this post was submitted on 25 Jun 2024
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I want to get started 3d printing, partially because I bought a house and farm and need to replace some little bits and bobs that don't necessarily need to be super strong. It just seems a bit too much to try to figure out right now.
I went a little crazy on 3d printing during covid. I had a single printer prior but purchased two more. I haven't printed on ANY of them in like 2 years. I end up just printing stupid shit or because I go so long between printing wasting way too much time to get everything dialed back in. Now I don't even know what my slicing settings were and I would have to probably start from scratch. I should probably just sell my printers....
I printed a lot of custom stuff that I designed for specific uses in Fusion 360 when I got my computer, and for about two years afterwards. But I don't have any more custom stuff that needs to be printed, and I don't have a D&D group any more, so my printer has been sitting for about six months. I'd say it's a success though, since I made everything I need, and it'll still be there if I ever need anything else.
This was the second half of my problem honestly, I can't for the life of me figure out how to 3d model stuff. I've gone through tutorial after tutorial so clearly it's me.
I actually have stuff I'd like to print but I'm not competent enough to model it. I'm the n00b just printing stuff I can download from the internet. Or was I suppose....
There's a learning curve for sure. A lot of the tutorials on YouTube aren't very helpful. Some are downright awful. This guy's channel really helped it click for me. You can just start by following his lessons and at some point it'll click and then you can start designing really basic stuff like drawer organizers, which are essentially just cubes, and then work your way up from there. It does take time though.
Yeah I went through his channel too but something about it just doesn't seem compatible with my brain, lol. Like I said, I really should just sell my printers. They haven't been used in 2+ years and are just sitting here taking up space and collecting dust.
Production design online has good f360 tutorials. The 30 days series is what got me over the hump. Now I'm modeling my own game controllers.
Yep, tried those too. I do appreciate the suggestion though, truly. It's just not something I'm cut out for it would seem. I really do need to look at selling my printers and getting out of the hobby. It was fun for a while, now it's just a chore. Which is probably why I haven't done it in 2+ years, lol.
Depends entirely on the program you use.
Most CAD programs has all the features, but difficult to learn and just isn't needed most of the time.
For simple stuff things like Tinkercad and MatterControl are much better. They are basically drag, drop and rotate.
Having a 3d printer is super convenient for any home or shop repairs I need to make. I have so many curtain spacers and custom hooks all over the place now. The key is to get some hours in Fusion or some other good CAD software so you can whip up custom parts in minutes. You may get it wrong the first few times, but a couple minutes of tweaks and then you have a new part printing while you go back to working on other stuff.
The Swedish Maker just put out a video about how transformative 3d printing has been for his workflow. https://youtu.be/p2bClWmKHRM
That's fair, there is a bit of information overload online when looking into it.
If you want my two cents, find the cheapest print with auto bed levelling (mingda magicians are good and cheap) and just start playing around.You don't need to know much to start, and you learn what you need to as you encounter problems.
That's how I got into at least, and now been printing for like 5+ years.
Buy a bambu printer, they just work