We ran across an interesting project that’s attempting to create a system for 3D printing metal at very low cost. The idea is to do for metal manufacturing what was done for plastic manufacturing with current open source 3D printers. The project, by Andreas Bastian, is entitled “An Open Source Selective Laser Sintering 3D… Continue reading Open Source Metal 3D Printing
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The Helix 3D Printer
Created by Acuity Design of Montana, the Helix is a higher-grade personal 3D printer focusing on professional markets, unlike the countless other low-cost 3D printers appearing on Kickstarter that hope to address consumer needs. While professional offices currently have commercial 3D printer options that range from USD$10-20K, that price, although lower than industrial 3D… Continue reading The Helix 3D Printer
Can You Say, “Five Color 3D Printer”?
In the beginning, personal 3D printers had but a single extruder, meaning you could print only one color at a time. Finally, after years of research, some manufacturers brought out machines with two extruders – and BFB had an amazing three extruders. Now there’s a proposal from ORD Solutions of Canada to produce not… Continue reading Can You Say, “Five Color 3D Printer”?
The $200 Ready-To-Rock 3D Printer
We’ve heard about the USD$100 3D printer – but it’s an experimental resin-based 3D printer. What if you’re interested in acquiring a low-cost plastic filament 3D printer? You might want to consider the QU-BD One Up, billed as a sub-USD$200 “production ready” personal 3D printer. This no-frills device is in fact a kit, but… Continue reading The $200 Ready-To-Rock 3D Printer
New Tease From BotObjects
Remember BotObjects? They’re the company that’s producing a “Full Color” personal 3D printer, the ProDesk3D. They have been releasing very little information about their upcoming device, leading to much speculation whether it’s real or not. Now, thanks to a video recently posted on their site, we know a little bit more about this very mysterious… Continue reading New Tease From BotObjects
Order Type A Machines’ Series 1 3D Printer Today
Type A Machines’ new Series 1 personal 3D printer is now available for pre-order. This spiffy aluminum and acrylic design houses some interesting internal features, such as the rather large build volume: one cubic foot, or 305 x 305 x 305mm. Big. Some of the Series 1’s features are not particularly visible, yet they… Continue reading Order Type A Machines’ Series 1 3D Printer Today
Peachy Printer Campaign Ends – But Not Really
The world’s first USD$100 3D printer’s launch campaign has closed, with the Peachy Printer project raising over USD$650,000 on their Kickstarter page. This amount may be somewhat less than other notable crowdfunding launches, such as Formlab’s, which raised USD$3M, but there’s a difference: the Peachy Printer costs only USD$100, while previous printers were much… Continue reading Peachy Printer Campaign Ends – But Not Really
A Peachy 3D Printer Update
The makers of the revolutionary USD$100 resin-based Peachy 3D printer, which has raised a launch amount exceeding USD$600K, have issued a video update of their project’s progress. In the video, co-founder James Cooper explains some of the difficulties controlling the laser that they’ve recently overcome. It appears that their team is working through a… Continue reading A Peachy 3D Printer Update
A 3D Printer Made From Scrap
Normally when you embark on building a DIY 3D printer you’d search online shops for the best and least expensive components. Bring them together with the right plan and you’ll soon have an operating 3D printer. But that’s not exactly what Kodjo Afate Gnikou did. He went to the dump. Specifically, he searched through… Continue reading A 3D Printer Made From Scrap
The Dangers of Open Source 3D Printing
When MakerBot opened some years ago it used open source approaches to developing its products. While they produced 3D printers, they also made available the plans to make them, open source-style. That changed with the introduction of their Replicator 2 model, much to the consternation of their open source followers. Why did MakerBot make… Continue reading The Dangers of Open Source 3D Printing
Makibox A6: Shipping Soon?
You might recall the Makibox A6, billed as a “$300 3D Printer”? We wrote on it in February 2012, quite a long time ago, and evidently they have not shipped product yet, although you can see the progression of their project in great detail on their blog, from prototyping to production. But that may… Continue reading Makibox A6: Shipping Soon?
