First part of the new design (DIY SLM)

[@brezovprut4431]

I really appreciate your enthusiasm ! Don't give up Btw, I have few questions: 1. Your concept doesn't involve debinding and sintering postprocess? (so meaning that after depowdering and cutting from base you get "final" near net-shape product) 2. Do you think that low purity N2 (supplied by your inert gas generator concept) can have side effects (considering that most metal sintering furnaces require highest purity inert gas)?

[@Metal-Base-sp4hb]

1. no the process actaully completely melts the metal powder where the laser hits it and there is nothing other than the metal inside the powder. There are heat treatments to make the metal even stronger but this is not required and it also depends on the metal type wether it helps a lot. This is just like quenching a metal blade for example. 2. There is a big difference between this process and a sintering oven. During the printing process the material becomes reactive for only milliseconds. In a sintering furnace the material will become reactive for hours at a time so the intert gas requirement is much more critical. It is also possible to supply the system with an argon bottle but with a flow of 5 liter/minute this is probably very expensive compared to the generated nitrogen. Therefore the N2 generator will be an optional extra and not always included.

[@brezovprut4431]

@@Metal-Base-sp4hb Thanks for detailed explanation !

[@SpaceGringos3D]

It uses supports?

[@Metal-Base-sp4hb]

@@SpaceGringos3Dyes, only at the bottom so it is easier to remove from the build plate. It needs support with larger overhangs at about 45 degrees, small overhangs can go to 60 degrees without support. Small horizontal overhangs are also possible but the quality of the overgang will be lower