[HN Gopher] A Year of 3D Printing
       ___________________________________________________________________
        
       A Year of 3D Printing
        
       Author : nindalf
       Score  : 69 points
       Date   : 2026-01-17 20:56 UTC (5 days ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (brookehatton.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (brookehatton.com)
        
       | JKCalhoun wrote:
       | Awesome. This person got way busier than I did [1] (I think I
       | focus more on creating original designs on the printer). When I
       | first got the Bambu in 2024 I did the whole Gridfinity thing.
       | Very fun.
       | 
       | As their post makes clear (even to me) there are actually a lot
       | of things out there you can 3D print. Something I printed last
       | year (and did not even bother to post) was a center-console
       | "compartment" for a 1995 Mazda Miata I have. I swapped out the
       | trashy aftermarket stereo (a previous owner has installed in the
       | Miata) for one that is close to OEM but then I had an empty
       | "hole" in the center console. So I printed a cubby for it.
       | 
       | I too was like the author. Originally got into 3D printing years
       | ago--found it frustrating. Picking up a Bambu printer a yearish
       | ago made made all the difference in the world for me. Previously
       | I had an Ender and it was, endlessly frustrating (pun intended).
       | The Bambu is so next-level, the software so well integrated and
       | polished, that I finally found that I enjoy, and I am not
       | burdened by, 3D printing.
       | 
       | (The only caveat about the Bambu is that people worry about
       | vendor lock-in. I don't believe Bambu have enshittified that way
       | yet, and people are finding workarounds in case they do, albeit
       | by adding complexity in setting up, printing. The price of the
       | Bambu for someone getting into 3D printing is very attractive.)
       | 
       | [1]
       | https://engineersneedart.com/blog/3dprinting2025/3dprinting2...
        
         | KeplerBoy wrote:
         | Couldn't agree more.
         | 
         | Knowing you can design a simple part in a few minutes and
         | actually print it immediately afterwards is important. Before I
         | got a reliable printer (bambulab a1) i put off even the
         | smallest projects because I knew it would entail a multi-hour
         | trial and error session with the printer.
        
         | jacquesm wrote:
         | Enders are for people that love the tinkering with printers
         | aspect of 3D printing, I would not use them for production. We
         | evaluated a couple but came away unimpressed.
        
         | the__alchemist wrote:
         | Hah, I hope I wasn't the previous owner! Needed an aux jack,
         | and that seemed like the easiest way to add one!
        
         | jagermo wrote:
         | I have the same feelings about Bambu. I really like what Prusa
         | is doing for the community and how they drive it forwards - but
         | the Bambu simply works without fuzz. I also came from an Ender
         | and its just so much fun.
        
       | IgorPartola wrote:
       | One of the most useful things that I print is Gridfinity storage
       | boxes and holders. I try to organize as many of my tools and
       | supplies using it. I sometimes do a little leather working for
       | fun and have a drawer full of hardware, all in their own bins. In
       | my garage my sockets, wrenches, etc. all has a Gridfinity holder.
       | I design my own as much as I use pre-made ones. A while ago I
       | even saw a shop that used it to organize most of their small
       | wares. It's an incredible system.
       | 
       | Another note: PLA has gotten significantly better in the past few
       | years. PLA+ is legitimately better while being as easy to print
       | and the Polymaker HT-PLA and HT-PLA-GF are even better as you can
       | meaningfully anneal them after printing to make them strong and
       | temperature resistant enough for some very functional prints.
        
         | tylerflick wrote:
         | Any reason you are recommending PLA instead of PETG?
        
           | zihotki wrote:
           | any reason to use PETG instead of PLA? PLA is plant based, in
           | theory bio-degradable, while PETG is produced from crude oil.
        
             | brovonov wrote:
             | That is mostly true, PLA is ONLY biodegradable in a
             | facility that can handle that. Your run of the mill
             | recycling center in your city probably can't or won't take
             | your PLA prints.
        
               | gambiting wrote:
               | And then only if it's pure PLA with no additives. Which
               | most PLA has to improve speed of printing or strength or
               | some other property. In practice, I'd wager that 90% of
               | commercially available PLA fillament is not actually
               | biodegradable.
        
             | dgroshev wrote:
             | Less creep, slightly better at absorbing shocks without
             | breaking, better failure behaviour (PLA can suddenly
             | shatter leaving sharp edges, PETG tends to deform
             | elastically first).
        
