sifuyee t1_jdlfkeh wrote
Reply to comment by reddit455 in 3D-printed rocket fails just after launch by APnews
I helped do some testing for a company using DMLS printing of advanced materials for small rocket engines a few years back. About 1/3 of the prints would be so flawed they wouldn't even bother testing, about 1/3 of the remainder would fail to hold pressure when capped, about 10% of those that passed would fail flow test (have some obstruction) and about 8% would fail under hot fire test once they got to temperature. So, sure, you can give it a fancy brand name, but getting the secret sauce just right, is not easy nor cheap. For reference, we were producing engines aimed at the small satellite market primarily but could be used as upper stage roll thrusters, so 50-100 lbf regeneratively cooled biprops using LOx on one side and a variety of fuel options on the other.
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