometry of traditional 3D-print jobs  in favor of Bezier surfaces .

Exciting as all this might be, it takes more to make a boat. Cevola: “The isogrid structures will be joined with the carbon skins, biaxial 300 gr (8.8 oz) and uni-directional 150 gr [4.4 oz], with a vacuum-infusion system, because we don’t have an autoclave that’s large enough for the boat. Smaller parts will be joined in an autoclave, however.”

Carbon in the 3D-print feedstock and in the skins

Also important is the reinforcement of high-load areas such as the keel box, the shroud, and the rudder attachments, which Cevola said he plans to address with “monolithic stratifications to dissipate concentrated loads.” The boat’s target weight is 930 kg (2,050 lbs) all up, which is heavier than conventionally built boats like Eight Cube , a foiling Mini 650 launched for the last edition of the Mini-Transat with a displacement of 750 kg (1,653 lbs). But Cevola isn’t deterred. “Since the boat will be involved in a trans­oceanic regatta, we did not want to introduce too many variables to the project. We will have a similar weight but certainly great advantages in terms of process and efficiency of the structures. We expect to be lighter in the future.”

A worker inspects the 3D-printed bow section of the Mini 650.

The success of this approach also depends on the suitability of the printer’s feedstock—a polyamide with 25%–30% of carbon reinforcement called PA12, developed by the Lehvoss Group. Lehvoss also markets PEEK, a “semi-crystalline thermoplastic [that] combines excellent mechanical characteristics with excellent chemical resistance,” according to Cevola. He points out that it can be used in temperatures ranging from 60°C (76°F) to 260°C (500°F) in hot water or steam.

He says that Livrea Yacht worked with Eurisco Consulting on computational fluid dynamics and velocity prediction to ensure that the boat will be optimized for competition. Livrea is also conducting materials testing with an eye toward certification. The launch of this yet-to-be-named boat is scheduled for September 2018, with sea trials in October.

Daniele Cevola, one of the project’s leaders

Other highlights of the project include:

• The structure is printed in four parts that will be joined with a structural adhesive.
• Mast and boom will be built from prepreg carbon and cured in an autoclave.
• The rudder will be 3D-printed with a hollow structural core and sheathed with woven and unidirectional carbon fiber.

For more on the advances in 3D printing in boat building and design, read Just Print It! , the cover story of PBB175 and Printing Small Parts that explains how this technology is used for modeling and rapid prototyping.

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ProBoat.com Archives

Amazing 3D Printed Boat Models and Parts

Gambody team.

• 30th Jun '22

Today, when you see a boat or a yacht on a lake or a river, you don’t immediately know whether it was printed on a 3D printer or assembled at a shipyard. The term “3D printed boat” has long been in vogue. And the sizes of 3D printed yachts, kayaks, and sailboats have long outgrown the size of ordinary toys or collectible models .

Gambody has selected some of the most amazing boat 3D model designs you can look at and choose to recreate yourself. From a popular test benchy 3D printed boat to life-size boat prints, you will find something to enjoy and turn into your next dream project.

Read also:   15 Most Impressive 3D Printed Ships

3D Printed Boat

Thanks to additive manufacturing , different industries develop way quicker than they used to years ago. 3D printing is used in medicine, automotive business, space, air, everyday life, and also maritime services. Thus, it is not surprising to see more and more boat parts 3D printed.

Thanks to a significant number of 3D boat model STL files, anyone can 3D print boat accessories, sterns, bows, hull parts, and other important components using different scales. So take some time to enjoy photos of small and giant 3D printed boats (fully or partially) and you might need one of the large 3D printers to build one for yourself.

1. Boat 3D Print: Largest Ever

A 3D printing boat can be as giant as you want it to be. The University of Maine currently holds the world record for building the biggest solid 3D printed boat in the world.

To make this project real, the University used the biggest prototype polymer 3D printer in the world. It is now the biggest solid 3D print in history, and it took only three days to construct this impressive vessel.

What makes the largest 3D printed boat a miracle is that she truly floats! Her size is 25 feet (7.6 meters) long and her weight is 5,000 pounds (2,268 kg).

While this boat 3D model is not available to the public, the University tested its seaworthiness and assured the vessel boasted a multidirectional wave basin.

The boat 3D print even goes by its name of 3Dirigo. While it’s not the largest thing a 3D printer can build, it is the biggest solid vessel ever created through additive manufacturing.

Read also: Best 3D Printed Cars to Wow Everyone

2. 3D Printed Sailboat

It is now possible to 3D print sailboat projects to prevent some of the dangerous plastic waste. It can be a win-win idea for businesses and organizations that save the oceans from tons of plastic waste that gets into the waters every minute.

A firm Searious Business hopes to make a unique 3D printed boat as a part of its big fight against polluting the waters with plastic bottles. The company will 3D print a sailboat out of 44,092 pounds (20,000 kg) of PET plastic obtained from the used plastic bottles. Another firm Lay3rs will help to bring this project to life through its 3D printers.

The more 3D printed sailboat objects are created, the less ocean pollution would exist.

3. 3D Printed Kayak

The imagination lets you use your 3D printer to create all kinds of stuff , including a 3D printed kayak. Jim Smith from Grass Roots Engineering worked hard to create a real functioning 5-meter-long (16.4 feet) kayak of ABS plastics.

This model is more than just a prototype. Its weight is slightly over 66 pounds (30 kg). It is a life-size 3D print that only required some screws to assemble and extra accessories (silicone adhesive and threaded inserts).

To 3D print his dream boat, Smith even built a large custom 3D printer.

4. 3D Print Boat that Functions

Some years ago Italians saw a real 3D printing boat sailing through local waters. The size of that cutie was slightly over 21 feet (6.5 meters) x 8 feet (2.5 meters). And she weighed 1,765 pounds (800 kg).

That functioning boat print was made by several companies, including Moi Composites, Autodesk, and others. She presented herself well during the Genoa boat show back in 2019.

Known as MAMBO, this 3D printed boat became the world’s first vessel made of fiberglass with the use of 3D printers. While the company doesn’t publicly share the 3D printed boat cost, you can visit their official website and find contacts to get more information about this unique project.

5. 3D Printed Boat Hull

A 3D printer can help you build any giant vessel you wish, including a yacht. Thermwood company has proved this with its innovative project when it 3D printed boat hull sections from a 51-feet-long (6.4 meters) yacht.

