great post! glad to see you're coming on board with the latest disruptive technology. this will do what ARFs did for balsa building...just "print it"...break something...just "reprint it". One can even print a motor...just add magnets and wire:
https://www.makesea.com/web/claimer/brushless-motor

now if I could 3d print the servos and esc...

Yes, I see this as a great addition to the hobby. Not so much for advancing the performance of affordable aircraft. But for introducing a "newish" technology and bringing it into the shops of many hobbyists.

I look forward to new materials that out perform the balsa, f/glass, carbon fiber type prefabricated kits. And hopefully, the excellent design and support from 3DLabPrint will get serious RC enthusiasts to develop CAD and 3D - rapid prototyping skills on their own.

Great start. Hope it is just the start.

if you can print these then you should also be able to print molds to make a both strong and light copy of these models.

Originally Posted by SplashCrash

Great start. Hope it is just the start.

You have seen 'nothing yet; soon metal 3d printing will become affordable and then you can print engines, bearing blocks, retracts and lots more.

Originally Posted by cmulder

soon metal 3d printing will become affordable and then you can print engines, bearing blocks, retracts and lots more.

Well that isn't really new. And it will be a quite a while before the "metallic" rapid prototype will be on par with the properties of high alloy steel, Then there is the matter of high tolerance machining required for the things mentioned. Rapid prototyping is a loooong way from being accurate to within more than about .010". But, someday.

WOW!

You can literally print any kind of model you wish. One thing they could incorporate into the models they make are locking tabs to lock the wing and fuselage parts together reducing the about of glue and assembly time. So tab, lock, then glue. DONE!

Looks like I need to take up another skill!

I have built the Stearman, Spitfire, and am in the process of printing the Cessna.

The Stearman is awaiting its maiden flight and finish trimming, while I just got in from the first two flights with the Spitfire. The Spitfire is a fraction of an ounce over 2lbs with a 2200mAh 3s battery. You need some space to land it, as even in power off mode it just seems to go on forever, and that's with a head wind.

Thread about the Stearman and the Cessna.

Ken

3D Labprint is developing a 90mm EDF Mig-15 as the next release.

Ken

For those who don't have experience with 3d printing, it's not exactly a turnkey process just yet. It's even more involved when you start designing your own parts.

That being said, it opens up all kinds of opportunities for builders. This is great for us, may be an issue for manufacturers in the future.....

I'm going to print ribs and formers, since I don't have a laser cutter. Just doing that is a huge benefit to the modeler. Hybrid balsa/3d printed models

Originally Posted by dz1sfb

3D Labprint is developing a 90mm EDF Mig-15 as the next release.

Ken

Ah, it will even fly like one with the wing loadings involved

So what is the material cost to print a typical plane?

The stuff I used for printing the P38 only cost me £15 per KG (so just less than $20) and I think I used about 1.2KG or so.

Not only the printing aspect but the whole CNC thing……

Look at the current crop of cheap 3D printers (mine cost € 200.00 delivered) and think about replacing the printer head (extruder to be correct) with a Dremel style tool with a milling bit. The resulting CNC milling machine probably wouldn’t be up to much but it would only be a few steps away from affordable off the shelf CNC milling for the average modeller.

Learning to 3D draw will still be a minor stumbling block but with several free programs available that problem can also be overcome with minimum effort.

Paul