Message from @Ace
Discord ID: 328656334557937664
the effector's the bit with the working part mount on it
the part that moves
Oh
a clay extruder would look something like a filament extruder, but you'd need a much stronger motor driving the augur and a hopper that can support the weight
since yknow clay is pretty heavy
ohhh
it's just really not practical to print clay
the point being that you need a clay delivery system
to the effector
yeah
i guess you could run the clay through a tube but that'd be unreliable
you really want the augur right up nearly against the nozzle
I mean... couldnt you get thinner clay
more diluted
i guess not
then you'd have to wait for each layer to try before laying another one down
you'd be looking at several weeks not several hours to finish a print
dry*
maybe if you heat the nozzle to dry it as it comes out, but again i'd be concerned about it clogging if there's any inconsistency to the clay
you could maybe use a static mixer but those are Expensive
and would wear out pretty quickly with clay
the first couple layers, sure
layers above that not so much
also: clay is abrasive as fuck, you would be replacing the nozzle very often no matter how you designed the thing
To be honest clay sounds like a bad material
for printng
what about glass
unless you got a solid corundum nozzle or s/t i guess but $$$$$
glass would be easier, but it'd take hella power
It would just need a standard crucible, feeding glass to an extruder
i'd be worried about it cooling too quickly and making a horrible clog
no, heat it right there before the nozzle just like thermoplastics
still not the best idea, but i'd have an easier time accounting for the issues glass brings to the table than clay
you can basically treat it like a thermoplastic with a really high melting point
problem is that
glass doesnt behave
a really heavy thermoplastic
like plastic
It's still semi-solid even in molten form
this is also true of thermoplastics