> On May 20, 2023, at 2:12 PM, marcus.bow...@visible.eclipse.co.uk wrote:
>
>
> Interesting idea, which makes a lot of sense.
> So you would end up with a 'solid' epoxy/glass mix. What would its
> performance be like compared to a heavy dense epoxy/stone mix?
Glass and stone are not much different. Both make a hard composite. But the
shape of the chopped fiber is different from crushed stone. Fiber is more than
100:1 length-to-width ratio, even if chopped very short.
People can argue that cast iron is stiffer. But the iron is whatever shape
and size it happens to be, the glass fiber can be custom-made to any size and
shape up to making your own B2 bomber airplane. So even if an equal size of
iron is stronger, make the glass part 2X larger.
Even 3D-printed PLA plastic can be strong enough. I have a 3D-printed CNC
conversion of a harbor freight milling machine. Normally they use metal parts
for the motor mounts and such but PLA can be just as rigid if you make the
parts thicker.
If you have access to a foundry then you can make your own custom case iron.
Metal is best if you need the part to fit in a small space but plastic can be
as strong if you have the space for a larger part. For example you might use
module 0.5 steel gears but these are expensive to make. You could 3D print
module 2.0 gears that are as strong but you will have a very different-looking
machine
On the other hand, even a cheap sewing machine frame can be strong enough if
you limit the cutting speed the keep the forces down.
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