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Comment by GeorgeTirebiter | Hacker News Reader

Although this seems to me like saying "learning BASIC has taught me Computer Science" -- yes, the principles of MechE can be learned by study + some actual 3D printed models. But to truly grok MechE, you need mastery of some CAD program (OpenSCAD is my choice, but I also use FreeCAD), and the ability to fabricate in some other materials (metals) using subtractive methods. Plus, you know, a little math here and there...

I like your reasoning tho; I got mine when it was on sale, and just before the pandemic - so I have plenty of learnings about PLA, ABS, PETG, temperatures, glue or not, surface, and most of all -- plenty of piles of material creating 'modern art' rather than my planned masterpieces. '-)

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It's not mastering mechanical engineering that it teaches you. But just a basic hands -on understanding that is very useful in the life of a maker with a broad range of interests.

Becoming a wizz at industrial design was never my goal. There's universities for that. But it's wonderful to see how everything comes together.

Also, imagining something only in your head and then seeing it come to life on the screen and then in the real world is a magical thing.

I guess carpenters and sculpters etc get this all the time but I totally lack the manual skills needed for that. The 3D printer solves my handicap of having two left hands.

Most people that buy a 3d printer download some models from thingiverse and then get bored with it. It's when you learn design that it really becomes amazing. And it's not all that difficult at all.

Out of 120 credits for my ME degree, only 2 were CAD (directly).

Mechanical engineering consists of learning tools for analyzing designs, such as fluid mechanics, materials, solid mechanics, thermodynamics, statics and dynamics, control system theory, etc.

Thanks. When you say "learning tools for analyzing designs" -- do you mean calculus, differential equations, other math and such? Or do you mean "XYZ Software Tool for Fluid Mechanics" etc?

They mean fluid mechanics, materials, solid mechanics, thermodynamics, statics and dynamics, control system theory, etc.

You need all of that math to understand the topics, then you can apply them to real life. FWIW you can probably be a decent design engineer with an industrial engineering degree plus some thermo, circuits, dynamics and a lil CS... I see more than a few jobs open up that accept both degrees.

I think you can really pick up Fluids, vibrations, and advanced mechanics on your own with that background, if you end up needing it. But to the larger question, yeah you need calc 1-3, ODEs, and actually a good bit linear algebra to be able to understand and apply 300-level engineering and beyond.

I think you took this the opposite way. My interpretation was that using a computer (web browsing, editing word documents, whatever) doesn't teach you CS. In the same way, using a 3D printer doesn't (by itself) teach ME.

Well-put.

Perhaps, distilled, it's this: having a 3D printer, by itself, won't turn you into a MechE. But, if you do have a 3D printer, you can learn the basics of ME and try out some practical ideas with real parts.

I specifically got my 3D printer to make gears. I do have a Sherline mill, as well as a 12" (Chinese) lathe; so I do have the specific tools to create involute gears out of metals. However, since I planned on doing so many different gears, as I wasn't really sure what I needed, AND the fact that with subtractive manufacturing, if you make certain mistakes, you throw the whole piece away and start over -- 3D printing makes creating new parts as trivial as starting it up again. The other total win of 3D is e.g. Thingverse where you can d/l a design -- it's the closest thing we have to Star Trek's replicator.

Lastly, Michael Faraday wrote an entire book on candles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Chemical_History_of_a_Cand... So much can be learned from little!

Nowadays you don't even need 3D printer, but waiting a week or three for cheap 3D printing services kinda kills the momentum for learning...

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