The LumiFold 3D Printer
Only days after the launch of the first USD$100 3D printer, another very similar, but not quite as inexpensive, resin-based 3D printer launched: the LumiFold. Like the Peachy, the LumiFold uses photo-curable resin as its printing process. Also unlike the Peachy, the LumiFold uses a DLP projector as the source for its photo-curing light,… Continue reading The LumiFold 3D Printer
The Deltaprintr
The Deltaprintr is about to launch on Kickstarter. It’s a personal 3D printer with a difference: the device uses a delta mechanism instead of the traditional cartesian XYZ axes. It’s easier to understand if you watch the video. The extruder is oriented by changes (or deltas) in the three vertical posts instead of… Continue reading The Deltaprintr
The Peachy 3D Printer is Looking Very Peachy
We wrote earlier this week on the launch Peachy, a new 3D printer with some very revolutionary features. It, like many new ventures, used crowdfunding to get started. With a Kickstarter goal of USD$50,000, it was inevitable that they’d hit it. They did the first day. But what happened next? So far they’ve… Continue reading The Peachy 3D Printer is Looking Very Peachy
Form 1 Shipping Update
The spectacular Kickstarter launch of Formlabs months ago was just the first part. A large number of orders merely indicates strong interest in a product. We reserved judgement until we saw that Formlabs was able to deliver the numerous Form 1 personal 3D printers. Now we have evidence of that success. Formlabs has posted… Continue reading Form 1 Shipping Update
The Ultimaker 2 3D Printer
Ultimaker has long been regarded as one of the fastest and most reliable personal 3D printers. But it’s been quite a while since it was released. Now the company has announced a new version: Ultimaker 2. The new unit is not simply more attractive with its shiny case: Every part has been redesigned… Continue reading The Ultimaker 2 3D Printer
The Peachy 3D Printer is Only $100!
There is so much to say about this incredible design we’re not quite sure where to start. Yes, this is, for real, a USD$100 3D printer. But how its price became so low is revolutionary. Made by Rylan Graston of Rinnovated Design based in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, the Peachy employs not just one but… Continue reading The Peachy 3D Printer is Only $100!
More ProDesk3D Details Revealed
You might recall the very mysterious ProDesk3D printer from botObjects that is said to be an inexpensive, full color personal 3D printer. A grand claim indeed, as no one can yet explain how an inexpensive 3D printer can manage multi-color printing. Many current 3D printers are multi-color in the sense of “switching” from one… Continue reading More ProDesk3D Details Revealed
The Zim 3D Personal Printer
It’s another week and obviously time for another new 3D printer launch on Kickstarter. This week the Zim 3D printer launched, hoping to raise funds for its first production run. With new 3D printers launch almost daily, it is very difficult for new entrants to distinguish themselves above the other offerings. What does Zim… Continue reading The Zim 3D Personal Printer
ZEUS: Another 3D Copy and Print Machine
It’s another week and another 3D print “all-in-one” device has emerged to join the likes of Radiant Fabrication’s Lionhead and the Mebotics Microfactory: the ZEUS by AIO Robotics of Los Angeles. This project delivers four functions: 3D Scan, 3D Print, 3D Copy and 3D Fax, simulating the existence of multiple devices in a single… Continue reading ZEUS: Another 3D Copy and Print Machine
DealExtreme Sells 3D Printers
Another major retailer sells 3D printers: Deal Extreme, one of the more popular online shops for electronics equipment, now sells the Heacent 3D printer kit. The Heacent 3DP02 kit is from a Chinese manufacturer and is based on the tried-and-true RepRap Prusa Mendel design. It’s specifications include a 200x200x100mm build volume equipped with a… Continue reading DealExtreme Sells 3D Printers
Radiant Fabrication’s Lionhead and Li
It could be trend: all-in-one 3D printer/scanner devices seem to pop up daily this week. We’re looking at Radiant Fabrication’s Lionhead device, which boasts 3D printing and scanning functionality. Radiant Fabrication’s strategy seems to be simplification. They believe more sales are possible if machine use is easy for use by general consumers, embodied by… Continue reading Radiant Fabrication’s Lionhead and Li
Print Bigger: The gMax 3D Printer
A Kickstarter project is launching the gMax personal 3D printer. It’s claim to fame is a whoppingly huge build volume, hence it’s name. gMax is designed by Architect Gordon LaPlante of Brooklyn, a hotbed of 3D printerness. His story: As much as I loved the RepRap, I found myself being limited by the… Continue reading Print Bigger: The gMax 3D Printer
The da Vinci Personal 3D Printer
