I'm building a Prusa I3 as part of a 'camp' this week, and a couple of other robotics teams in the area are here as well. It has a heated bed (long copper PCB print) and is fairly straightforward to put together (so far...).
My first big project this year is to create an inexpensive
prosthetic hand fit for someone specific. Once I feel confident I can make one at a decent quality, I'll seek someone out.
After that, it'll be on to Tri-/Quad-/Hex- & "other" -rotor parts.
For FRC
- The plan is to print near-solid low-loaded gears out of ABS, similar to how the FP gearboxes have them
- It may be possible to also do shaft adapters (light loading, of course) out of ABS -- similar to how the Simbots have done them in the past (1 solid part for multiple attachments)
- Another use could be precision sliders for a belt or chain tension system (3 or 4 slots that keep the entire slide aligned properly)
- For Nylon applications, depending on the specific material, you may be able to make custom-formed linear slides
- And of course, the all-important (and often underrated) custom circuit or sensor mount
- If there's ever a use for a RS-395 motor, ABS should be plenty strong enough to reliably hold the motor up without sagging over time (i.e. it will still work at your demos 8 months after build) -- so a custom gearbox where the output shaft isn't cantilevered (again, depends on loading) is more feasible here than with a heavier motor
- Same with the VEX motors -- it's a lightweight motor, so the cantilevered mounting of it shouldn't be an issue over time
- The ultimate 3D printed item for me, used in FRC, would be the light-load linear actuator that's driven by a legal motor and provides mounts for 2 limit switches that are in precise positions. Given that I have other plans, perhaps someone else at the 'camp' will design one.