serveandvolE
Rookie
Anybody successfully 3D print grommets that work? With the multitide of more flexible filament s perhaps somebody has been able to do it?
Anybody successfully 3D print grommets that work?
- Thread starter serveandvolE
- Start date
serveandvolE
Rookie
Anyone? Anyone Bueller?
serveandvolE
Rookie
Through experience, I think it's just the opposite. I had a few sets of perfectly 3d printed grommets made but they cracked and split when strung. It's the material/filiment that I question. I tried multijetfusion (using a top 3d printer) using PA12 (nylon) and it's not strong enough. Has anybody else tried using a different method SLS, FFF, SLA and or material?
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RDM
Rookie
If I may be so bold as to ask, where did you find the CAD models to print? Or did you create them yourself?
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serveandvolE
Rookie
3d scanned them
dr325i
G.O.A.T.
Exactly. I would be surprised if it worked properly
serveandvolE
Rookie
I did get a section to kind of work using a home FFF 3d printer using Ninja flex filament but the grommet section was pretty dang ugly and I had to do some extra work on it when it was done that took a lot of time. This was a couple of years ago and I thought by now there would be a filament/process that would work. I know that there is carbon fiber and kevlar filaments. Anybody know if those might be strong and flexible enough?
esgee48
G.O.A.T.
I suspect that it may never work. Grommets are presently produced by injection moulding. The plastic is one piece with no weaknesses. 3D printing builds the grommets by layers and pieces like a pile of bricks. The joints are semimolten and weak. It is not a single piece of plastic. You would need to take apart the 3D scan and create significant overlap joints for the material to not split when stressed. And that will be a lot of work unless it can be automated. That is for the flat areas. I can't even begin to guess what to do with grommet tubes. If a material could be used such that it remains soft until hardened by UV, then maybe we wouldn't have this problem.
serveandvolE
Rookie
Also, I have considered injection moulding as an option but then the price jumps significantly as with quantity produced.
serveandvolE
Rookie
esgee48, That makes total sense. However, from what I have experienced, it's not just the hardness of the material that may be the key, the flexibility may be just as important. Grommets are just suppose to basically serve as a cushion for the strings that protects the strings from the rigid and sharp frame. Flexible types of material might work. I got it to somewhat work but the final product was very crude. Somewhere I read that Head or Wilson was 3d printing grommets for custom rackets. If that is true, I wonder which process and material they used.
BlueB
Legend
Why would they use 3d printing, with the quantities they produce?I suspect Wilson uses a mixture mainly PP and some PE. I do bet that they use an industrial 3D printer. Exactly what they do is a trade secret unless some nice person from Wilson Pro Labs is authorized to reply. Not holding my breath.
esgee48
G.O.A.T.
Cuz I was replying to serveandvolE. If they have standard drill patterns, then they probably have the grommets produced with injection moulding. If they have to do a one off as a trial, they would need to design grommets for the frame and make them. That's when I would use a 3D printer since they have the design files. But this is all speculation and we could be all wrong.
Sanglier
Professional
This is completely outside my comfort zone, and I wouldn't even pretend to know what I am talking about here, but many injection-molded racket parts (grommet strip, throat piece, etc) from the 70s and early 80s were made out of Zytel, which is based on Nylon-66, known for its toughness. A casual search turned up this material, which, if I understood the specs correctly, seems a bit stronger and more flexible than PA12? Maybe the nomenclature reflects the fact that it is mechanically the same as (or similar to) Nylon-66, only adapted for 3D printing?
serveandvolE
Rookie
Sanglier, it's definitely stronger than PA12. I talked to some pros in the field and they said 3d material can't be compared with injection moulding material of the same type i.e.- nylon.
brownbearfalling
Hall of Fame
Almost one year later. Anyone have updates on attempting this? With the prices of grommets for certain Wilson racquet models I would imagine it is worthwhile to print and sell grommets. If it is possible
serveandvolE
Rookie
brownbearfalling, I'm hoping that it gets there but I'm not exactly holding my breath. Perhaps there could be an advance in injection molding where we find lower costs using that method.
serveandvolE
Rookie
I don't think that making it into 2 pieces would make a difference. The issue I ran into was with the strength of the finished grommet. Materials (filament) need to advance. I had it done on an expensive multijet fusion printer and it wasn't strong enough to survive the tension of string the job. Printing a grommet with a good home printer that layers would be even more fragile.
Grafil Injection
Hall of Fame
Do 3-D printers run at a high temperature so that the different layers of plastic become one continuous piece? If not, then the essential strength of a plastic (long chain polymers that are entangled throughout one continuous body) seems to be missing.
serveandvolE
Rookie
Kind of. This article goes over the two main different types of printing and how the layering approach (fdm) is weaker. Most people have fdm printers which are cheaper.
Different methods 3d printing
Different methods 3d printing
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Casey 1988
Rookie
I wonder if heating the part will help or possibly using shrink tubing for electrical work over the tubes that are cracking in layers of tubing could help? Another thing is cutting up a cheap racquets grommets like a kids/jr model if a smaller 95 or whatever is a match to use in the grommet system with the old racquet but again only if the parts match. if no matched can be found then use the grommets from the old model in good shape or a cheap garbage Chinese model in the new independently glued in place with a flexible rubber glue to work if the model is not too odd.