The firm chose carbon fiber reinforced ABS for this project. It assures that such material is a low-cost solution if comparing it to other high-quality thermoplastics.

The 3D printed boat hulls can change the future of how vessels are made and low down the costs of producing yachts and other big ships.

Read also: Incredible Stuff You Can Make with a 3D Printer

6. 3D Printer Boat Model

Some firms begin to take full advantage of additive manufacturing when building their projects. Tanaruz, a 3D printed boat manufacturer, has big plans to increase its production of vessels to 300 a year by 2023.

The company relies on reusable polymers to make boat 3D print production more affordable to customers. When such a vessel ends its life, it is possible to shred it down and reuse it to 3D print a new boat.

Their 3D printer produced by ABB company has a length of about 46 feet (14 meters). And the production itself leads to no waste! Such an eco-friendly solution can help to make all 3D boat designs easily accessible and buildable. Besides, you can always use renewable energy to get lights on your vessel and think of friendly materials to recreate its interior. This would however add to the basic 3D printed boat cost that starts at $15,785 (€15,000).

7. Boat 3D Model (Seaworthy)

Modern companies know how to 3D print boat projects that are seaworthy. Two firms, Research Institute of Sweden and Cipax, collaborated to work on the first-ever European one-piece seaworthy 3D printed boat.

Such a unique 3D print was built from glass fiber and plastic with the help of ABB robotic arms. The model was named Pioner 14 Active Dark Line.

And once the companies figure out the way to balance the extra material density with the boat hulls, it could become a great commercial boat 3D model for different customers who wish to sail in a 3D printed object.

Read also: Is It Safe to Leave a 3D Printer on Overnight?

8. 3D Printing Boat (Autonomous)

Institutes and laboratories collaborate to create an exclusive 3D printed boat model that would be fully autonomous. Such vessels could change the future of the maritime sector.

Once the self-driving technologies are added to the 3D printed hulls, it may be possible to build floating boats and make as many fleets as needed.

Such autonomous vessels can help to perform many valuable duties, such as good delivery, waste collection, transportation, etc.

9. 3D Printed Boat Toy

Enthusiasts who just got their first 3D printer or wish to make a 3D printed boat toy for their kids can find many great models online. Gambody marketplace, for example, offers Patrol Boat 31 Mk 2 3D Printing Model STL files you can download and print.

Such US “Brown Water” Navy patrol boats were common during the Vietnam War from 1966 to 1971. You can make this piece to add to your collection or let your little ones play with this 3D printed boat toy!

If you are a fan of medieval 3D printed boat designs, you can recreate the God of War diorama using your 3D printer and “Old Kratos and Atreus” STL files . The half of an old-style boat you can assemble features a dragon stern and waves.

If you don’t feel ready to 3D print boat designs using complex highly-detailed STL files , you can always begin with making a benchy 3D printed boat. This famous testing object is available to all hobbyists for free.

10. 3D Printed Yacht

Companies do their best to introduce 3D printed yacht projects to customers all over the world. Some firms in New Zealand, Italia, and other countries work hard to produce boat parts and accessories via additive manufacturing.

The world would most likely soon see many 3D printed yacht models thanks to innovative firms that take full advantage of additive manufacturing today. We have already seen some 3D printing fishing boats and small sailboat AC9F to take part in America’s Cup.

What will come next?

If your 3D printer is not big enough to recreate a life-size 3D printed boat, you can always make a toy or test the simple benchy model. Make sure to join Gambody 3D Printing Community on Facebook to share photos of your new 3D prints. Hobbyists worldwide cannot wait to adore your next projects!

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Navigating the Best Examples of 3D Printed Boats

Tanaruz, the innovative 3d printed boats manufacturer, has ambitious plans to scale up its production to an impressive 300 commercial boats by 2023.

These boats are the epitome of sustainability, as they are printed using reusable polymers, simultaneously reducing the environmental impact and production costs.

With a range of four models to choose from, spanning 4.5 to 10 meters in length, customers have plenty of options to choose from. In a world where environmental consciousness is increasingly gaining importance, Tanaruz’s commitment to sustainability is both commendable and forward-thinking.

Tanaruz’s DSI model 3D printed yacht. Photo via Tanaruz.

Improving sustainability with 3D printing

Tanaruz’s Rotterdam factory is redefining boat manufacturing with a state-of-the-art 14-meter 3D printer. But what truly sets their vessels apart is their commitment to sustainability and circular economy.

Each boat is a model for a circular economy, made entirely from reclaimed and recycled polymers. And when their useful life comes to an end? No problem! Thanks to their innovative production process, these reclaimed reusable polymers, can be shredded down and repurposed, creating a perpetual cycle of boat building.

Tanaruz, a boat manufacturer, has figured out a way to produce boats without any material costs or waste. Their secret? Printing the boats with a special blend of reclaimed polypropylene and glass fiber. This not only has zero material costs and gives the boats great mechanical properties like resilience to strain and resistance to heat, fire, and chemicals, but also helps the environment by reducing waste. It’s a win-win situation for boat enthusiasts and the planet.

Imagine gliding through the tranquil waters of a pristine lake or sea, your boat effortlessly powered by an eco-friendly electrical engine. And if that wasn’t impressive enough, imagine your boats having the option to have electrical engines and generate renewable energy with the addition of sleek and efficient solar panels mounted atop your vessel. It’s the perfect way to enjoy the beauty of nature while minimizing your carbon footprint.

Tanaruz has brought innovation to the world of boating with their DDM model 3D printed boat, showcased in a captivating photo. This advanced technology promises to revolutionize the traditional boat manufacturing process and offer endless possibilities for design and customization of new boats. Tanaruz has successfully merged modern technology with traditional methods of maritime craft, opening up new boats and a world of opportunities for boating enthusiasts everywhere.

A custom boat 3D printer

Crafting luxurious watercrafts has never been an easy feat. The process often is time consuming involves extensive, manual labor and work, ultimately resulting in the vessels, exorbitant costs and considerable time investments.

Tanaruz revolutionizes traditional methods of boat manufacturing with cutting-edge technology – a bespoke 3D printer crafted by the legendary Swiss-Swedish tech giant, ABB.

