What’s really going on at MyMiniFactory? We found out by speaking directly to their new CEO, Chengxi Wang, to find out their true strategy.
Kerry Stevenson
Kerry Stevenson, aka "General Fabb" has written over 8,000 stories on 3D printing at Fabbaloo since he launched the venture in 2007, with an intention to promote and grow the incredible technology of 3D printing across the world. So far, it seems to be working!
Design of the Week: Biohazard Planter
This week’s selection is the Biohazard Planter by designer Saad Chaudhry.
Who Really Made Your 3D Printer? The Secret Manufacturers You Don’t See
Who actually built your 3D printer? In many cases it was not the vendor you bought it from, and in fact was made by a contract manufacturer.
Connecting 3D Printing With The Rest Of Industry
How do engineers and designers know about new developments in 3D printing that could potentially revolutionize products in industry?
Are 3D Printer Machine Specifications Changeable?
Is it possible to buy a 3D printer with custom specifications? It turns out you can obtain custom built 3D printers from some manufacturers.
Are Your Parts ADfAM?
What kind of parts are in your digital inventory? Are they ADfAM? We propose a new class of 3D printable parts.
3D Hubs Continues Transformation With Strategic Hire
3D Hubs has made a very strategic hire by taking on a co-founder of one of their new major competitors.
Airwolf 3D Announces the EVO R Advanced 3D Printer
Educators take note: AIrwolf 3D’s new EVO R 3D printer is priced right for educational markets, yet provides high-power engineering-level features.
Want To Write For Fabbaloo?
Every day you’ll see stories in Fabbaloo from our regular contributors, but have you ever thought you might see your words in our pages?
ASA 3D Printer Filament For The Masses
Have you ever used ASA 3D printer filament? A new offering from Prusa Research may provide a trigger for many 3D printer operators to begin using this powerful material.
Meet The Wi3DP Ambassadors, Part 2
The Women in 3D Printing phenomenon has grown significantly in the few short years it has been in existence.
Meet The Wi3DP Ambassadors, Part 1
The Women in 3D Printing phenomenon has grown significantly in the few short years it has been in existence.
Question of the Week: Swiss Guard Helmet
Need a theatrical prop? Consider 3D printing it; but you will have to find a 3D model to do so. We present several alternatives for doing so.
Industrial-Scale 3D Printing Of Porous Structures Now Possible
It’s been infeasible to 3D print large-scale microscopic structures — until now. Researchers developed immersion precipitation 3D printing, or “ip3DP”.
How To Protect Your 3D Design
Are you a 3D designer and have had your designs stolen? There is a service that might help automatically detect theft and issue takedown notices.
Book of the Week: Mastering 3D Printing in the Classroom, Library, and Lab
Do you have 3D printers in your school? There are best practices for doing so, and this book explains how to use 3D printing in a classroom effectively.
Ultimaker Releases Ultimaker Cura 4.2 Beta
Need more advanced 3D print slicing capabilities? Why not give Ultimaker Cura beta 4.2 a try? It includes orthographic views and advanced flow control.
The FUNMAT PRO High-Temperature 3D Printers By INTAMSYS
INTAMSYS offers a line of several powerful high-temperature 3D printers capable of printing in PEEK, ULTEM and other high-performance functional materials.
Design of the Week: 3D Printed Particle Accelerator
Is it possible to have a particle accelerator on your desk? Yes, it is possible, thanks to the design of a 3D printed particle accelerator by a 17-year-old student.
CyBe’s Construction 3D Printers Are Mobile
Is it possible to 3D print walls and entire buildings with 3D printers? The concrete part can indeed be 3D printed with equipment from companies like CyBe.
Recyclable Thermosets Could Change Resin 3D Printing
Can you reuse thermoset plastics? It turns out there is a way, just discovered by researchers. This could enable future use of recyclable 3D printer resins.
Things Are Increasingly Shaking Up At MyMiniFactory
What plans does the new CEO of MyMiniFactory have? We don’t know and a puzzling post on their blog doesn’t really clear things up at all.
Dire Results From 3D Systems
We’re looking at the financial results from 3D Systems for 2019Q2 and there are many negative factors in the publicly filed report, including a big loss.
Automating 3D Print Parameters For Optimal Results
Researchers are developing machine learning systems that could potentially automate the complex 3D print parameters used in 3D printing jobs.