There’s very few details available about the XYZPrinting da Vinci F1.0 3D printer, made by the team of Taiwan-based Kinpo Electronics and Cal-Comp Electronics, subsidiaries of the Kinpo Group. We do know that the device will sell for only USD$499, one the absolute lowest-priced filament-driven personal 3D printers available today. The new machine… Continue reading The da Vinci Personal 3D Printer
3D Printer History: The Festo iFab 3D Printer
We ran across an experimental 3D printer developed years ago by Festo, a German industrial conglomerate. The iFab was designed in 2009 by Festo’s Bionic Learning Network, but seems to have never been marketed publicly. The iFab is an early example of a non-cartesian 3D printer. “Cartesian” 3D printers use standard “X-Y-Z” movements as… Continue reading 3D Printer History: The Festo iFab 3D Printer
The Mebotics Microfactory
It’s billed as “the world’s first machine shop in a box”, and it very well might be. The Mebotics Microfactory is an enclosed unit that holds not only a CNC cutter but also four (yes, FOUR) extruders on its 3D printing head. The idea is to produce a portable, safe-for-the-office small manufacturing facility.… Continue reading The Mebotics Microfactory
It Does Everything: The FABotum
A new Indiegogo project hopes to develop the FABotum, a multidiscipline manufacturing device. Actually, it’s full name is the “FABtotum Multipurpose Desktop Personal Fabricator”. Wait, what kind of a machine is that? This machine is actually a combination of several manufacturing processes, including 3D printing. The FABotum also includes CNC (cutting) capability and 3D… Continue reading It Does Everything: The FABotum
The Flashforge Creator 3D Printer
If you think the Flashforge Creator looks quite a bit like MakerBot’s original replicator, you’d be correct. It seems that Flashforge has used the Rep’s open source design to produce their version, the Creator. But there are some differences as we’ll see. The Creator is sold in two models, the Creator, which includes two… Continue reading The Flashforge Creator 3D Printer
The Isis One 3D Printer
There’s quite a story behind the design of the Isis One personal 3D printer. The creators of this just-released device recognized the numerous problems inherent in current RepRap machine designs: first layer adhesion, bed leveling, Z-axis stability, noise, support structures, extrusion skipping and much more. Their engineering team methodically pursued each issue, gradually building… Continue reading The Isis One 3D Printer
NASA’s 3D Microdispenser
NASA often provides small amounts of funding to check out some pretty unusual ideas. One of the projects they’re currently funding is the feasibility of an advanced biocomposite microdispening system. Wait, what the heck is that? We told you this was an unusual idea! The proposition is to use micro-components already available in the… Continue reading NASA’s 3D Microdispenser
Freeform 3D Printing with an Undo Ability
The Suspended Deposition Project, Brian Harm’s new 3D printing concept, is built to change the way architects create and design structures. According to Harms, “This project aims to blur the line between processes of design and fabrication in the context of rapid prototyping by increasing the fluidity of the fabrication process through coordinated material and… Continue reading Freeform 3D Printing with an Undo Ability
The Kossel Clear Full Sized Delta 3D Printer
Looking to build an unusual 3D printer? You might consider Blue Eagle Labs’ Kossel Clear 3D printer kit. It’s a delta 3D printer, which employs a different mechanical approach than traditional linear X-Y-Z methods such as Cubify and MakerBot. The delta approach involves suspending the single extruder by three legs which are precisely moved along… Continue reading The Kossel Clear Full Sized Delta 3D Printer
WITbox, The Spanish 3D Printer
It doesn’t really speak Spanish, but it was made in Spain by the folks at Marcha Technology and distributed by Ultra-Lab of Madrid. The WITbox is a plastic extrusion personal 3D printer capable of printing ABS, PLA, NYLON or PVA 1.75mm plastic filament. The WITbox is built robustly with a steel frame and optionally… Continue reading WITbox, The Spanish 3D Printer
The Bukito Portable 3D Printer
A new “sturdy, fast and portable” 3D printer is available on Kickstarter. The Bukito Portable 3D Printer by Deezmaker has already raised USD$100K to launch their new machine, so it seems that people are interested in 3D printing portability. This is not the first 3D printer for Deezmaker; they previous released the Bukobot last… Continue reading The Bukito Portable 3D Printer
A Homebuilt Sugar 3D Printer
RepRap Blogger Jordan Miller reports on an experiment building a unique 3D printer capable of producing sweet sugar glass to aid his bioengineering research. The key problem revolved around being able to use Miller’s BariCUDA extruder, an air pressure-powered extruder. The BariCUDA weighs several pounds and would be difficult to move quickly or accurately with… Continue reading A Homebuilt Sugar 3D Printer