The printer boasts the remarkable Track Motion system, unrivaled in its lightning-fast speed, surgical precision, and unparalleled adaptability. Meticulously developed and fine-tuned to meet Tanaruz’s specific requirements, this innovative manufacturing marvel expertly churns out their fleet of stunning boats with unyielding accuracy and efficiency.

The Tanaruz 3D printer is equipped with a top-of-the-line extruder from Xtrution, a Dutch company renowned for their precise and powerful print machines. This cutting-edge technology allows the printer to melt and mold reclaimed polymers with ease, all while adhering perfectly to Tanaruz’s exact specifications and print out. With such advanced print capabilities, the possibilities for creative and sustainable printing are endless.

At Tanaruz, they have discovered the secret to smart and efficient boat part production process: 3D printing technology. Not only does it allow for greater accuracy and shorter production times, but it also keeps waste to a minimum zero material costs. Plus, it sparks creativity and flexibility, all while helping the company minimize their impact on the world’s the environment. It’s the perfect example of how technology and sustainability can go hand in hand.

Set sail with Tanaruz’s cutting-edge robotic boat and 3d printing technology. Explore the endless possibilities of 3D printing with an innovative new boat and system designed to take your aquatic adventures to the next level. See your dreams come to life as you design and create your custom vessel. Join the revolution of personalized 3d printed boat building with Tanaruz.

Scaling up production

Experience the freedom of the open water with Tanaruz’s customizable boats. From compact 4.5 meter vessels to spacious 10 meter models, each new boat made is tailored to fit your specific needs. Take your sustainability to the next level with electric motors, batteries, and solar panels, all available for your selection. Choose the perfect color, interior, and equipment to create your dream boat and elevate your aquatic adventure.

Not only is Tanaruz revolutionizing the boating industry through sustainable 3D printing, but they are also making high-quality yachts more accessible to customers. Their entry-level model, priced at around €15,000, is just the start – as their production scales and material costs go up, there is potential for even more affordable options. With Tanaruz, owning a luxurious yacht doesn’t have to be time consuming or break the bank.

A Rotterdam-based 3d printing firm is making waves in the pleasure yacht industry with a bold plan to 3D print 100 luxury boats this year alone. But that’s just the beginning. By 2023, they hope to triple production and churn out a whopping 3d printed over 300 vessels. To achieve this ambitious goal, the company is actively scouting for a second location to house additional 3D printers. Stay tuned for more updates on this exciting innovation in yacht construction.

Tanaruz’s latest venture boasts the ability to 3D print boats larger than 10 meters with the installation of a cutting-edge facility. This facility allows for the simultaneous operation of two printers, opening up new opportunities for the world of 3D printed boats to expand even further. Imagine the potential for innovative designs and customized creations of 3d printed boats that were once limited by size restrictions. The future of both 3d printed boats and boat manufacturing just got a whole lot more exciting with Tanaruz leading the way.

The innovative additive manufacturing company is on the lookout for like-minded partners and investors to join the journey towards global expansion of additive manufacturing. With cutting-edge “plug-and-play” additive manufacturing technology, shipyards and print shops worldwide can easily embrace the future.

You may also be interested: How to paint PLA on one’s own

3D printing sea-faring vessels

Aside from Tanaruz, other companies and institutions are also making strides in utilizing 3D printing technology for boat production. Recently, the University of Maine impressed the industry by printing two massive boats, with one being hailed as the biggest vessel ever printed and created through additive manufacturing.

These two printed boats were designed for the US Marine Corps and will be subjected to rigorous field tests. It’s an exciting time for the boat and yacht industry, as innovation and creativity continue to push the boundaries of what is possible with printing itself.

UMaine has outdone themselves by breaking their own record for the world’s largest 3D printed boat with their new fleet. Their previous 3Dirigo model, also 3d printed in just 72 hours, measured an impressive 25-foot-long.

Meanwhile, Moi Composites showcased their own 3d printed boat innovation at the 2020 Genoa Boat show, claiming to have created the world’s first boat 3D printed in continuous fiberglass thermoset material. The possibilities of 3D printing technology are constantly being pushed to new heights in the world of boating, and the future is looking brighter than ever.

Read more: 3d printed gadgets. Most Profitable Items

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3D PRINT AN IOM YACHT

And go racing for less than half the price..

ALIOTH is an International One Metre class design optimized to be manufactured using 3D printing technology.

FOR HOME 3D PRINTERS

For FFF/FDM printers with 210 x 210 x 250 mm build volume or larger.

EASY ASSEMBLY

FAST MODERN DESIGN

The design team worked exhaustively in achieving modern, functional and harmonic shapes.

WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE ALIOTH COMMUNITY?

Facebook group.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

Does alioth design cumply with the iom class rules.

Yes. A lthough the design has not been on the market for a long time, there are already some that have been registered with measurement certificate.

I am interested in home build an Alioth yacht but I don´t have a 3D printer.

If you don´t have a 3D printer but would like to build an Alioth, 3D printed kits are available for that purpose. More details soon.

I´ m thinking of purchasing a printer, which one would you recommend for a nice finish?

Most popular low price printers are good to print PLA material if they are well calibrated and work in a suitable place away from drafts or vibrations.

Make sure the build volume is 210x210x250 mm or larger.

Typically, you need to spend some time understanding and calibrating a 3D printer.

What material do you recommend to print the Alioth files?

PLA+ is stiff, has low shrinkage and is easy to print. The disadvantage is a low glass transition temperature.

Darker colours warp on direct sunlight as the temperature of the surface builds up fast. To avoid this, use bright clear colours.

Is the hull designed to be printed in vase mode?

Yes. Vase mode guarantees good layer adhesion and the best surface quality, and it reduces a lot the printing time.

What sailwinch servos can I use?

Files include three different servo trays for:

• Standard size (40×20 mm) sailwinch servos, like DSNA SW22HV.
• S100 sailwinch.
• RMG and ARS808 sailwinch servos.

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• Reviews and How-To's

3D Printed Boats: Everything You Need to Know

A 3D printed boat is not only a possibility but it also exists in our world today. This might seem incredulous given that boats are much larger than most 3D printers, and 3D prints typically are not at all waterproof.