A Big Loss For The 3D Printing Community
BigRep suddenly announced the passing of their founder, René Gurka.
The Nanoscribe Quantum X Microfabrication Production 3D Printer
Production microfabrication is the goal of the new Quantum X from Nanoscribe, which can produce microscopic 3D prints measured in nanomaters.
3D Print Learning Series: Materials
This is an entry in our 3D Print Learning Series, focusing on the different materials possible in 3D printing.
The State of 3D Scanning 160 Years Ago
Ever wonder when 3D scanning was invented? It seems that a form of 3D scan, called Photosculpture, was developed in the 1800s by a French artist.
Ai Build Takes On the Challenge Of Large Complex 3D Prints
Need a complex large object 3D printed? One option is startup Ai Build, which offers a 3D printing service for complex geometries using AI and cloud processing.
Is Blender 2.8 Suitable for 3D Printing?
Blender is upgraded to v2.8. Does this mean it is suitable for making 3D printable 3D models? We look at the pros and cons of the new software system.
Book of the Week: 3D Printing Design
Need inspiration for 3D design? Designer and now author Francis Bitonti’s new book offers a peek into the mind of an additive manufacturing designer, whose 3D prints continue to amaze all.
How To Break A 3D Printer’s Glass Build Plate
Have you ever broken a 3D printer build plate? We did! Our glass build plate had a sad case of over-adhesion on a PLA print that could not be removed.
Tinkerine’s New 3D Printer Seems Ideal For Education
Tinkerine is about to release their latest 3D printer, the DittoPro-R. Is it suitable for use in education and the classroom? We think so!
Design of the Week: Settlers of Catan
This week’s selection is the “3D Printed Settlers of Catan” by Instructables contributor Maclsk.
The Emails We’d Like To Respond To, Once More
Ever wonder what emails we receive? There are many ill-formed, downright crazy messages received by us daily and now we’d like to respond in a humorous way.
Continuous 3D Printing Possible With Transparent Polygon Scanning?
Could the TPS concept revolutionize resin 3D printing? Open source Transparent Polygon Scanning could avoid patents allowing inexpensive resin 3D printers.
More Research into 3D Printed Supercapacitors
Could high-power components be 3D printed? It seems so after new research from the University of Manchester, where a material to 3D print supercapacitors has been discovered.
Self-Melting 3D Printed Support Structures Now Possible
Need easy-to-use support structures? Researchers have discovered a way to automatically liquify a printable material after 3D printing using green light.
Can 3D Printing Overcome New Tariffs For Overseas Products?
Tariffs have raised the prices of overseas parts. Could 3D printing be used to locally print equivalent parts? We investigate.
DiManEx Provides On-Demand 3D Printed Spare Parts
Do you know what Digital Inventory is? Companies like DiManEx can provide a virtual warehouse of spare parts produced on demand without need for physical storage.
Markforged Files Claim Against Desktop Metal, Again
A lawsuit between Markforged and Desktop Metal? The two companies begin court battle again with Markforged claiming disparaging marketing material by Desktop Metal.
Womp Provides On Demand 3D Services To The Public & Companies
A new 3D printing startup, Womp, is taking an unusual path to offer several 3D services to the public in an easy to use fashion.
3D Printing As Shipping Container?
How can you 3D print in remote locations? One option is Millebot, which produces a line of 3D printers and manufacturing machines based on standard shipping containers.
How To Intelligently Reinforce Concrete 3D Prints
Could concrete ever be 3D printed in complex ways? This may come true according to research on how to reinforce extruded concrete for construction.
Book of the Week: Fundamentals of 3D Food Printing
Want to learn about 3D printed food? This book contains pretty much everything you need to know about 3D printed food, including chocolate, dough, cheese and more.
Filament Innovations’ Ball Screw 3D Printing Experiments
What can be used instead of belts in a 3D printer motion system? Filament Innovations is experimenting with a ball screw to enable high-speed and high-temp use.
3D Printed Pill Demonstrates The Value Of Passive 3D Print Design
How can you sample the human microbiome? One way is with an ingeniously designed 3D printed pill that, once swallowed, passes through the body collecting samples.
Design of the Week: TelescopePrime
Want a 3D printed telescope? The TelescopePrime project is parametric, inexpensive, powered by Raspberry Pi and can take pictures of the universe.