3D Printers too Pricey? Build a LEGO One
While the price of 3D printers continues to plummet, for some the cost is still too high. To help solve this problem, Instructables author Matthew Krueger, also known as Mastermind, created a 3D printer from LEGOs he found lying around his house. Krueger’s project started as a practical exercise. During college Matthew became interested… Continue reading 3D Printers too Pricey? Build a LEGO One
Leapfrog’s Startling 3D Printing Resolution Improvement
The quality of a 3D print is often measured by the layer size. That represents the size of the incremental layers put down by the extruder (or other mechanism) of the 3D printer. The smaller the layer, the finer and smoother the surface finish becomes. The first personal 3D printers that emerged… Continue reading Leapfrog’s Startling 3D Printing Resolution Improvement
The Velleman K8200 3D Printer
With the news that UK electronics retailer Maplin now sells the Velleman K8200 3D printer, we thought we’d better take a look at this new device. The K8200 is a plastic filament 3D printer, as most inexpensive 3D printers are. It accepts both ABS and PLA plastic from generic suppliers, avoiding the need for… Continue reading The Velleman K8200 3D Printer
The UP Plus 2
One of the very first personal 3D printer manufacturers was Delta Micro Factory / PP3DP, a division on China’s Tiertime, who produced the widely used Up! 3D printer. Now its successor, the venerable Up! Plus, is to be replaced by a new version, the UP Plus 2. The new 3D printer is styled similar… Continue reading The UP Plus 2
HYREL Achieves Multi-Part 3D Printing
In almost every 3D printer we’ve seen, even those with multiple heads, only one print head is actually used at a time. First you print the model material, then you print support material, layer by layer, one extruder at a time. But now that’s changed. HYREL, notable for 3D printing clay, Sugru and other… Continue reading HYREL Achieves Multi-Part 3D Printing
3Doodler: CLONED
You always hear about offshore product cloning, but it’s a shock to see them. We were directed to the “Good Luck Buy” site, where we saw what appears to be an almost perfect clone of the famous 3Doodler 3D printing pen: the 3D Printing Pen for 3D Prototype Modeling. 3Doodler, you may recall, recently… Continue reading 3Doodler: CLONED
Pirate3D’s Booty
Pirate3D’s crowdfunded launch of their inexpensive Buccaneer personal 3D printer was a success mere minutes after it opened, but how did it end? Their campaign ended as one of the most successful 3D print launches in history. They achieved USD$1,438,765 of their now-modest-seeming USD$100K goal. Formlabs still holds the record for the biggest crowdfunded… Continue reading Pirate3D’s Booty
Optomec’s Mini Metal Printer
In the world of 3D printing, bigger really is better, but New Mexico-based Optomec plans to take things in a different direction. The company will bring selective laser sintering down to the micro scale with their new Laser Engineered Net Shaping printer. Originally created at Sandia National Labs for use by the military and… Continue reading Optomec’s Mini Metal Printer
MendelMax 2 Now Available
Maker’s Tool Works now offers their new MendelMax 2 personal 3D printer. We wrote about this unit some time ago, but now you can actually buy them direct. Maker’s Tool Works successfully completed a beta test involving over 100 testers, who helped certify and refine the final product. Now this product is available in… Continue reading MendelMax 2 Now Available
MakerBot’s First Post-Stratasys 3D Printer?
What will be the next personal 3D printer from MakerBot, post acquisition by Stratasys? We believe MakerBot’s next 3D printer could be significantly different from previous Replicators. Why? Because there will be huge synergies between the two companies technologies, as both use plastic extrusion processes. Extruded plastic 3D printing was invented by Stratasys… Continue reading MakerBot’s First Post-Stratasys 3D Printer?
The Incredibly Inexpensive Nautilus 3D Printer
A fundraising campaign has launched for the Nautilus 3D printer. It’s a resin-based DLP printer, using a process similar to that used by Formlabs and 3D Systems. The Nautilus uses a DLP projection system to fuse each layer of photo-curable resin. The Nautilus was developed by a team of four from Beijing who were… Continue reading The Incredibly Inexpensive Nautilus 3D Printer
World’s Largest 3D printer built in China
Dalian University of Technology has announced the development of the world’s largest 3D printer. The massive laser sintering 3D printer has a build volume of 1.8m3 and can reduce print processing time by some 35%. In addition, the printer’s “contour scanning” printing technique can also reduce manufacturing costs by 40% when compared to other… Continue reading World’s Largest 3D printer built in China
Could the Buccaneer Raise USD$1M?