However, with additive manufacturing now a production method used everywhere, it seems the possibility is wide open. Be it spare parts for boats, design components for submarines, or even components of current turbines, 3D technologies are impacting boat construction and we’re here for it!

Scroll down for details on several examples of 3D printed boats, their processes, and the benefits of 3D printing boats- not necessarily in that order.

The 3D Printing Process

First things first, getting a basic understanding of the 3D printing process is a good way of easing into the idea of 3D printed boats. You should know that careful steps are taken to ensure that 3D printed boats are a success.

3D printing or additive manufacturing, which is the creation of real-world three-dimensional objects through a printing process, has its easy and difficult parts. That is not to say if you want to give it a try, you can’t handle it. You just have to follow the right steps.

To get started with the 3D printing process, the following are what you need to do:

• Design your Model

You can design your models by yourself using either professional software, which is quite expensive or free open-source software. This will allow you to create accurate and printable designs by typing instructions to combine different shapes to make complex objects.

Another option is making use of 3D scanners. However, these have their own disadvantages as they can only scan what they can see. Also, the models you create with the scanners might need tidying in software before printing; and the affordable scanners available might not have the precision required for functionally accurate items.

• Get a 3D Printer

Now that you can design your models, the next step in the 3D printing process is getting your own printer. This is a delicate decision and certain things must be taken into consideration if you want a 3D printer that delivers finished quality objects. First, consider the print volume of the printer as it lets you know what you can and cannot print.

Then check for nozzle size and remember, the smaller the better for accuracy. Thirdly, check the print heads of the 3D printer and note that if you want to print multiple colors, it’s better to get one with multiple heads. Finally, avoid printers that use proprietary cartridges and stick to the ones that use standard diameters of filament.

It’s advisable for you to join an online or local 3D printing community for more help on what kind of printer you should purchase. You’ll also be familiar with printers that are more popular within the community this way.

• Choose a Filament

Filaments are simply thermoplastics that melt instead of burn when heated and solidify when cooled. They can be shaped and molded, and are materials from which 3D objects are printed. The filament is generally supplied on reels and resembles insulated electrical wire.

The most common types of filament are PLA (polylactic acid) and ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene). While ABS has the advantage of being relatively resistant to heat and impact, it is made from fossil which is non-biodegradable. PLA, on the other hand, is obtained from renewable resources like corn and it can be a little brittle as well as not heat resistant.

This makes PLA easy to print but unsuitable for locations with temperatures regularly exceeding 50 ̊C. It is advisable for you to use the ABS filament if you are printing parts for your engine bay.

Benefits of 3D Printing Boats

A lot of great benefits come with 3D printing boats from production to customization. Rather than the ancient or traditional manufacturing ways of crafting boats, this additive manufacturing method offers an easier and more economical way of boat construction.

Here are the benefits in detail:

• No Excess Material

One thing about additive manufacturing is that only the amount of material needed to build your boat is used. Unlike the traditional subtractive manufacturing methods where materials are sure to be wasted, 3D printing your boat leaves no room for excess material. Even if there is, the excess material can always be used for a different printing job, making this method more sustainable and less expensive.

• Customization of Parts

There are different parts in a boat, each one improving it either in the area of speed or balance. With customization, you can create uniquely designed parts as well as parts that will help optimize the boat’s overall performance. You can simply adjust the 3D model to whatever pleases you. And with its low cost compared to the traditional manufacturing methods, customization with 3D printing is highly beneficial.

• Lighter Weight

A boat with less weight is mostly coveted because it’s faster and more balanced, causing a better performance. This is why 3D printing boats can be considered beneficial in this sense. Due to the fact that 3D printing materials are considerably lighter, and only the materials needed are used in 3D printing, the boats created are of lighter weight. This means that additive manufacturing produces parts that are lighter compared to parts made with a traditional manufacturing method.

• Spare Parts Replacement

It’s not unusual to see damages or bumps in the boat hull as the waters can sometimes get rough and nasty to ships and boats alike. There are even times when the boat hulls become so dirty that cleaning them properly can be almost impossible or simply too expensive.

In cases like this, replacing the boat hull totally is the best option since a damaged or dirty boat hull can lead to it losing its speed or effectiveness. Instead of spending so much money and time on getting a replacement, you can easily and quickly fix the parts with additive manufacturing.

Some Examples of 3D Printed Boats Today

In the past, the automotive industry has been known for incorporating 3D printing into their sector quite a lot. However, 3D printing is slowly but surely making its mark in the shipbuilding industry as well.

Several organizations have started making 3D printed boats for special purposes, and some of them are:

• Maine’s 3Dirigo Boat

Printed in just 72 hours, the Guinness world’s largest 3D printed boat and 3D printed solid item was announced by the University of Maine’s Advanced Structures and Composites Center in September 2019.

It was printed using the world’s largest thermoplastic 3D printer, measures 25’ (7.62m) long and weighs 5,000lbs (2,268kg). As part of a partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee (ORNL), the aim of this project was to develop a large-format AM program based on 3D printing materials that contain wood fiber.

• MAMBO Fiberglass Boat

The MAMBO boat was the first functional 3D printed fiberglass boat to sail in Italian waters during the Genoa boat show. It was designed by Moi Composites in collaboration with Autodesk, Catmarine, Micad, and Owens Corning. The additive manufacturing method was used with continuous fiber composite materials.

The printing process also involved two robots that fabricated the boat’s components to be assembled. With this system, they were able to create lighter, yet strong and durable parts for the boat. There was also limited material waste and no need for molds. At 12’4” (6.5 meters) long, 8’2” (2.5 meters) wide, and 1763.7lbs (800kg) in weight, the MAMBO boat, unveiled in 2019, is truly outstanding.

All the tooling needed to build this boat was 3D printed by Yachting Developments, a New Zealand company that specializes in building boats with composite materials. The company went ahead to develop a branch dedicated to additive manufacturing as a way to accelerate the production of its ships. The AC9F went on to participate in the 36 th edition of the America’s Cup, and the teams were able to drastically reduce the manufacturing time of the final boat thanks to 3D printing.

• 3D Printed Kayak

This fully functional kayak was created by Jim Smith of Grass Roots Engineering. At 5 meters long, 0.5 meters wide, weighing about 30 kilograms, and using 28 different ABS plastics, this 3D printed kayak is the first of its kind. Using only screws, threaded inserts, and some silicone sealant alongside the ABS plastics, Jim made this a reality. He even created a custom, large-scale 3D printer to aid his outstanding innovation.