Design of the Week: 3D Printed Vacuum Cleaner
This week’s selection is the 3D Printed Vacuum Cleaner by Reddit contributor pyrohmstr.
Question of the Week: Using Open Filament on the Sindoh DP200 3D Printer?
Own a DP200 and want to print any material? Find out if Sindoh will ever offer a firmware upgrade to allow use of open materials and avoid requiring cartridges.
Bowyer Proposes Revolutionary Electric 3D Printing Concept
Adrian Bowyer proposes an incredible 3D printing process that could 3D print objects instantly in many materials, including copper and titanium.
Treat 3D Printer Resins Very, Very Carefully
Do you think 3D printer resin is safe? It might not be. Consider this story of a 3D printer operator who was severely burned by a caustic photopolymer resin.
Structure Sensor (Mark II) Announced By Occipital
Occipital announced the upcoming availability of a new iPad-based 3D sensor, the Structure Sensor (Mark II).
NASA’s BFF: A Microgravity Bioprinter to Print Human Tissue
This week a bioprinter will be launched to the International Space Station to test 3D printing organs and tissue. Find out why this could be important in the future.
Large-Sized Chocolate 3D Printing
Want a 3D printed chocolate tower? La MIAM Factory has a chocolate 3D printing service that can 3D print tall chocolate objects, and they’re quite tasty.
What Happened To iMakr Last Week? We Found Out
iMakr was hacked last week. What caused their 3D print retail site to be down for a day? We found out from a chat with founder Sylvain Preumont.
What’s In E3D-Online’s Mystery Boxes?
E3D-Online produces some of the highest-quality 3D printer components used in the industry, and now you can obtain a batch of them at very low cost.
BASF Launches Steel Filament: Ultrafuse 316L
Want to 3D print metal objects at lower cost? One answer could be to use BASF’s new Ultrafuse 316L stainless steel filament that works in many 3D printers.
Sintavia Acquires QC Labs for Full End-to-End 3D Print Services
Why did Sintavia acquire QC Labs, the non-destructive testing service? We have some ideas on the company’s strategy to become an end-to-end supplier.
3YOURMIND Receives €1.3M Investment For Machine Learning – But For What?
What is 3YOURMIND doing with €1.3M Investment? They say they will increase machine learning in their services, but for what? We have some speculation.
3D Printed Microbots Are Powered By Vibration
3D printed microbots are now possible due to the invention of a method to power two photon polymerized prints using external vibrations.
3D Printed Magnetic Liquids Could Revolutionize Medicine
Could liquid 3D printed machines exist? It turns out this is possible due to ferric nanoparticle droplets as discovered by Berkeley Lab researchers.
Design of the Week: One Small Step
Celebrating 50 years since Apollo 11? Consider 3D printing this amazing 3D model of an actual footprint on the moon made by Buzz Aldrin in 1969.
Book of the Week: The Golden Ratio
Have you ever heard of the Golden Ratio? This incredible mathematical number is all around you, and a new book explains its history and importance.
What Does A 3D Printer Really Cost?
What’s the true cost of a 3D printer? An accidental email spills the beans on how much resellers actually pay for 3D printers, and it’s less than you think.
3DGence Certifies Flexible Filament
Can flexible filament be used in the 3DGence F340? Indeed it can — it’s announced that Flexfill 98A flexible rubber filament has been certified for use in the F340.
Good News: 3D Print Technology In The Clear After SpaceX Incident
Is 3D print technology to blame for the SpaceX anomaly? It turns out no, and that portends a bright future for metal additive manufacturing in aerospace.
Students Using Advanced 3D Print Technology Could Lead to Job Offers
What kind of 3D print technology should be used by students? Here we explain the advantages of using advanced technology to simulate real-life engineering environments.
Nanofabrica Claims Low-Volume Micro-Manufacturing Capability
Looking to manufacture very tiny parts? Nanofabrica has a 3D printing system using DLP that can produce objects with incredibly small resolution of 1.9 microns.
10,500 Filaments Now in Filaments.directory Catalog
Looking for a particular 3D printer filament? One great service to help is Filaments.directory, whose extensive database of materials can be easily searched.
How Educators Can Choose Between a 3D Print Service and a 3D Printer
Should educational institutions use their own 3D printers or instead use 3D print services? We examine advantages and disadvantages of each approach.