The launch of Pirate3D’s inexpensive and classy Buccaneer personal 3D printer on Kickstarter was explosive, raising their initial funding goal within mere minutes. Now, weeks later into the campaign, they’re approaching USD$900K in funding and seemingly within reach of the magic USD$1M mark. Will they make it? We think so. The… Continue reading Could the Buccaneer Raise USD$1M?
A 3D Printer From Togo
Yes, Togo. It’s the home of Afate Gnikou of WoeLab, a technology incubator in the small African country. Gnikou has launched a crowdfunding project on Ulule to raise funds to begin building a Togo-designed personal 3D printer. The goal of the project is to design a 3D printer that can be built from commonly… Continue reading A 3D Printer From Togo
Pirate3D’s Buccaneer Sets Sail
Pirate3D released their incredibly inexpensive personal 3D printer for pre-orders last week and it seems to have been a massive success. Their Kickstarter fundraising goal was USD$100,000 – and it was met within mere minutes of the launch. As of this writing, the project has raised well over USD$400,000, putting Pirate3D in the select… Continue reading Pirate3D’s Buccaneer Sets Sail
Get a Buccaneer 3D Printer for Only USD$247!
Pirate3D is launching their super-inexpensive 3D printer today through Kickstarter. The startup company’s first product, the Buccaneer, is a filament extrusion machine they bill as the “world’s most affordable 3D printer”. The list price of the Buc’ will be USD$347, but a “very limited number” of them will be available for only USD$247, which… Continue reading Get a Buccaneer 3D Printer for Only USD$247!
MakerBot – Autodesk Discount Available
If you happen to be interested in purchasing a MakerBot Replicator 2 personal 3D printer and a premium membership in Autodesk’s highly useful 123D apps, you’re in luck: there’s a discount available. If you upgrade from the free version of 123D to premium level, you’ll receive a USD$40 discount on purchase of a MakerBot… Continue reading MakerBot – Autodesk Discount Available
Mataerial Offers a New Way to 3D Print
Virtually all 3D printers today use a layered approach, where the object being printed is “sliced” into layers, or horizontal planes, which are printed using whichever technology is at hand. But a project by researchers from the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia and Joris Laarman Lab proves there is another way. The Mataerial… Continue reading Mataerial Offers a New Way to 3D Print
BotObjects Tells More – But Not Enough
You may recall the mysterious launch of the ProDesk30 from BotObjects the other week? It was said to be an amazing Full Color personal 3D plastic extrusion printer. Many observers were highly skeptical of this claim, particularly because little evidence or even specifications had been released by BotObjects. Now that’s changed. A bit. … Continue reading BotObjects Tells More – But Not Enough
The Zortrax M200 3D Printer
Zortrax is launching their new M200 personal 3D printer on Kickstarter, with a focus on ease of use and aesthetics. They say they “want 3D printing to be a great experience.” Unlike typical filament-based 3D printers that use ABS and PLA plastic, the M200 is specifically designed to print ABS, PC-ABS and Nylon. … Continue reading The Zortrax M200 3D Printer
The Form 1 Ships!
Formlabs has now shipped its first actual production units of their breakthrough resin-based personal 3D printer, the Form 1. The USD$3,299 high-resolution device was launched on Kickstarter some months ago and raised close to USD$3M, a record amount for a technology item. Based on this alone, the Form 1 is a highly desired machine… Continue reading The Form 1 Ships!
The ProDesk3D From BotObjects – In Full Color?
New York City startup BotObjects announced what could be the first full-color plastic 3D printer, the ProDesk3D. While their stealthy launch and impressive claims have generated some buzz, they have also generated major controversy. First, what’s the ProDesk3D? It’s a desktop 3D printer, suitable for consumer or office use. It prints extruded PLA or… Continue reading The ProDesk3D From BotObjects – In Full Color?
