In May 2016, Olaf Diegel, a Swedish professor from the University of Lund showed a unique 3D printed aluminium guitar to the world. The gorgeous instrument called ‘Heavy Metal” was packed with barbed wire and decorative roses. Recently, Dutch medical 3D printing specialists Xilloc revealed that it was also the world’s first 3D printed aluminium guitar ever made. That company has also released a video clip of how this metal guitar sounds.
“The guitar was originally nick-named War and Peace, but Heavy Metal seemed a more appropriately literal name,” Diegel said commenting on his creation.
This exclusive piece of creative and mechanical work was built on the extensive experience and experiments of Diegel. He designed a number of 3D printed instruments that created ripples in the 3D printing world. This 3D printed steampunk guitar was one of those highly famous 3D instruments. He even formed a band that was based solely on 3D printed musical instruments. He has been working on a number of 3D printing techniques by now, but, the Heavy Metal was a result of his growing desire to test 3D printing techniques on metal.
“I also wanted to better understand the intricacies of the whole process, from ‘design for additive manufacturing’, to the actual 3D printing of the guitar, to the post-processing that is required to go from a 3D printed metal part straight of the machine to a usable masterpiece,” he said.
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The challenge to use 3 D printing technique on metal can also be seen in its decorative design, which was finished in SolidWorks. The basic body shape is that of a Telecaster, but with an open case packed with a gorgeous barbed wire motif and 3D printed roses. Pointed ends are cleverly aimed away from the player of the guitar. Xilloc, a firm known for their medical 3D printing breakthroughs with metal, ceramics and carbon fiber did the 3D printing of the guitar, for Diegel.
Xilloc commercialized artificial 3D printed CT bones in 2015 and adopted 4 EOS M400 3D printers to cater to heavy production demands. The firm used one of those systems for the Heavy Metal. The guitar was 3D printed in a single piece using aluminium powder at 0.1 mm thick layers. After the main chassis was made, it went through a four-day post-processing phase that involved the filing work.
The result was spectacular and it gave us one of the most beautiful 3D printed instruments in the world. Interested people now can actually test everything about the guitar including its look and feel and sound.
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