I saw a 3D printer for metal parts about 15 years ago in a university setting. I don’t remember the cost or limitations of the equipment, but they exist.
If I remember correctly it was printing a batch of bottle openers.
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:476016
Been downloading cars since 2014!
And cars suck anyway. Download good public transport and bikes!
https://www.3dtide.com/blog/best-3d-printed-cars/
The funny thing about this is that the entire hobbyist 3D printer market we have now grew out of rapid prototyping machines developed by the auto industry in the 80s:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3D_printing
People were building their own printers in 2005, with development led by the RepRap project:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RepRap
In 2009 the patent for FDM technology expired, which allowed MakerBot to begin selling consumer machines:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MakerBot
…which is really when the whole consumer market took off.
IP holds us back from having so much cool shit.
Also they 3D print metal eg for rockets.
Those machines are crazy expensive though.
My ABS engine is good! Warranty is one stroke of the piston.
Most good cars have ABS.
But I do NEED 1000kg of epstein files… would even get few printers to reduce printing time.
Fun fact is that arc welding is sort of a deposition process too. So you definitely can print with metal and not just metal dust, metal “filament” would work. The problem is that you can’t print at a precision level AND speed that would make it remotely worthwhile.
Modern machinery is pretty incredible. I’m not sure how to go back to even steam power days to DIY. Hell, even some of that made back then was pretty precise. Those who do such craftsmanship are amazing.
