maker bot

[Brue]

so i was watching Colbert and this guy comes on and shows this machine that can make 3D copies.

you could scan any object and it will cast it in the material that Legos are made out of.

you can also use images scanned by other people anywhere around the world.

you can edit them too.

this is a customizers dream. or is it?

here is the show the interview is the second half of the show.

i as surprised to hear it is only 1200 bucks.

[pmwasson]

I have an earlier version of the MakerBot and had some examples at my table at Mego Meet. The scanner they used is very expensive and I'm guessing they had someone clean up the resulting model. The $1200 unit is just the printer. I find it doesn't quite have good enough resolution for customizing in general but can be adequate for the right type of things. It could also be used as a starting point for a custom with some sanding and finishing. However, the technology gets better/cheaper every year, so it shouldn't take too long before we can print out mego figures and share digital designs.

[SeattleEd]

I was waiting for you to chime in, Paul.
I think the stuff you did looks great and you are right, with sanding and finishing it can come out nice. I really like how your Iron Man Mach 1 came out.

There is a place here in Seattle that does this for anyone or you can come in and do it yourself. It's an artist media center so they can answer or help with any questions or concerns you may have with regard to 3d printing.
There are articles on wired.com about the technology and it's become the grand tool for many DIY artists. Looking forward to the next versions when they come out. Pretty soon you'll have a small factory to build kits in your basement or garage.

[MLoudin]

I saw it too.... The end result reminded me of aMold-A-Rama of Colbert pretty cool

[johnmiic]

I have a friend on Facebook who swears by this machine; MDX-15. It is more expensive than the one on Colbert:


http://www.jmrsys.com/pages/roland-mdx15-20.htm


He bought it as a way of making a side income and he said it has more than paid for itself. If only I had not lost my job last year I could have bought this and perhaps would have re-sized other heads for customs.

[ctc]

Hmmmm....

It's a nifty gadget, and I suspect that during our lifetimes these doohickeys will be the standard in different kind of stores that'll build on demand what you want; rather than maintain stock. The resolution of the one on the show seemed kinda low, but I"ve seen some pretty nifty stuff from gadgets like this:

Finally, RPG Dice That Hurt You Physically as Well as Emotionally - Topless Robot

Don C.