Not for the purists......

[mjh1]

With the availability of the woodwork on the Traveller seeming to be in short supply at the moment, I have a company that have shown an interest in 3D printing it (I told you it wasn't for the purists!)
Regardless, this seems to be to solve 2 issues,
1. Availability,
2. Future rot.

The 1st batch would be quite expensive due to the modelling/design work/scanning involved, more than the actual woodwork itself but subsequent prints would be considerably cheaper.
If I can get enough interest in this I'll take the plunge and do it myself. Obviously it would be ideal if I could get hold of a brand new kit to provide the basis for the 3D scan but if not the printers reckon that they could scan mine and fill in the rotten bits via CAD.
Please DM me if this is of interest to anyone and we can try and work something out.

[simmitc]

It sounds like an interesting idea. A few questions come to mind:
What material would they be using?
Would it be a solid colour or include grain effect?
Will the material have the structural strength/integrity required - is it safe for the intended purpose?

[mjh1]

In answer to your questions, 3D printer has come back with this....

There are 140 different types of materials from nylon 12 though to basic material.
Would be a solid colour, no grain effect but this could be vinyl wrapped in an ash colour

Here are some of the 3d printing media I've just googled...

[svenedin]

Interesting. From the list it does look like some of the materials would match, or exceed the strength of ash timber but there are other considerations as well. How do these materials compare in terms of weight? How do the materials respond in the event of an accident? Do they bend, snap, shatter etc? I have an interest in ash timber but not from anything to do with motor cars. Ash is always used for bell stays. It is used for this purpose due to the fact that it is good at withstanding shocks without breaking. If these materials were significantly lighter or heavier than ash it would be a problem as it would upset the rear suspension.

Would replacing the ash frame with a modern material be such a substantial modification that the car would lose its MoT test exemption status?

Stephen

[mjh1]

I shall google those questions later as I'm just off out although a quick search reveals that the MOT exemption could well be an issue I had not considered....

[MinorOCD]

It’s a very interesting idea. If the material was too dense, and therefore heavy, the sections could be made hollow, with a decent wall thickness, maybe 4mm. Some high end road cars (like Maclaren) are purely carbon fibre structures of 4mm thickness.
In addition, some sections, like the rear wheel arch could be made with less joints. The joints in the ash frame would be the weak points, so these could be eliminated. The ash frame gets weaker as time passes, especially as rot sets in.
I read somewhere (I’m sure others on the forum will know more) that the factory made some Travellers with a glass fibre frames, but it was too close to production end to make it into series production.
I would be interested. I like the idea.
All the best,
Paul

[stuffedpike20]

I read somewhere many years ago that a company had tried making traveller 'wood' out of recycled plastic, a bit like the material some park benches are made of. It would have lasted for many years.
From what I can remember, there was no demand. Owners wanted wood.
Sorry to be vague.
There is a photo of one in one of the restoration books. If only I could remember which one.

[taupe]

The Traveller timber and indeed the ash chassis on some cars is not subject to MOT testing - only the metal parts! At least thats what Ive seen from MOT testing engineers discussing this issue and their reference to the testing regulations book.

There is a pic of a plastic one here...... you can see the radiuses in the corners of the fibreglass one.

https://board.mmoc.org.uk/viewtopic.php?t=18256

There is a set of drawings available in metric dimensions of the timbers (done by Alexander Posch) if you need them for printing.


Taupe