I have been wanting to create a carbon bike frame for a while now and have been looking for a way to utilize my reprap to save foam sanding. Trouble is I only want one bike not a production run, so making a mould is not really necessary. I think it could be used for RC planes. Use expanded foam over a carbon fibre centre spar.
I imagine this technique could also be useful for large items built from repeated shapes. Perhaps a large water wheel for the third world or maybe a wind turbine where you have some repeated shapes.
Perhaps there is another mouldless way by making some cross sections with a reprap, longitudinal ribs from 3mm filament. This would make a weak open structure. You could then infill with expanding foam and sand it back to the ribs for the final shape. It would take the guess work out of sanding the shape. Cover with heatshrink film for a fuselage. It might also work for boat frames or car body bucks.
I imagine this technique could also be useful for large items built from repeated shapes. Perhaps a large water wheel for the third world or maybe a wind turbine where you have some repeated shapes.
Perhaps there is another mouldless way by making some cross sections with a reprap, longitudinal ribs from 3mm filament. This would make a weak open structure. You could then infill with expanding foam and sand it back to the ribs for the final shape. It would take the guess work out of sanding the shape. Cover with heatshrink film for a fuselage. It might also work for boat frames or car body bucks.