euge

So i took the railing trim off my Targa only to find out that someone already tried it before and lost all but one plastic tabs that support it in the railing groves.

Even though it is a separate piece of plastic riveted to the main big thing Porsche doesn't sell them separately.

Since i have one, i was wondering if someone can 3D print me more of those. I think, at some point i saw a post here that someone already had done it and might have spares, but i can't find that thread anymore...

As usual, your help is much appreciated!

mgianzero

Not quite sure which plastic pieces you are talking about. There are several different plastic shoes that are wear points for the targa top. None of which, I imagine, would be good candidates to 3D print. Show us some pics of what you're talking about and maybe I can help.

Also, if you find the someone has been successful in 3D printing these parts, I'd love to know who is doing them.

Marc G.

euge

I'm talking about plastic squares riveted inside the left and right leatherette covered liners that run along the roof.

Those are the piece that most of us having trouble inserting into the metal guides groves when we try to re-install those things back in place.

The part number for for those trim pieces are 993.562.311.00 and 993.562.312.00 and the plastic squares are attached on the internal to the railing side of them.

Don't have an image yet.

mpruden

You mean this square thing in the middle of the trim piece?

gmorat

The biggest pain with 3D printing is getting the 3D model of the part to print in the first place.

3D Scanning is inaccurate at consumer levels and modeling from scratch is a skillset that's not easy to pick up.

G

euge

Exactly, that's the one!

phoneyman

3D printing at a home-level will provide a piece that is worse quality and durability than a standard plastic piece. If a model could be built, a much more substantial piece could be made from a 3rd party either in a poly piece or even a metal 3D printed piece. I dont have a targa so I havent see the part first hand, but a model will be the first step for a community sourced replacement.

gmorat

I'm currently working on a piece to fill the holes in the bumpercover exposed when the two front bumperettes are removed.

Structural integrity won't be a problem as they are merely trim pieces. They will need to be primed and painted to match of course.

The easiest part of this whole endeavour has been the printing part and the longest most drawn out part has been trying to get the 3D model created in the first place.

One of the 3D creation programs recommended is SketchUp which has a free component with a reduced toolset.

Here's an article that lists various free software though I had so success with the first piece they recommend (123D Catch) as the detail needed for a small piece just wasn't there.

phoneyman

^Gmorat: those look great. really cool project.

As for very thin prints, like the tabs above, I do not see them lasting if printed in ABS or PLA. Possibly if they were printed in nylon, its hard to say without seeing the tab thickness first hand. In my experience, strength goes down exponentially as thickness is decreased after about 5mm thickness.

KVDR

I recently completed a batch of 3D printed climate control frames for Bergvillfx.



I took the opportunity to add in reinforcement and fillets. It's significantly more durable than the original acrylic piece.



Although not transparent, they do transmit light sufficient light. The 0, 1, and 30 digits suffer as they are furthest from the bulbs.



I've made similar ones for the 944. Just need to use a sharp knife to transfer over the decals.

gmorat

Thats awesome!