Yup, Tech Universities are a good resource for stuff like this
Would be a miraculous addition to my parts inventory.
THANK YOU!!!
Iâm personally not really trying to go after this part. What Iâm instead trying to go after is that he made the statement that CNC machining shouldnât be an option because certain teams donât have access to them.
The main reason others are tagging along on the fact that teams can still get access to CNC machine with enough effort. I personally donât see how this could be considered as âbuggingâ.
Even so, there is still a HUGE disparity between those who have to spent weeks emailing back and forth with businesses to get a sponsorship, and those who can walk out into their garage and get a fully custom part in 15 minutes.
I mostly agree with you; we definately should be allowed to use tools that are useful even if not everyone has access to them. Although CNC is a game changer for some applications, I do not feel that it makes that big of a difference in VRC: a team that has CNC cut lexan parts that did not work as hard as a team that does not but works much harder does not have a big advantage.
I believe this is more-or-less getting off-topic. This thread is not as much about CNCâs but the comparison between the access to CNCâs as the access to 3D printers. In my opinion, because of technological advancements, the price of making three dimensional assets has been easier than ever. And although I am not competing, I really want to leave with a change in VEX that I have always wanted to see. 3D printers seem out-of-reach for some, but in reality it is extremely accessible. People just need to understand that this is not 5 years ago where 3D printer costs were above $5000, we have advanced far enough where I am confident to say âHey @ VEX, why are you not allowing something that is going to be essential to future Engineers? Allowing 3D printed items does not make your company suffer, nor it makes your company any less like VEXâ
According to your Mission:
âWe create tools that educators and mentors will use to shape the learners of today into the problem solving leaders of tomorrow.â
According to your Vision:
âWe envision a world where every student has the opportunity to be inspired by the excitement of hands-on STEM learning and knows the feeling of creating something with technology. We want people of all ages and backgrounds to recognize that creative problem solving is fun and see its importance in shaping a better future.â
3D printing is a part of your vision. And if you are largely worried about cost, as ironic as Iâm going to say this nothing is stopping you from making your own VEX 3D printer 
Iâm fine with saying you donât have a cnc but what does your mill actually cut? because lexan is very easy to machine⌠and if the mill turns on it can probably cut lexan
Itâs very small, and doesnât have a way to mount a lexan sheet
I donât think thatâs possible what is the use-case of this mill?
Getting a 3D printer will still be hard for some teams, even if they are more accessable now than ever. For example, our team could only afford one competition last year on top of registration and we only bought about $50 in parts the whole season and definitely could not have bought a team printer. With that being said, I think those teams who do have a 3D printer, have members who have printers, or have access to a 3D printer in some way should have a fair way to use this resource. I think something similar to what is done with the custom lexan parts could be implemented where for example the parts all needed to use less than 500g of PLA.
this discussion while interesting, wonât change anything. Grant made it clear that 3D printing is not a thing that will be happening anytime soon.
and if you really want to have 3D printing in high school, do vex AI.
not to say this topic should be locked, just a reminder to not get too worked up over a discussion that doesnât really matter.
No, donât. Allowing 3D printed parts even further widens the resource gap with VEX teams
I feel like allowing the use of 3d printers could potentially have the opposite effect of widening the recourse gap in some places due to the fact that you could make and print your own parts for much cheaper than if you were to buy it
And in other places, no one can take advantage of that because no one can afford a 3D printer
Even though 3d printing will most likely not be allowed in Vex for years, what would the direct disadvantage be to teams that would not have it? Top teams already use expensive manufacturing methods to create parts out of lexan and machine high strength axles to fit their needs. I just want to raise the question about how this is a direct disadvantage. I dont think that worlds finals have been won by exclusive custom parts often. Vex is an engineering competition and just giving teams access to another resource does not meam that other teams cannot compete as well. Look at how V5 was prohibitive to many teams last year but teams worked with what they had and went to worlds with cortex robots. The options that 3d printing give also require teams to spend time to create parts; it does not provide an immediate advantage. In addition, platforms like 3D Hubs and others that connect people with 3d printers are easily accessible and inexpensive and platforms like Ponoko can laser cut delrin for a low price. i think that in order to prepare students to develop solution for modern problems, they should not be restricted from using modern technologies.
https://www.vexrobotics.com/vexedr/v5
Can you tell me how much you spent to get V5 components? Also can you tell me how much you spent to repair V5 components? (Shipping prices can be expensive). As an addition, can you tell me how many competitions you competed in and their costs?
What I am trying to say is⌠$150 is very affordable and commercially available, and yet there is cheaper alternatives to be able to 3D print!
Thanks this really helped me, this was a really good idea, Thanks again.
I for one would love to see what vrc could become if 3D printing was allowed. The world is changing and I think vex should change with it. 3d printing is more common than ever before and the cost of printing has gone way down. I for one do not have a problem with opening up printing to high school. I think every organization if they tried could gain access to a 3d printer. It may take several bake sales and calls to local companies but 3d printing has become extremely affordable to the point were personal 3d printers are becoming less and less unusual. In addition several teams can use one printer, and even several local organizations can share. Registration for comps can be anywhere from 50 to 75+ dollars. If an org has 3 teams if they do not compete for one weekend that they normally would they can buy a printer. There are ways to amass this relatively small sum of money.
The skill gap is another issue. I agree that 3d printing will benefit the highly experienced teams a lot more than the newer teams but I think that printing will increase the level of play across the board. After a couple years Iâm willing to bet that a lot of middle tier teams will increase significantly in their skill and build quality. I do have to point out that some teams have done an exceptional job of machining or creating their own custom parts out of existing vex parts and lexan. I am in awe at some of the creations that have been implemented over the years and I would love to see middle tier teams gain the ability to create their own parts while also giving another tool to the top tier teams to innovate with.