• 3D Printed Marine Hull

The master plug of this marine hull, alongside its print, assembly process, and trim process took less than ten working days to be completed with the use of an LSAM 3D printer. The Techmer Electrafil© ABS LT1 3DP material was used. After the printing process, the hull was coated with a finish and a fiberglass mold was implemented by tracing along with the pre-printed pattern. 3D printing of the marine hull optimized the feasibility, practicality, and economics behind it.

Going through the 3D printing process of building boats might seem difficult or tiring to you but with its many benefits and finished quality products, you know the process is well worth it!

To encourage you are even some of the best 3D printed boats in our world today that have been made a success by great minds. These real-life examples show you that 3D printed boats are a possibility and are being embraced more and more by the shipbuilding industry. Feel free to let us know your thoughts about 3D printed boats and contact us for more information!

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PRINT AT HOME AN IOM SAILING YACHT

And sail for less than half the price..

ALIOTH is an International One Metre class design optimized to be manufactured using 3D printing technology.

FOR HOME 3D PRINTERS

For FFF/FDM printers with a minimum print volume of 210 x 210 x 250 mm, and 0.4 nozzle.

EASY ASSEMBLY

FAST MODERN DESIGN

The design team worked exhaustively in achieving modern, functional and harmonic shapes.

WHAT WILL YOU RECEIVE?

Ficheros STL   del casco, de los refuerzos internos y de las plataformas de los equipos RC.

G-CODE files for PLA/PLA+ material, generated with a extensively tested slicer setting.

General 3D printing and assembly instructions .

You will also have access to the Alioth community on Facebook.

Special price, 3d printing technology is constantly becoming more useful and we are offering this special price as a one-time launching offer., take advantage of this amazing deal before it is too late, alioth gcode files + user licence.

115.00  €

WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE ALIOTH COMMUNITY?

We use this group to help alioth users during the printing and assembling processes..

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

Is the hull designed to be printed in vase mode.

Yes. Vase mode guarantees good layer adhesion and the best surface quality, and it reduces a lot the printing time.

What material do you recommend to print the Alioth files?

We recommend PLA+ or PLA.

PLA is stiff, has low shrinkage and is easy to print. The disadvantage is a low glass transition temperature.

Darker colours warp on direct sunlight as the temperature of the surface builds up fast. To avoid this, use bright clear colours.

Don’t leave printed parts in a car on hot summer days, as the temperature can easily rise above 50°C.

What sailwinch servos can I use?

Files include three different servo trays for:

• Standard size (40×20 mm) sailwinch servos, like Turnigy 6114.
• S100 sailwinch.
• RMG and ARS808 sailwinch servos.

What other parts do I need to complete my Alioth boat?

Hull fittings kit (available in our online store).

Rudder and keel (SailingLAB carbon rudder and keel are available in our online store).

Radio controlled equipment.

Rigs (mast, booms, sails, etc).

How do I obtain my purchased files?

Privacy overview.

UMaine 3D prints two new large boats for U.S. Marines, breaking previous world record

The University of Maine (UMaine) has 3D printed two new large-scale boats at its Advanced Structures and Composites Center in Orono, one of which is reportedly the largest vessel ever to be additively manufactured.

Developed for the U.S. Marine Corps , the prototype boats are designed to be logistical support vessels and will be tested for field use by the armed forces. The larger one can carry two 20-foot shipping containers, while the other can transport an entire rifle squad with three days’ worth of food, water, and other supplies.

To commemorate the completion of the boats, UMaine hosted a ceremony on the 25th of February. Attendees included both of the state’s senators, Republican Susan Collins and Independent Angus King, as well as representatives from the Department of Defense (DoD).

“The University of Maine is at the forefront of cutting-edge research and high-impact technologies, including advanced manufacturing, AI, and 3D printing important for industries in Maine and beyond,” said Dannel Malloy, UMaine’s System Chancellor. “These prototype vessels are the latest innovations from the Composites Center that demonstrate the future of manufacturing.”

There are currently no public photos, videos, or technical details of the boats due to national security concerns.

UMaine breaks its own record

UMaine prides itself on being home to the world’s largest polymer 3D printing system. Developed by Ingersoll Machine Tools , the extrusion-based printer was built specifically for defense and infrastructure applications, and can be used to print objects as long as 100ft, 22ft wide, and 10ft high.

Back in 2019, UMaine used its 3D printer to manufacture 3Dirigo , which was at the time the world’s largest 3D printed boat as well as the world’s largest 3D printed object. Measuring 25 feet long and weighing in at 5,000 pounds, the vessel was printed in 72 hours. With its latest project, UMaine has now broken its own Guinness World Records.

Malloy adds, “Two years ago, we demonstrated that it was possible to 3D print a 25-foot patrol vessel in three days. Since then, partnering with the DOD, we have been improving material properties, speeding up the printing process, and connecting our printer with high-performance computers that can monitor the print. With these tools in place, we have now printed a prototype vessel that will be tested by the U.S. Marine Corps.”

More recently, UMaine also secured $2.8 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) to develop a more eco-friendly method of 3D printing wind turbine blade molds . By introducing a bio-based feedstock into their Cellulose Nanofiber (CNF) printing process, the team believes that it’s possible to cut the costs of producing the large-format parts by 50%.

UMaine has also previously presented two novel 3D printed flood barriers to a U.S. Senate transport resiliency subcommittee. Built by the Advanced Structures and Composites Center, the bio-based barriers are designed to protect coastal infrastructure from flood-related damage.

Two new 3D printed logistical support vessels

Both of the new vessels were 3D printed using a multi-material blend of polymer-based fiber-reinforced composites. According to UMaine, it was able to fabricate and assemble one of the boats in just one month – a process that would otherwise take up to a year using traditional manufacturing methods.

While the prototype boats are intended to be fully functional on their own, they can also be connected to form a single-tow raft for maximum transport capacity.

Now that they’re ready for the open water, the boats will be transported from the UMaine laboratory to California, where they’ll be tested in the sea. The university is handing the prototypes off to the Marine Corps’ Advanced Manufacturing Operations Cell, which was established in 2019 to support the Marines with new advanced production techniques, testing, experimentation, and analysis.