Pirate3D Reveals Their Buccaneer
They may be called “Pirate3D”, but their new personal 3D printer, the Buccaneer, is no criminal. The Buccaneer’s design seems significantly different than other personal 3D printers. The most obvious difference is a very refined external look. The shiny case is masterfully simple – it doesn’t even have a single button. We believe in… Continue reading Pirate3D Reveals Their Buccaneer
D-Shape’s Plans
Enrico Dini is the founder of D-Shape, pioneers in large-scale 3D printing using concrete-like materials. They’ve developed a technique for solidifying sand into a kind of sandstone using a chlorine-based fluid. The 3D printer is truly massive and must be erected on the building site – or else you’d better hire trucks and cranes… Continue reading D-Shape’s Plans
Get Ready For Real Chocolate 3D Printing
At a recent conference 3D Systems President and CEO Avi Reichental spoke of his company’s efforts to produce a true chocolate 3D printer. While the project was classed as “Not Soon”, it does indicate significant interest in 3D food printing. We also understand that 3D Systems’ main competitor, Stratasys, has applied for a couple of… Continue reading Get Ready For Real Chocolate 3D Printing
3D Systems Rebrands Their Color 3D Printers
After 3D Systems’ acquisition of ZCorp, they found themselves owners of the Zprinter line of the only full-color 3D printers available. These machines continued to be improved and new variations added up until this week. What happened this week? 3D Systems has rebranded the entire Zprinter line into new ProJet models. No more Zprinters!… Continue reading 3D Systems Rebrands Their Color 3D Printers
The EZ3D Desktop Printer
Another 3D printer project is listed on Kickstarter: The EZ3D Desktop Printer. The project expires today and unfortunately it appears that it will not achieve its fundraising goal of USD$25,000, having raised only about half of that. Nevertheless this printer has some interesting features that we thought we’d point out. The EZ3D surprisingly… Continue reading The EZ3D Desktop Printer
The Gigabot
When the name of the product is “Gigabot”, it’s not hard to imagine their key feature: size. From Texas-based re:3D, the Gigabot has one of the largest print volumes we’ve seen in a personal 3D printer: a whopping 600x600x600mm (that’s two FEET cubed, for you Imperial measurers). The Gigabot is capable of layer sizes… Continue reading The Gigabot
The mUVe 1 3D Printer
With the expiration of key patents around photo-curable 3D printer techniques, we’ve seen several new resin-based personal 3D printer projects. Now another has emerged, the mUVe 1 from mUVe 3D, created as a part-time project by maker Michigan-based Dean Piper. The mUVe 1 is the first product from mUVe 3D, now seeking initial funding via… Continue reading The mUVe 1 3D Printer
The RigidBot 3D Printer
Another 3D printer startup has shown up on Kickstarter: The RigidBot by Michael Lundwall of Utah. As there are so many small 3D printer startups recently, any new entrants must distinguish themselves from the rest of the pack. How does RigidBot do that? They have a couple of interesting advantages, one being expandability. They… Continue reading The RigidBot 3D Printer
Meet NEMO, The 3D Water Printer
We’ve been given exclusive pre-public access to a new 3D printer project that could appear on crowdfunding sites very soon: NEMO, the 3D Water Printer. The project is being kept behind closed doors as much as possible, but we were permitted to publish the image above showing a portion of NEMO’s unique internals. We… Continue reading Meet NEMO, The 3D Water Printer
The B9Creator Returns
Readers may recall the hugely successful B9Creator 3D printer kit Kickstarter project last year: it raised a ridiculous USD$513,422 to develop a revolutionary personal 3D printer based on photo-cured resin technology. The project was obviously successful and a number of “version 1’s” were sent to happy customers. But now founder Michael Joyce has returned… Continue reading The B9Creator Returns
A 3D Printing Dreambox
Every school and office should have a Dreambox. It’s literally a 3D printing service in a box. A box that looks suspiciously like a vending machine. The machine works much like a 3D print service: you upload a 3D model from your computer or insert a USB stick into the Dreambox, which then sets… Continue reading A 3D Printing Dreambox
The Adafruit-Flavored MakerBot
Do you build electronics projects? Do you 3D print objects? Do you print 3D cases for your electronics projects? If you answered yes to any of those questions, especially the last one, you’ll be interested in a fascinating collaborative offer from electronics kits distributor Adafruit and personal 3D printer manufacturer MakerBot. The two companies… Continue reading The Adafruit-Flavored MakerBot
Multi-Armed Bioprinting