               | Fomite wrote:
               | Note that "deform elastically" is not necessarily a
               | desirable failure state if it happens earlier than
               | shattering.
        
           | dangus wrote:
           | Not the person you're replying to, but I can see the appeal
           | of PLA. It has more color options and prints way easier.
           | 
           | I personally run all PETG because it is ultimately better
           | material post-print, and once you understand how to print
           | with it, it's not really much harder to deal with.
           | 
           | The day I discovered that I should just run my dryer with the
           | PETG inside while printing was revolutionary. Of course, that
           | requires you own a dryer that allows the filament to print
           | while it's inside.
        
             | IgorPartola wrote:
             | I wish I knew how to dial in PETG fully. It prints fine for
             | me but I still get globbing and stringing so the surface
             | finish just isn't that amazing.
        
               | dangus wrote:
               | That's definitely still where I see the appeal of PLA,
               | and once I get through the _too much bulk PETG_ that I
               | own I may mix up my future purchases to have more PLA
               | where I don 't need load strength and won't have issues
               | with high temperature usage.
               | 
               | I am getting reasonably consistent prints but they aren't
               | perfect.
               | 
               | The long version of my tips for using PETG are:
               | 
               | - A Bambu Lab printer doesn't hurt since it's so nicely
               | calibrated and idiot-proof
               | 
               | - Clean the build plate with dish soap and dry fully. I
               | haven't found any need for glue stick on a textured
               | plate.
               | 
               | - Using a filament that has a profile available from the
               | manufacturer for Bambu lab printers
               | 
               | - Printing with the filament in the dryer with the dryer
               | running during printing
        
           | IgorPartola wrote:
           | I still get worse finish quality with PETG (stringing and
           | globbing) and these PLA+ type materials just end up being as
           | good for me while being easier to print. PLA also prints a
           | bit faster.
        
             | jacquesm wrote:
             | This is not my experience. PETG should be utterly problem
             | free, super fast to print and has a much lower fraction of
             | failed prints due to various adhesion issues. The big trick
             | is to make sure the filament is dry, if it is not you will
             | be in for a world of trouble. But properly used prints will
             | last much longer, and are mechanically (much) stronger. On
             | top of all that we can buy PETG in bulk for about a third
             | of the price of PLA.
             | 
             | For functional parts I would not use anything else until
             | there is a really good reason (such as high temperature
             | stability or more strength for a given weight or cross
             | section). I've gone through multiple tons of the stuff now
             | (3500 Kg in total or so) on 85 printers (Bambu's (43),
             | Creality (22) K1s and Prusas (20)), consistency between
             | batches is very good though from brand to brand there can
             | be some notable differences.
             | 
             | If you have stringing and globbing problems with PETG my
             | first guess would be that the filament profile that you are
             | using is subtly off for that particular brand of PETG
             | and/or that the filament wasn't dry.
        
               | noo_u wrote:
               | Calling PETG "utterly problem free" is quite a stretch
               | lol. PLA is pretty objectively much easier to print than
               | PETG, and perhaps than all the popular filament types out
               | there, especially if you are trying to print anything
               | where precision/detail matters. .
               | 
               | PETG is just oozier and stickier by default, so
               | stringiness is almost guaranteed to happen, bridging at a
               | greater risk of failure, etc. It is tougher, so unless
               | you have a printer that can use multiple filaments on the
               | same print, removing supports is more difficult.
               | 
               | Can you reduce these factors by tuning your 3D printer -
               | yes, a bit. But that's not "utterly problem free".
               | 
               | PLA is the plug and play of the 3D printing world right
               | now.
        
               | jacquesm wrote:
               | When you print objects with 10's of printers 'tuning your
               | 3D printer' is no longer an option other than to tune it
               | to be 'in spec' You can only tune your designs and the
               | profile for your filament and for a particular model of
               | printer but then all of those have to be close to
               | identical. As soon as you start tweaking your design or
               | filament profile to offset possible issues with the
               | printer you've lost reproducibility.
               | 
               | Incidentally, a lot of the stuff on thingiverse and other
               | similar sites suffers from those kind of issues. They are
               | tuned for PLA on a particular printer without realizing
               | it.
        
