new way to make fins????

Just print them!

www.newscientist.com/article/dn20737-3d-printing-the-worlds-first-printed-plane/?ignored=irrelevant

At the moment probably a lot, but in a few years time who knows?

Had a great time Dave, Ceduna tonight WA somewhere tomorrow.
Catch you next week some time.

Choco, they are already...

The most promising is where they make a scaffold of the required part (with 3D printer) in a biodegradable material then infuse it with the recipients own stem cells. The stem cells convert to the appropriate cells to become the require part.

'Bumped into a guy earlier this year who's been working on this kind of stuff - think they were using aluminium.

Am guessing it's not so much the cost that would be the issue in getting something made; I'm thinking it'd be getting access to a machine in the first place. Everybody under the sun would be wanting to get something made!

You never know though; from the article it sounds like this is something people have been playing with for quite some time now; Boogie - any idea how many 3D printing machine's are out there?

What I'd like to know though is just how accurate they can make it using fusion of adjacent particles; you'd have to get the intensity/generation of heat and movement/time over one spot of the laser/electron beam absolutely spot-on otherwise the melted molecules could leak elsewhere before recrystallising?

'Still, even if the surface is a bit rough, there's always the good 'ol wet-n-dry!

Just watched some of those Makerbot videos, pretty cool stuff

Yes great idea Waterboy - Someone can buy a printer and just print a copy of the printer which could then print another printer.