The DoD hopes to use the 3D printed vessels to address its need for small logistics vehicles, enabling distributed maritime and expeditionary operations.

Lt. Gen. Edward Banta, Deputy Commandant – Installation & Logistics, U.S. Marine Corps, concludes, “This project demonstrates the art of the possible and the potential for additive manufacturing to fundamentally alter how we think about connectors and their role in mobility and distribution within a contested environment.”

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Looking for a career in additive manufacturing? Visit 3D Printing Jobs for a selection of roles in the industry.

Featured image shows UMaine celebrating the completion of the boats with a ceremony in late Feb. Photo via UMaine.

Kubi Sertoglu

Kubi Sertoglu holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering, combining an affinity for writing with a technical background to deliver the latest news and reviews in additive manufacturing.

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How-To Geek

What kind of 3d printing filament should you use.

Don't get lost in a sea of choices.

Quick Links

Pla is the best overall filament, abs is stronger, but be careful, petg combines the best of pla and abs, tpu is best for flexible objects, less common filaments to know about.

3D printing can feel very daunting for beginners. One reason for that is the many different types of filaments you can print with. PLA, ABS, PETG, TPU—it's a lot of cryptic acronyms. Thankfully, there are really only a few you need to know, and we'll explain what they do best.

When starting out with 3D printing , the first filament you should get familiar with is PLA (polylactic acid). This is, without a doubt, the most popular and easiest-to-use filament in the 3D printing world. Like all filaments on this list, there are pros and cons to PLA.

First and foremost, PLA is the closest thing to a "it just works" filament. Nearly every 3D printer can print PLA without much configuration. It requires relatively low temperatures, doesn't need a heated bed, and can be printed and fairly quick speeds. PLA is also affordable, comes in tons of colors , and doesn't require an enclosure for toxic fumes (though you still may want to ventilate). It's the obvious choice for most things you'll want to print.

On the downside, PLA isn't the strongest filament you can find. It can be pretty brittle under pressure, and it doesn't withstand high temperatures well. For example, if you tried to run a PLA-printed object through a dishwasher, it would likely deform.

The most popular filament behind PLA is probably ABS (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene). Typically, people reach for ABS over PLA when they are printing things that need to be stronger and more durable. ABS will bend before breaking, and it can withstand much higher temperatures. One of the best features of ABS is its solubility in acetone—you can get a very smooth finish on ABS without hours of sanding.

However, there are a couple of pretty big downsides to ABS. First, it's a bit more challenging to print with. Your 3D printer will need to have a high-temp print nozzle and a heated bed (most do have these features). More importantly, ABS releases toxic fumes while printing, so you absolutely need a 3D printer enclosure or a filtration system to use it safely.

PETG (polyethylene terephthalate glycol-modified) is most easily described as a filament with the characteristics of both PLA and ABS. It's relatively easy to print like PLA but also has the bend-but-don't-break and high-temp durability qualities of ABS. This makes it one of the best all-around filaments, as it doesn't have many downsides. However, there are some things you should know before loading it up.

While PETG may be easier to print with than ABS, it's not perfect. The great layer adhesion properties make it more prone to clogging up nozzles. PETG can also absorb moisture from the air more than most filaments, which can cause problems if you use filament that's just been sitting out in the open. Lastly, PETG is more expensive than PLA and ABS.

If you've ever purchased a case for your phone, you may already be familiar with TPU. It's a very common material found in thin, flexible phone cases, and you can 3D print with it , too. TPU (thermoplastic polyurethane) is not the only flexible filament you can use in 3D printing, but it is the most common.

Not all TPU is the same. It's available in a wide range of colors and hardness ratings, which determines exactly how flexible the final product will be. You can print something as soft as a rubber band or as firm as an eraser. That variety is nice, but it does add complexity when you're trying to dial in the print settings. One common issue with TPU is stringing.

PLA, ABS, PETG, and TPU are most likely going to be the only filament you need to use, but there are plenty of other materials available. Here are a few extras you may want to know.

Nylon filament for 3D printing is known for its exceptional durability, strength, and heat resistance, making it ideal for functional parts that need to withstand wear and tear. However, it's trickier to print with compared to other filaments because it absorbs moisture easily, warping the prints, and requires a heated bed for successful printing.

HIPS (high-impact polystyrene) filament is a budget-friendly option with good impact resistance and easy post-processing. Similar to ABS, it can be dissolved to leave behind a smooth surface. However, HIPS can be brittle, flammable, and susceptible to some chemicals, and, also like ABS, it produces toxic fumes during printing.

PVA (polyvinyl alcohol) filament is a great choice for 3D printing support structures because it dissolves completely in water, leaving behind a clean main print. It's also relatively easy to print at similar temperatures to PLA, but PVA is much more moisture-sensitive. It requires special storage, can clog your printer nozzle if not handled carefully, and is more expensive than other options.

Polycarbonate

Polycarbonate (PC) filament is one of the strongest and most durable filaments on the market, making it ideal for functional prototypes and demanding applications. However, it's trickier to use because it absorbs moisture easily, needs to be printed at very high temperatures, and the filament can be pretty pricey.

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Crystals that move under light could serve as drug-delivery microrobots

Youtube ID: xLIrsa4BOSM?

We expect crystals to be rigid and brittle, so scientists were shocked when some of their crystals seemed to come alive under a microscope. They hope to use the unusual behavior to make tiny machines powered by light that could deliver targeted medicine inside the body.

Watch an interview with the researchers 

Read an ACS press release about this research: Molecular crystal motors move like microbes when exposed to light

Source Article

“Advancing photomechanical crystals: Light-powered continuous motion of molecular crystals” Presented at ACS Spring 2024 on March 19, 2024 Presenter: Rabih O. Al-Kaysi, Ph.D. Principal investigators: Rabih O. Al-Kaysi, Ph.D., and Christopher J. Bardeen, Ph.D.

Christopher J. Bardeen, Ph.D.: So he just sent me videos, and I saw the videos of these crystals moving and doing these sort of intricate motions under light, and I didn't believe it at all.

Narrator: Believe it or not, these swirling ribbons are actually crystals. 

We expect crystals to be rigid and brittle. So scientists were shocked when crystals they grew for solar energy research seemed to come alive under a microscope.

