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3D Printing: Why I love it [3D Printing Resources]

3D Printing: Why I love it [3D Printing Resources]


3D printer printing a person

3D printing or additive manufacturing is the process of building a three-dimensional object layer by layer based on a 3D file. You input this file into a 3D printer and it will begin to make something out of plastic, resin, powders, food (chocolate), glass, and even metal.

Object being 3D printed
Object being 3D printed
Now I don't know about you but when I first heard about 3D printing I thought it was amazing. The idea that as long as you could think of something and then make a 3D file of it that you could make it, in any shape and almost any size. Well as someone that loves to tinker with stuff and come up with creative solutions it really got me thinking of all the cool things I could make with it.


I was hooked the moment my now good friend and business partner showed me their 3D printers and what they had made with them. They told me how 3D printers worked, and that they were really accessible to the everyday person, and that with some dedication it wasn't that difficult to learn to use them. 
Creality CR10 and Tevo Tarantula on desk
My friends 3D printers (Creality CR10 and Tevo Tarantula)
That was 4 years ago and the idea of having my own 3D printer and the opportunities it would give me never left my mind. Then in February 2020, my birthday was coming up and I knew what I wanted to get. So I did some research into 3D printers, I watched review videos on YouTube made by big names in the 3D printing community like Joel the 3D Printing Nerd, Teaching Tech, and Thomas Sanladerer. They gave some great information on a lot of different 3D printers, what to look out for and what was good for beginners.

Next, I started googling to see where I could buy 3D printers in the UK. I found websites like Technology Outlet, 3DJake, BOX, and 3DPrintz; Of course, you can also get them on Amazon. I was just looking for the best deal and so I settled on Technology Outlet and bought a Creality CR10s similar to that orange one my friend has in the picture.

Thingiverse.com

My first 3D printer arrived in March 2020, and I was immediately obsessed with it. I was always trying to find things to make with it on websites like Thingiverse which has thousands of free 3D models of stuff that you can make with a printer. In order to print those models, you had to calibrate your 3D printer because out of the box they don't always print very well. You can run into failure after failure until you learn how to use the machine properly and that takes a lot of time and dedication because 3D printing can have a steep learning curve.

I was determined though and thanks to that determination I was able to learn a lot about 3D printing and how to get great prints. That was thanks to those same YouTubers I mentioned earlier and their beginner tutorials and instructional videos; thanks to websites like Simplify3D and All3DP, and most of all thanks to the 3D printing community on Facebook, Reddit, Twitter, discord, and most social media platforms.

From the idea to the reality of me having a 3D printer, there were a lot of obstacles. It took a lot of time to learn how to use the machine well but thanks to my friend, the 3D printing community, and the confidence to follow my idea through I am now a very happy little 3D printer.


Thank you for listening




My 3D printer Mr Pink











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