http://makerbot-blog.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Rls_MakerBot_HomeDepot_fx.pdf
So I am wondering. Could we maybe have a repository of 3D parts specs in a Cadillac Club database in the future? These things are really starting to come into the main stream
Great Idea Waldo, that technology is growing quite rapidly. They come in all price ranges from $10,000 to $100,000 and probably more. Jay Leno has one for example (I bet it is not the $10,000 model)
Imagine taking your part to a local store with a 3D scanner and a member across the country receiving the data at his local 3D printer store and in a few minutes he has the part in his hand.
As the technology grows the products will get better and cheaper.
You can buy some nice ones for less than $2K these days:
http://store.makerbot.com/replicator-mini (http://store.makerbot.com/replicator-mini)
The problem though, is you still need the rendering software to interface with the printer, and a decent computer to create/edit/process the 3-d printer files.
I'm getting real close to pulling the trigger on one myself.
Another problem is the cost of materials and the stocking if the vast array of materials that can be used. Basic cost of cheapest material is about $16 a cubic inch and it goes up drastically for better materials. As the materials are developed and prices come down on the materials and equipment they will become more viable. In my earlier response I used figures including starting prices of $10,000, and since I looked into this a while ago the equipment prices have been coming down to under $3,000 for entry level equipment now I see.