Christopher J. Bardeen, Ph.D.: We realized they were doing photochemistry inside the crystal and that that photochemistry was turning into motion.

Narrator: The crystals are made from an organic molecule, more than a billion of them packed tightly together to form a tiny wire. Each molecule has a carbon-carbon double bond that works like an axle and allows part of the molecule to twist when it absorbs energy from light. That forces the other molecules to shift in response. And then the crystals start to dance.

Rabih O. Al-Kaysi, Ph.D.: So instead of breaking and scattering all over the place, they expand. And this is something interesting. I'd say look at a bunch of hair — just hair. Go to a barbershop and you have a bunch of hair lying around, and this hair is doing nothing. Bring a flashlight, shine light on this hair, and it starts moving. It's creepy, but it's interesting.

Narrator: Researchers hope to use crystals like this to make tiny machines powered by light that could deliver targeted medicine inside the body. And they’re still exploring what else the dancing crystals can do. The research is being presented at ACS Spring 2024, a meeting of the American Chemical Society.

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US aids shipping container-size 3D-printing drone factories for Ukraine

A new tech startup has recently raised $12 million from backers like Lockheed Martin to develop cheap miniature 3D-printing drone factories for battle zones like the Ukraine. Firestorm Labs, the San Diego-based company, was founded after 3D printing engineer Ian Muceus visited Kyiv in February.

The startup’s core plan is to produce 3D-printing drone factories that fit inside a shipping container that can be deployed anywhere in the world. The xCell shipping containers can produce a drone in less than 24 hours.

The drone factory shipping containers come in two main variants, with 20-foot (6 meters) and 40-foot (12.2 meters) options currently on offer. Firestorm Lab claims these units should be able to produce around 50 ron units a month. The company explains that each of the 3D-printing factories can be deployed in remote locations and should be hidden in plain sight.

“xCell is a semi-automated, expeditionary manufacturing cell that can be operated with limited human-in-the-loop engagement and powered by generators off-the-grid,” explains Firestorm Labs.

“Additive manufacturing, automation, and robotic-assisted assembly enable a future where expeditionary factories quickly produce large volumes of Firestorm vehicles,” they add on their website.

3D-printing drones anywhere, anytime

As for the drones themselves, their flagship product is the “Tempest” 3D-printable drone. The Tempest has a maximum takeoff weight of 55 pounds (25 kg), can carry a payload of 10 pounds (4.5 kg), and has a wingspan of 7 feet (2.1 meters). It is 6 feet (1.8 meters) long and can be configured depending on the required range, loitering time, and cruise speed.

The drone can be broken down into single-person-portable cases for easy transport and has swappable propulsion systems for different mission needs. It also comes with “patent-pending quick connect/disconnect” capabilities to enable rapid and efficient reconfiguration on the fly.

The company believes this solution should enable customers to deliver quick, efficient, and mission-specific aerial support directly to the front lines.

Firestorm Labs plans to produce over 500 drones monthly at its San Diego facility in preparation for a future where drones could be essential to military operations.

This ambitious vision is backed by significant venture capital, including an investment from Lockheed Martin Ventures. The strategy to decentralize drone production could make it harder for adversaries to cripple a nation’s military capabilities with targeted strikes.

Drone factories on the frontlines

By spreading out production capabilities, Firestorm Labs could provide a resilient and flexible solution to countries like Ukraine, which faces challenges in maintaining a steady supply of military drones.

Although 3D printing shows promise for the mass production of drones, its scalability is still in doubt. Critics argue that the technology is not yet competitive enough for large-scale operations.

However, the potential for decentralized drone factories to evade enemy targeting has garnered support within the venture capital community and the Pentagon. This highlights a cautious but hopeful optimism for the technology developed by Firestorm Labs.

Firestorm Labs is at the forefront of a significant shift in military strategy and technology. Although the company has not yet secured public contracts in Ukraine, its support from the Pentagon and venture capitalists suggests a strong belief in the potential of 3D-printed drones.

Tallahassee couple behind city's first 3D-printed house makes $315K pitch to Blueprint

A Tallahassee-based company plans to make a funding request to Blueprint board members in order to bring 3D-printing equipment, renovations and training to Tallahassee Community College.

Kyndra Light, CEO of Gulf Coast Additive Manufacturing & Design, made a first pitch at the Feb. 29 Blueprint meeting for $315,000. She said the money would be used to renovate the vacant Richardson Building at TCC and purchase 3D printing equipment. The building is within the school's manufacturing and welding training programs.

"So we're looking to renovate that building and locate some machines there," Light said. "That way, we have the ability to not only produce some concrete productions, but train while we're doing it."

Items that could be produced through this effort include oyster domes, curbs, park benches and custom infrastructure.

She, along with her husband, James Light, also own another construction company called Precision Building and Design and it made history by building Florida's first affordable 3D printed home in the Griffin Heights neighborhood in Tallahassee.

With construction costs rising, Light said additive manufacturing or 3D printing is a growing industry and Tallahassee has a chance to build a workforce and materials to meet future demand. She said there are six teams that exist across the globe within different companies that know how to use this technology and build a house.

However, due to scarcity of workers, Light said many companies end up pulling from the same shallow pool of skilled workers and that alone creates challenges with timing and other on-site issues.

At last week's meeting, Blueprint board members didn't discuss the non-compete funding request after Light made a presentation as a public speaker. That's in part due to the packed agenda that included weighty issues that created tense discussions and drama during parts of the hours-long meeting.

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Gulf Coast Additive Manufacturing & Design had hoped to gauge direction from board members on how to proceed in the coming months.

"Now we have to go back to the drawing board and re-strategize, because business doesn't move three months at a time," Light said. "We're going to re-strategize and make sure that the proposal will still be a valid option three months from now."

Light said she and her husband are planning a recon trip at the end of the month to Colorado to visit a company already advancing this manufacturing technology. Light said she hoped to share how the Blueprint Board had given an OK and that her application for funding would be reviewed as a first step.

"It's just a matter of timing it right and making sure that we that we look at it kind of with fresh eyes," Light said.

What's the next step?

While Blueprint Board members didn't discuss the item or offer staff direction, Light said she plans to make another presentation at the next Blueprint Board meeting scheduled for May 16.