Researchers at the University of Iowa College of Engineering’s Center for Computer Aided Design have developed a rather interesting prototype bioprinter, capable of printing living tissue. The device, made by Ibrahim Ozbolat, assistant professor of mechanical and industrial engineering and doctoral student Howard Chen, does something no other 3D printer can do, whether for bioprinting… Continue reading Multi-Armed Bioprinting
A New Industrial RepRap Emerges
Designed by brothers Jonas and Simon Kühling, the Kühling&Kühling Industrial 3D printer is a true RepRap. Incorporating many features of previous RepRap incarnations, the Kühling&Kühling advances the state of the art by adding a suite of new features that can help create better prints. Among these new features are: A heated chamber capable of… Continue reading A New Industrial RepRap Emerges
MakerBot’s Replicator 2X Ships
MakerBot’s latest and greatest personal 3D printer is now in the mail – if you ordered one, that is. The Replicator 2X, announced at CES in January has emerged from manufacturing. Coincidentally, MakerBot has also released version 2.0 of MakerWare, the software used to drive the MakerBot. The 2X differs from its sibling, the… Continue reading MakerBot’s Replicator 2X Ships
The Mysterious Pirate3D Printer
We’ve been peeking at the website of Pirate3D, a new startup attempting to build an inexpensive 3D printer. The Palo Alto, California-based company is not revealing much about their project. We don’t know the release date for the printer (although you can pre-order one in April). We don’t know the price of the unit.… Continue reading The Mysterious Pirate3D Printer
Three Colors For Your RepRap
Many readers may have a RepRap 3D printer, but most of them will print in only a single color at a time as they have but one extruder. Now you can purchase a personal 3D printer RepRap kit capable of printing not two but THREE colors. RepRapPro is now selling their “Tricolour Mendel 3D… Continue reading Three Colors For Your RepRap
3Doodler – A 3D Pen Printer
It’s billed as the first “3D printing pen”, and we believe it is indeed the first handheld 3D printer that you can purchase. Wait, “handheld 3D printer”? That’s precisely what it is. The device is held in your hand and slowly waved through 3D space. As it moves, it extrudes melted thermoplastic, just like… Continue reading 3Doodler – A 3D Pen Printer
Micrometer Scale 3D Printing
German-based Nanoscribe announced a new micrometer-scale 3D printer, the Photonic Professional GT, billed as the “world’s fastest commercially available 3D printer for micro- and nanostructures”. The Photonic Professional GT uses a highly accurate, mirror-guided laser system to polymerize photosensitive material into solid objects of incredibly tiny size. The machine is capable of producing fine… Continue reading Micrometer Scale 3D Printing
Three Dead 3D Printers
With numerous inexpensive 3D printers continually emerging, many won’t survive. But the latest wave of failures is not the first. Indeed, several bold attempts at creating revolutionary 3D printers came and went before the days of crowd funding. Today we’ll remember three notable 3D printers of the past. Desktop Factory was the original commercial personal… Continue reading Three Dead 3D Printers
Type A Machines
Type A Machines produces the Series 1 personal 3D printer. It’s claim to fame? Bigness. They say: We were tired of building things that could fit into little boxes so we designed the Series 1 to fit really large objects without a drastic increase in overall machine size. Forget having to redesign your ideas… Continue reading Type A Machines
The Robo Personal 3D Printer
Yes, Robo is another one of those new 3D printers that appear on crowdfunding sites, but what makes it different? For one thing you’ll immediately notice that it’s got a very attractive case – and that’s just the start. Each new filament-based 3D printer startup focuses on a particular aspect to make them stand… Continue reading The Robo Personal 3D Printer
The Future is 3-D Counts Down
We’ve been looking at The Future Is 3-D’s website and found they’ve been working on a new model to join their existing Glacier 3D printer: it’s called the “Avalanche”. We don’t know much about it, other than there’s a countdown page to the launch. We do know that their existing machine, the Glacier, is… Continue reading The Future is 3-D Counts Down
The List of Personal 3D Printers, 2013
After updating our resources page, we realized we had produced a useful list of personal 3D printers. If you’re in the mood for 3D printer shopping, we suggest you try our list. It includes links to companies offering low-cost pre-assembled, personal 3D printers. It does not include 3D printer kit options, which you can… Continue reading The List of Personal 3D Printers, 2013
New Space-Based 3D Printer
You might not realize it, but there are actually two companies pursuing asteroid mining today. One is Planetary Resources, backed by notables such as James Cameron, Larry Page, Eric Schmidt and more. The other company is Deep Space Industries. And they’re making a space-based 3D printer. Their purpose is to seek out asteroids… Continue reading New Space-Based 3D Printer
iRobot Moving Into 3D Printing?
