Sep 2, 2015 | By Tess

An impressive feat for household makers everywhere, a member of the RC Groups forum (a Radio Control model community) that goes by the name of Harcoreta, managed to successfully design and additively manufacture a fully functional scale model of a Boeing 787's GE manufactured turbofan jet engine.

The model is made up of over 60 3D printed fan blades and vanes in its interior, and when turned on generates an impressive amount of thrust. As seen in Harcoreta's youtube video of the scale model, the 3D printed jet engine produces enough wind to blow several items off the table behind it and strongly blow the curtains in the background. Harcoreta, who intends to use the engine to propel a remote controlled airplane eventually, should be able to do so successfully with the powerful thrust it produces.

Not only that, however, Harcoreta has included a working thrust reverser in his model engine, which like in the actual Boeing 787 and most other jets, helps to decelerate the plane once it has landed on the runway by effectively reversing the direction of the thrust forwards. Needless to say, when the 3D printed model is incorporated into a remote controlled airplane, the landings should be smooth!





The mini jet engine was printed in a Prusa i3 3D printer, a household model, which makes Harcoreta's achievement even more impressive, as the precision required for the turbofan would typically require an industrial grade 3D printer. The engine is made from ABS plastic, and was printed with a 0.3mm nozzle at 0.1mm layer height.

Specs for the 3D printed jet engine model are:

18 blade main fan at 100mm diameter

24 outlet guide vanes

18 blade internal turbine at 34mm diameter

Thrust Reverser

Simplified engine pylon

Harcoreta had built a prototype of the miniature jet engine a year ago and received productive feedback on how to improve it from other RC Groups forum members. The current model of the engine is a perfect example of the expanding potential of additive manufacturing, especially for DIY-ers. Not only is it an incredibly impressive feat on a design and printing level, but it also exemplifies the tight knit community of makers and the ability to productively work together and share feedback to achieve something exciting. Here at 3Ders, we are anticipating and excited to see Harcoreta's 3D printed jet engine model in action!





Posted in 3D Printing Applications

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Foo chuan tiew wrote at 10/27/2016 2:48:30 PM:Where to buy this 3D jet engine and how much does it cost together with shippingBruce Prescott wrote at 7/6/2016 11:13:21 AM:Are these engines for sale and if so at what price? Can they be run on paraffin?georges.vandendriessche@orange.fr wrote at 2/27/2016 8:08:14 AM:Dear very nice if it's possible to obtain stl file i can print bigger scale same engine i am retired and was head of laboratories research center for material and process for aeronautic and space engine Safran group regards georgesThatGuy wrote at 9/2/2015 3:04:22 PM:Here's a whole thread on the engine and its build. http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2390401&highlight=harcoreta



