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Mark One: 3D Carbon Printing comes to life!

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Let us introduce you to the Mark One, the newest 3D printer on the block for all of you Fab-Tech nerds, like us! The Mark One is the worlds 1st printer to hit the market to print Carbon Fiber. When we saw initially we screamed aloud “Take my money now!” This small package packs a punch, and could revolutionize how we think of and use Carbon Fiber, while expanding where the material is used.

 

Carbon fiber is used in almost every field of racing today, along with many applications in both oem and aftermarket platforms. It’s strength can be over 5-10 times the strength of ABS plastics, and have a higher strength-to-weight ratio than machined aluminum. This makes carbon fiber very sought after for a number of reasons- safety, weight, and durability being at the top of the list.

 

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While being sought after, the materials can be hard to produce. The process is not just as easy as throwing materials into a CNC or cutting it out. It has to be weaved and layered, each layer, by hand. The task is tedious and can be both expensive and time consuming. The market currently is using 3D printing for a list of materials, most notability Chocolate and Plastics, cutting the time it takes to produce objects that would normally have a higher cost and longer production time. It is opening doors previously shut due to a lack of technology and tools.

 

A relatively small printer for the procedure, measurements are 22.6-in wide, 14.2-in tall, and 12.7-in deep. Easy to fit on a desktop and can produce items Nylon, Fiberglass, and the normal PLA, which is used by the majority of other 3D printers on the market today. We are antsy to see the 1st wave of components it will be able to produce, and even more excited to see what consumers will do with it. We have seen guns and intake manifolds from other printers so the sky is the limit when it comes to this 3D creator.

 

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The Mark One made its debut at Solidworks World 2014, by creator Gregory Mark. Mark, Co-Owner of Aeromotions; a manufacturer of computer controlled Racing Aero, presented the MarkForged printer in hopes of cutting time and size of projects to a minimum. The printer is price-projected at $5,000.00USD and will be ready for pre-order in February.

 

Check the company website for more information: markforged.com

 

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