Cocobolo ban?

Re: Cocobolo ban *LINK*

William Duffield

All rosewood (Dalbergia) species, including cocobolo, are now on the CITES Appendix II list. For more information, start here:

https://www.fws.gov/international/pdf/questions-and-answers-appendix-II-timber-listings-December-2016.pdf

Re: Cocobolo ban?

John K Jordan

It's probably just a matter of time. Someday we'll all be turning plastic and recycled cardboard. I think I'll hold on to what Cocobolo I have, still more than I can lift (man is that stuff heavy).

JKJ

Maybe since the species death rate is climbing

Dick Coers

Just pest infestation and drought is taking a horrible toll on trees around here. Just on my city lot I had one soft maple die, 1 soft maple in trouble, and a red oak that keeps fighting a possible fungus deal. The leaves on it are brittle and curled. I had an arborist come out to make sure it's not leaf wilt, and he said it wasn't. A big relief since we planted that tree when our son was born. The only trees doing well are honey locust. I heavily fertilized them based on the arborists recommendation, hope they look better this spring! So we might have to turn some kind of alternative.

Re: Maybe since the species death rate is climbing

darrin hill

thats ok.. 5 years from now we'll all stop turning anyway and just 3-d print...

Never!

Dick Coers

I hate 3d printing. It's never smooth, it's miserable to sand, and never meets my requirement for strength. It's okay for crude desk toys, and some design mockups like we used in the model shop, but that's about it in my book.

Re: Never!

John K Jordan

Hi Dick! I've watched the evolution of 3D printing from sometime in the early 90s when I started going to the big SIGGRAPH computer graphics conventions. Today it is SO much better and more useful! Given that, I expect that it will continue to improve to levels we would today have trouble imagining.

JKJ

Re: Never!

Barry Irby

There's a company several doors down from my office that uses 3D printers in the process of making dental prosthetics. I have no idea what they are actually printing, false teeth?, molds?? I know they set up the machines and let them run over night and live in fear of a power failure. Now that I think about it, I will have to investigate. Sounds like some sort of covert CIA activity to me.

Re: Never!

Dick Coers

I started working as a modelmaker in the Industrial Design Dept. for Caterpillar in 1999. In those days we could get stereo lithography (SLA), or LOM. Laminated Object Manufacturing. The LOM would laser cut sheets of paper and fuse them together. That stuff weighed a ton! The SLA printed parts were as brittle as glass. Just the slightest bend and it cracked and yellowed horribly with age. By the time I retired in 2014 the printed parts were far superior. BUT, we were trying to mimic steel parts, injection molded, or rotomolded plastic. No matter what resolution we requested, the parts always had a grain or texture. Put on a coat of primer and it looked like hell. Small sanding sticks and files were used to smooth them. I don't know how many times I removed my finger prints over the years, but always joked about going into safe cracking. Not uncommon to be bleeding at the end of some days.

Re: Never!

Reed Gray

According to my dad, an engineer for almost 70 years, they can now 3D print hydraulic junction boxes, in metal, to within .0001 inch, and make curved angles rather than having to drill them out and end up with square angles for the fluids. They are also doing some laminating of different metals on turbine fan blades. Can't wait to see what else they will be able to do. It ain't all in plastic any more...

robo hippy

Re: Never!

John C Lucas

I never say never. Yes today for me i only see downsides. Price and computer skills and the quality of the product are.the big drawbacks for me. However it is changing rapidly and so is my art. So i just keep watching. Now when that thing will print me a good hamburger im all in.

Re: Never!

Dick Coers

I'd say it's a stretch to call the turbine blade manufacturing process 3D printing. Siemens is very quick to use the term "Additive Manufacturing". Calling a computer guided laser beam, sintering polycrystalline nickel based superalloy, a 3D printer, is right up there with Glowforge saying their low end laser cutter/engraver is a 3D printer in my mind. Blurring terms to tell a story to lay people so they will understand!

It reads like Siemens had just strength tested the blades this spring after putting 18 months into the process building. Not sure they are selling parts yet.

At our age, never really isn't that long!

Re: At our age, never really isn't that long!

darrin hill

you guys say never.... but i was told it would take 10-15 years for digital to dominate the photography industry....

it took 3...

d