A very detailed patent was recently issued to iRobot and Raytheon for a “Robot Fabricator”. iRobot is well-known for their Roomba series of household cleaning ‘bots, but they’re also manufacturers of many commercial and military robots. Raytheon is a long-time high-tech industrial focusing on military and electronics markets. Together they bring a huge amount… Continue reading iRobot Moving Into 3D Printing?
A DIY BioPrinter
Not satisfied with printing in plastic? Why not print ACTUAL LIVING CELLS? You can today if you can execute the Instructable created by BioCurious, which you can build for the incredibly low cost of USD$150. Simply acquire the necessary parts and follow all the assembly steps. This hack involves combining parts from a… Continue reading A DIY BioPrinter
The DeltaMaker 3D Printer
Aha! Another Kickstarter project has launched the DeltaMaker 3D printer. Recent 3D printer launches on Kickstarter have suffered from an inability to distinguish themselves from each other, but we believe DeltaMaker may not have that issue. Why? Because they’re using a very different design for their device: instead of the traditional 3-axis rail design,… Continue reading The DeltaMaker 3D Printer
The MendelMax 2.0 3D Printer
Open source 3D printers tend to evolve quickly, and the MendelMax personal 3D printer is no exception. Version 2.0 was recently announced by MakersToolWorks, the folks behind the MendelMax line. The Max2.0 is actually available now in kit or assembled form from MakersToolWorks – but it’s a beta version. The beta testers will “receive… Continue reading The MendelMax 2.0 3D Printer
A Bit More on the CubeX 3D Printer
At CES we discussed the design of 3D System’s new CubeX personal 3D printer with Ian Adkins, the original developer of the BFB line of 3D printers. Adkins now works for 3D Systems after Bits From Bytes was acquired a few years ago. It turns out there are a number of subtle improvements and… Continue reading A Bit More on the CubeX 3D Printer
Examining The Form 1’s Output
At CES we were able to get a very close look at the Form 1’s printed results, as Formlabs had several prints on display. (Click to enlarge the images for a really good look.) We found the accuracy to be outstanding for a printer at this price range (USD$3,299), exceeding typical (and better) plastic… Continue reading Examining The Form 1’s Output
The Form 1, Live
At CES we spent some quality time with Formlabs Co-Founder Maxim Lobovsky. After we sorted out the bizarre food ordering procedure at a funky Japanese burger food truck, we talked about Formlab’s experience so far. As a startup company, they’re heavily concerned with focusing on delivering a quality product. Lobovsky says, “Everyone has ideas… Continue reading The Form 1, Live
The Cube’s Been Updated
3D Systems’ consumer-level 3D printer has been updated. The friendly-looking Cube of 2013 includes several improvements that should make this machine even more attractive than its 2012 ancestor. The original cube could print only PLA plastic. While we love PLA, there are times you do need to print ABS plastic, particularly when you need… Continue reading The Cube’s Been Updated
An Afina Update
We had a very hard time finding Afinia at CES; they seemed to have the absolute worst booth location of any vendor – at the almost deserted corner at the far end of the top floor of the south building. Almost no foot traffic existed, which while not the greatest for Afina, permitted us to… Continue reading An Afina Update
MakerBot’s New Replicator 2X
MakerBot has announced it’s latest personal 3D printer at CES. The new device has been hinted at for some time now, but it was revealed publicly for the first time by Bre Pettis himself at CES. The new device is optimized for printing ABS plastic, whereas its partner, the Replicator 2 (no “X”) was,… Continue reading MakerBot’s New Replicator 2X
The New CubeX 3D Printer
We wondered what would happen to Bits From Bytes (or “BFB”) as they were known. They last updated their 3D printer line with the 3DTouch about a year ago. Would they announce a new printer in 2013? Yes and no, it seems. Parent company 3D Systems announced the new CubeX personal 3D printer, the… Continue reading The New CubeX 3D Printer
The EchoRap 3D Printer
The EchoRap Rev1 is another variation on the standard RepRap design with the unique feature of using tubes instead of threaded rods. The design permits a very large build volume by simply using longer tubes. Designed by Robotic Sequencing of Montreal’s ÉchoFab, the EchoRap is a very inexpensive way to get started in 3D… Continue reading The EchoRap 3D Printer
The Portabee 3D Printer
You might guess from the name of the “Portabee” that its unique feature is that it’s portable. And you’d be right. The Portabee is a RepRap-derived plastic extrusion personal 3D printer, sold in kit form for the definitely low price of USD$499. You’ll need 3mm filament to use the Portabee, and you’ll print… Continue reading The Portabee 3D Printer