![]() ![]() Evidently, we won’t soon start seeing 3D printed trombones on stage, but it could be an interesting option for beginners, open-air concerts and practice instruments. ![]() The 3D printed part, while perhaps not as durable as the original brass bell, was significantly cheaper to produce and has the benefit of being more lightweight.Īll in all, the 3D printing experiment conducted by LOOP 3D and Körner demonstrated that the technology has the potential to be used for brass instruments, especially in cases where time and cost are the critical factors. Evidently, there were some differences: for instance, the overtones and projection were minimally lower than the original hand-hammered 0.4 mm thick screw bell, but the response and quality of the sound were even more convincing than the original. ![]() Notably, the bell section was printed as a single component and without the need for any supports, which facilitated the post-production process.Īccording to LOOP 3D and Körner, when installed on the trombone, the 3D printed bell had a good sound compared to the traditional all-brass instrument. The trombone component was ultimately 3D printed using the LOOP PRO 3D printer and the company’s Dynamide-GF material, an industrial composite filament with glass fiber reinforcement. The company says that “this made the 3D printed bell sound even better, so we kept the thicker design.” LOOP 3D printed and tested a number of designs to find the optimal thickness for both durability and sound, and eventually, the best bell structure was achieved. As LOOP 3D explains, the instrument’s original wall thickness was too thin to 3D print, so it had to be increased. In the remodeling process, the bell’s structure was optimized for 3D printing. The 3D scan, captured using the Artec Space Spider, was then converted into a 3D model using reverse engineering software Geomagic Design. The collaboration consisted of first 3D scanning the trombone, and specifically the screw bell section, the flared end of the instrument where the sound finally emerges. The 3D printed trombone screw bell on the left and the original brass one, on the right. “When we learned that the 3D printing process is a lot cheaper and more flexible for design and production, we wanted to give it a try.” at the State Conservatory of the Uludag University in Bursa, Turkey. “We wanted to reduce lead times and costs to be able to reach more musicians worldwide,” said Körner, Assoc. The joint project between LOOP 3D and Körner, therefore, sought to reduce the cost of producing the instrument as well as the lead times by using additive manufacturing. Traditionally, brass instruments such as the trombone are crafted by hand and made from brass, two factors that lead to the instrument’s relatively high cost. As part of a continued effort to differentiate the range of applications it can offer, the company worked closely with Körner, a German-born musician with an impressive biography, to explore the potential of using 3D printing to produce a critical trombone part, the bell. And this is the real story of the first 3D printed trombone.įounded by Mehmet Erkan Ustaoğlu (also the founder of leading AM distribution firm Teknodizayn), LOOP 3D is one of the most interesting 3D printer manufacturers rising from the vibrant Turkish 3D printing market. The production method I’m referring to is, of course, 3D printing. However, a recent, and rather melodious, project led by LOOP 3D and trombone musician Peter Körner has demonstrated that other materials and production methods could be viable for instrument repair. It is hard to imagine that brass instruments-so named because of the metal they are made from-could be produced using any other material. ![]()
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