The company's funding request falls under "Non-Competitive Economic Development Proposals" that are funded through the Future Opportunity Leveraging Fund.

Keith Bowers, who heads the Tallahassee-Leon County Office of Economic Vitality, which falls under Blueprint Intergovernmental Agency, said the Non-Competitive Economic Development Proposal Policy states that "the IA Board of Directors must direct OEV staff to evaluate all Non-competitive Economic Development Proposals."

"Although the Lights made a presentation, the IA Board did not take official action on the proposal," Bower said.

If the IA Board directs staff to evaluate the proposal, Bowers said OEV will work with the Lights to gather information needed to analyze the request using the criteria outlined in the policy.  

"Once the evaluation is completed, OEV submits the proposal to the Economic Vitality Leadership Council for a programmatic review," Bowers said. "The proposal is then included in an agenda item to be reviewed and voted on by the board."

Contact Economic Development Reporter TaMaryn Waters at [email protected] and follow @TaMarynWaters on X.

It's hard to use printers to build houses. This startup says it's found a solution — by creating a 3D printed home starter kit.

• Roadblocks stand between startups and their promise of cheaper and quickly built  3D printed homes .
• Construction-tech startup Icon's new collection of products could alleviate some of these issues.
• Icon unveiled a multi-story printer, a "low-carbon" printing mix, a catalog of designs, and an AI designer.

Over the last few years, several new startups have promised to build better homes using less labor, time, money, and materials — all with the help of a piece of technology: a 3D printer .

But amid this quest to alleviate the US housing crisis, the nascent 3D printing construction industry has continued to face major roadblocks.

A construction-tech startup in Austin now says it has the solutions.

On Tuesday, Icon announced four products that could help solve for 3D printing construction companies' biggest pain points : a multi-story printer, a "low-carbon" concrete mix, a digital catalog of designs, and an AI printed-home designer.

No, printed homes aren't something out of "The Jetsons." They're real — and already here.

In the last few years, startups — and even colleges — have unveiled 3D printed dwellings around the US.

In Virginia, Alquist, a 3D printing construction company, has built three Habitat for Humanity houses using a 3D printer.

In Texas, Icon is now working with construction giant Lennar to build the world's largest printed neighborhood .

And in Maine, a state university is now scaling up its manufacturing space to increase its production of fully recyclable printed dwellings.

Startups like these say robotic 3D printers could alleviate the US's ongoing housing crisis.

But their lofty goal of mass-producing affordable homes still faces some big problems, including an underdeveloped workforce, the tech's inefficiencies and limitations, and the sky-high cost of materials and printers.

On the latter note, most construction printers extrude a cement mix. However, concrete is far from being environmentally friendly.

But a solution to some of these issues is now in sight, Texas-based Icon says, thanks to its new group of products.

Think of it as a 3D printing home starter kit — starting with Icon's new printer, Phoenix.

Many 3D printed family homes — including Icon's previous builds — are single-story, with the only printed components being its walls.

The rest of the house has to be built traditionally.

Phoenix, which Icon plans to deploy in 2025 or 2026, could change this.

The "six-degree robotic arm" can create a multi-story building's foundation, walls, floors, and roof structures without stopping, Melodie Yashar, Icon's vice president of building design and building performance, told Business Insider.

This printing process would then cut construction time, the number of excess building materials and workers, and subsequently, costs.

Jason Ballard, cofounder and CEO of Icon, told Business Insider in a statement that Phoenix-built wall systems and foundations are estimated to be about 30% less expensive than conventional homebuilding methods.

Regarding speed, he said the timeline for completing a home's printed elements could be "twice as fast as traditional construction."

The new printer would use Icon’s newest printing material, known as CarbonX.

Despite its widespread use, concrete isn't great for the environment: The global production of cement, which is an ingredient of concrete, makes up 8% of the world's carbon emissions, triple the aviation sector's global output, The Washington Post reported .

To address this, Icon says it created a “low-carbon” concrete printing material.

Like other cement mixes made for 3D printers , CarbonX would still be fireproof, mold-proof, and insect-proof, Yashar told Business Insider.

The formula would be available to other homebuilders in April, with more environmentally friendly mixes already in Icon's pipeline.

Unlike the cement mix, the average Joe could use Icon’s third new product: Codex.

"Many times, developers, builders, and city planners come to us and don't know where to start," Yashar said. "They don't know what's possible in terms of designs or the best product for them."

To help with this, Icon created Codex, a digital catalog of printed home designs.

The database has more than 60 homes separated into five categories: Texas modern, fire resilient, storm resilient, affordable, and avant-garde.

Avant-garde, as in some buildings are U-shaped, Yashar said. Others were designed to be "very affordable" — some of the units could be built for $99,000 or less.

To compare, the startup's first six builds in its upcoming 100-home neighborhood were listed between $476,000 and $566,000.

Developers can then browse this catalog, select their preferred designs, and tap Icon to build these properties.

Home buyers, on the other hand, can also select their dream residences from the catalog.

They can then either send Icon a deposit on the model (if there's already one ready to purchase) or join a waiting list that would alert them if their ideal design has hit their market.

Some of Icon's projects, including those at its development in Marfa, Texas — where homes "start in the upper $900,000s," according to Icon's website — will be available through Codex.

However, people who’d rather design their unit from scratch can instead use Icon’s fourth new product: Vitruvius.

Yashar said Vitruvius, an AI-based system, was created to "democratize" Icon's design process. However, the company didn't say how much it would cost to use the tech, which is still in beta.

When it's complete, people can use Vitruvius to create floor plans and renderings — while considering requirements like budgets and permits — of their ideal printed residence.

Homeowners with no prior experience in designing printed homes would be able to use Vitruvius instead of hiring a “prohibitively expensive” architect, Yashar said.

"In the future, I believe nearly all construction will be done by robots, and nearly all construction-related information will be processed and managed by AI systems," Icon's CEO said in a release.

Architects could use Vitruvius to "accelerate" the home design process.

With these four new products — the printer, printing material, catalog, and AI system — Yashar said Icon could create higher-quality and more affordable dwellings without “sacrificing dignity, resilience, and beauty.”

"I want to build a better world faster and cheaper," Icon cofounder Ballard told Business Insider in 2022.

Two years later, with the release of this new suite of products, it seems Ballard could still be on track with his goal.

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