3D PRINTED METAL RACING PARTS MAKING A DIFFERENCE

Racing Team Partner Turns to 3D Printing to Improve Their Engines

As 3D printing moves from the realm of prototype development to product manufacture, new stories emerge as testament to its real-world application. Take for example English Racing, a Washington state (US) based high-performance autobody shop that used 3D printed parts to solve a problem with some of its racing engines. The company’s half-mile racing engines were routinely suffering from high oil pressure at high RPM’s. To this end the shop contacted Metal Technology, Inc. (MTI) a manufacturer of custom metal parts.

In order to reduce pressure to the oil pump the MTI team decided they would need to construct a new oil pump gear. After assessing the options, the team believed that the best method of producing this part would be to use 3D metal printing, due to the complexity of the part and the rigid tolerances required. A ProX 300 metal 3D printing machine was used to print the oil pump gear. Using the 3D printing method, MTI were able to drastically cut down on development time while making significant costs savings in the process. This is just another example where 3D printing is beginning to supersede traditional manufacturing methods.