Where Are The Stratasys Advanced 3D Printing Demonstrators?
What happened to Stratasys’ 3D print demonstration technologies? We examine the Continuous Build 3D Printer, the Robotic Composite and Infinite Build technologies.
NASA Funds Made In Space with US$73M For Orbital 3D Printing
Could gigantic habitats be built in space? Made In Space’s Archinaut 3D printer is to demonstrate how to 3D print metal structures in orbit very soon.
Book of the Week: 3D Printing of Concrete
Where will concrete 3D printing lead? Will the construction industry undergo a revolution from computer controlled concrete extrusion? What will buildings look like?
3D Systems Returning To Consumer 3D Printing?
Is 3D Systems changing strategy? They are selling their FabPro 1000 as a consumer or prosumer platform via Amazon Prime Day — what comes next?
A Coaxial 3D Print Extruder?
Ever heard of a coaxial nozzle for 3D printing? This is an experimental version being used for unusual food 3D printing.
Design of the Week: Personal Peltier Cooler
Need to cool off? Try building this 3D printed Personal Peltier Cooler, a wrist-worn device that uses thermoelectric cooling using the Peltier effect.
3D Printing As Seismometer?
What happens to a 3D printer during an active earthquake? One 3D print operator found out the hard way.
Another World’s First Chocolate 3D Printer!
Has the world’s first chocolate 3D printer been announced by Cadbury? I think not, there have been many previous chocolate 3D printers on the market.
Secrets of Prusa Research 3D Printer Manufacturing
A video tour inside the operations of Prusa Research gives a close look at what it takes to make high-quality 3D printers and 3D printing filament.
How Are Large 3D Printers Manufactured?
Have you ever wondered how large industrial 3D printers are manufactured? Roboze explains to us how this is actually done for their high-temperature Argo 500.
MAKE Rises From The Dead, Slightly
Is Make: really revived? Maker Media CEO Dale Dougherty is attempting to restore the company that published Make: magazine and organized the Maker Faires.
The German RepRap L320 Silicone 3D Printer
Looking for a silicone 3D printer? The new German RepRap L320 is able to print high-resolution silicone objects in resin for casting and moulding.
Velo3D’s Origin Story Defines Their Character
Want to know Velo3D’s origin story? Find out how they discovered how to 3D print metal without support structures using a revolutionary recoater system.
Creating Multi-Color 3D Prints From Mono-Color 3D Models
Having trouble separating a 3D model into pieces for color 3D printing? Now a new tool, SimplyColor3D, allows easy segmentation for Prusa MMU2S or Palette2 .
NewPro3D’s NP1 3D Printer Now Available
Looking for a ridiculously fast 3D printer? The extremely high speed NewPro3D NP1 with advanced ILI membrane is now available for purchase.
Velo3D’s Incredible Metal 3D Printing Process
Velo3D’s amazing metal 3D printing process is able to print without support material with very high resolution using a “free floating in the powder” system.
Artec 3D Releases New 3D Scanning Turntable Accessory
Need an automated 3D scanner for small objects like jewelry? Consider the new Artec Turntable device with the Artec Space Spider to capture high rez scans.
Book of the Week: Automated Construction Safety
Do construction 3D printers offer any type of safety program? What might form a proper safety regime for construction 3D printing?
iMakr Hacked!
While perusing 3D print sites today, I noticed that iMakr’s site has been hacked!
3D Print Learning Series: Business
An entry in our Learning Series hopes to show you the business aspects of 3D printing, including purchasing, leasing, providing services, designing and marketing.
The D3D-s 3D Jewelry Scanner Offers High Resolution of Complex 3D Models
Need an ultra-high-resolution tabletop 3D scanner? One great option could be the new D3D-s device that’s now available on Kickstarter.
Design of the Week: Silhouette Vase
Looking for a simple 3D printing project to enhance your living space? Consider the easy-to-print Silhouette Vase; it looks great and can hold flowers.
Dynamical 3D’s DT60 Industrial 3D Printer
Need a very large high-temperature 3D printer? Dynamical 3D’s huge DT60 can reliably 3D print in PEEK, ULTEM and other high-temp engineering materials.
Discovered: How To Eliminate Metal 3D Print Warping
Do your metal 3D prints warp? Spending too much effort planning for thermal effects? Researchers have found a way to dramatially reduce metal warping.