I believe it's possible to 3d print grommets now, but I think the material and printer you would need to do it are cost prohibitive. It might be possible to get something workable using heat annealing after the fact on a consumer printer, but again the time and energy spent to do it are most likely not worth it. I think for now it's still probably better to just use fittex replacements and head protection tape if needed.
It does seem like it might not be too much longer before better materials might make it possible to print something successfully on a consumer printer, but material costs for those more robust filaments will probably be quite expensive for some time.
It does seem like it might not be too much longer before better materials might make it possible to print something successfully on a consumer printer, but material costs for those more robust filaments will probably be quite expensive for some time.
fritzhimself
Professional
I have been working with 3D printing for a good 10 years.
In my opinion, this will not be feasible in the near future - these materials are simply not suitable for this type of printing.
In my opinion, this will not be feasible in the near future - these materials are simply not suitable for this type of printing.
Bisquick
Rookie
Been eyeballing some cheap Costco Wilson’s as a grommet option. Will look into the kid racket option as well.
Found some maybe replacements listed at a shop in Australia. Sent them an email to confirm they will work and if still available before I order a couple of sets.
Casey 1988
Rookie
What you have is a 95 square inch racquet in the old Wilson 6.1 so I would be looking at some older used cheap Jr/kids possibly even adult cheap 95 square inch racquets on e-Bay that look to match the grommets spacing and are in good condition, the grommets that is.
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PistolPete23
Hall of Fame
Carbon Digital Light Synthesis tech. There are flexible polymers available in their portfolio.
I suspect if someone were inclined something like Line-X bedliner could be used successfully. I am pretty happy with the fittex replacements though and I think they add the least amount of weight as well. As long as someone keeps offering something like that it should be possible to use whatever frame you have as long as you like. Just add head protection tape if you need it and you're good to go.
Casey 1988
Rookie
The site to buy the model you need is easy hacked according to Avast the free part I am using so if I am buying grommets I am using the link below my entire comment for the selection.
However needing grommets is a thing I should not be needing to do not need to do becuse of the multiples of model I have of early 2000's Cheap aluminum ProKennex, the grommets are probably going to last a lifetime given the fact I use nylon gut/synthetic gut in them mainly because the model works best with nylon gut/clear synthetic gut that is probably older style nylon gut.
My aluminum racquet was made for nylon gut and from what I have read about similar style aluminum racquets do not really work with much more then some older style nylon outer multifilament's that do not use a true modern polyester string inside them but instead use multi nylon, braded Dacron/Dynaflight inside the nylon, thin twisted polyester strands that are not as durable as regular, or Kevlar nylon gut type multifilament but the type Kevilar is only for durability and is mostly acting like a nylon gut. If did look at anything else, I would be using possibly fly fishing line that most are a type of material used in bowstrings.
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Roads_to_tennis
Rookie
I would suggest you to try printing them out of TPU for once on FFF or FDM printer (both terms mean same thing).
Or there are a lot of new type of filaments like carbon fiber reinforced filaments coming in market. Give such filament a try but I personally feel that it won't work in long run as 3d printer parts on FDM are always anisotropic (Different strength in different direction).
But still the question remains that have you found a big enough FDM printer to print them in one go? Or are you printing them in parts. I mean the hoop is too big to fit on a printer plate.
You can try printing them with SLA printer as the parts have good directional properties. There are very strong resins available these days.
PS: I once tried printing a single grommet out of TPU (Alternate for teflon tube when a single grommet on last main strings tears) and it worked mediocre, I had printers laying in my college so I just give it a try but as I said, I wasn't satisfied.
If you have 3d scanner laying around you or you use an app then it's ok as other wise first scanning and then printing the grommets would cost you a lot and new grommets will be just little bit more expensive but far more reliable and better with no fitment issues ( I haven't seen any app doing good 3d scanning till date. You also have to tweak the CAD model afterwards for fitment)
Or there are a lot of new type of filaments like carbon fiber reinforced filaments coming in market. Give such filament a try but I personally feel that it won't work in long run as 3d printer parts on FDM are always anisotropic (Different strength in different direction).
But still the question remains that have you found a big enough FDM printer to print them in one go? Or are you printing them in parts. I mean the hoop is too big to fit on a printer plate.
You can try printing them with SLA printer as the parts have good directional properties. There are very strong resins available these days.
PS: I once tried printing a single grommet out of TPU (Alternate for teflon tube when a single grommet on last main strings tears) and it worked mediocre, I had printers laying in my college so I just give it a try but as I said, I wasn't satisfied.
If you have 3d scanner laying around you or you use an app then it's ok as other wise first scanning and then printing the grommets would cost you a lot and new grommets will be just little bit more expensive but far more reliable and better with no fitment issues ( I haven't seen any app doing good 3d scanning till date. You also have to tweak the CAD model afterwards for fitment)
Roads_to_tennis
Rookie
CF filaments won't bend that much.... A combination of CF with TPU filament might work if any company is manufacturing it.
Also, I can't believe that head and Wilson can print grommets..... It's far from being possible considering all the materials and process available in the industry.
Just to add up.....
There are 7 3DP processes available and almost 4of them can never print grommets as they don't deal with polymers. If you can get a spool of very similar material out of which grommets are being made, then it might be little bit possible but it can't work on retail racquets..... Maybe head or Wilson are doing the same thing but they are just experimenting with it or making grommets for testing or something
