Taking a design from a concept to a physical artifact that exists in the real world is exhilarating. With the design help from SOLIDWORKS in part 1, the analysis help from Simulation in part 2 and help from solidThinking Inspire in part 3, the kayak frames are now optimized for 3D printing. In video four we walk through choosing the proper 3D printing technology and options to build our parts.

There are several factors that go into producing a physical object from your 3D digital file including materials and support, print resolution, print density, print orientation, scale and speed. A great proof of concept for large projects, like the kayak, is to scale down the part sizes and print a smaller prototype to attempt assembly on. That way any unforeseen issues that may arise are still minor because they are on the small scale model, and they can be updated without any problem.

After our smaller-scaled, proof of concept kayak was printed and assembled with ease, it was time to start producing the real parts. In this video of the five-part series, we show you the nitty-gritty details of 3D printing our kayak design on Stratasys Fortus machines. Watch the video to learn everything from the building and support materials chosen, to the entire kayak assembly process, and see how the kayak fares on its maiden voyage in the Atlantic Ocean.

To learn more about the capabilities of the Fortus machine, register for one of our 3D printing training classes.