               | noo_u wrote:
               | The real question is - did you buy 10s of printers
               | because you needed them for the business, or did you
               | start the business to buy 10s of printers :P
        
           | the__alchemist wrote:
           | PETG is, for me, always stringy. And I don't want to breath
           | ABS fumes.
        
           | Fomite wrote:
           | For some applications, PLA is a little more rigid. It will
           | then fail in a spectacular fashion, but "I need you not to
           | bend" is something PETG doesn't always perform the best for.
        
           | m4rtink wrote:
           | From my experience PLA is just easier to print - prints are
           | less likely to fail and more consistent.
           | 
           | Also due to lower nozzle and bed temperatures, prints start
           | faster so you can check the first layer sooner before you let
           | the printer do its thing.
        
         | pandemic_region wrote:
         | The A1 has a relatively small printing plate. How does it work
         | for boxes that are larger ? You print them in pieces and click
         | / glue them together ?
        
           | brookke wrote:
           | This is true. So far, everything I have printed has fitted on
           | the plate. However, for larger items you can split them on
           | the slicer and include connectors to join them back up - I'm
           | yet to try this though
        
             | bborud wrote:
             | I tried this with some longer gridfinity boxes and the
             | result was a bit meh. You have to glue them, but even then
             | they aren't as solid as I'd like. But I only have a handful
             | of boxes that needed to be long so it doesn't matter.
             | 
             | One thing I've started playing with now are gridfinity
             | cases so I can pick a bunch of part boxes out of my
             | drawers, put them in the case and take them to the garage
             | without risk of everything falling out. Then, when I'm
             | done, they go back in the drawer.
        
           | Fomite wrote:
           | I print wargaming terrain that's bigger than the bed of my
           | P1S from time to time. The clear Gorilla polyurethane glue
           | has worked really well for me.
        
         | dgroshev wrote:
         | Unfortunately, even annealed HT-PLA-GF still creeps quite a
         | bit. I find this to be the main problem using PLA as an
         | engineering filament. For many parts it doesn't matter, of
         | course.
        
         | LanceH wrote:
         | I like having a gridfinity grid on my desk with a number of
         | various sized boxes for at-hand storage of things like
         | paperclips, tacks, pens, etc...
         | 
         | In the garage, I have one that I can slap down anywhere, with a
         | couple boxes that I can load for the screws, nails, washers,
         | nuts, and bolts, etc... used in my current project.
         | 
         | Having the grid makes the boxes sit firmly in place.
        
       | 0xb0565e486 wrote:
       | Lovely 3D header animation! Fits incredibly well with the posts
       | content :)
        
         | brookke wrote:
         | Glad you like it. First time properly delving into three.js -
         | other than the page size I'm really happy with how it turned
         | out
        
       | ConfusedDog wrote:
       | Gridfinity seems very useful. I might try it. I spent $100 on FB
       | marketplace 2 years ago for a AnkerMake M5C with bunch of rolls
       | of PLA. I've printed hairdryer rack, containers, Labubus as
       | little gifts for neighborhood kids to paint over. I thought about
       | getting a multi-color 3d printer like Anycubic Kobra S1 combo,
       | but the wasting of plastics is holding me back. Snapmaker U1 is
       | much better but more expensive.
        
         | brovonov wrote:
         | The U1, so far, is looking to be a great printer. No idea on
         | long term, but you will not find another toolchanger at that
         | low of a price.
        
       | LeafItAlone wrote:
       | All of this was on a Bambu A1 Mini?
       | 
       | These are the types of things I want to print. My Ender 3 was so
       | finicky, I only got a few out before I gave up.
        
         | brookke wrote:
         | It was indeed. Honestly, it's been more reliable than any
         | inkjet 2d printer I've owned.
        
         | otter-in-a-suit wrote:
         | I just got a Bambu P1S (they are / were on sale since the P2S
         | came out) and the difference to my Ender 3 is truly night and
         | day. I almost never used the Ender, since it always resulted
         | endless tinkering and even then, the prints never came out
         | well. The Bambu worked flawlessly out of the box.
        
           | Fomite wrote:
           | The P1S is such a good printer.
        
         | linsomniac wrote:
         | I had an Ender 3 Pro, and it was also very finicky, ~18 months
         | ago I replaced it with a Bambu P1S and that thing is just a
         | (nearly) fire and forget machine. I've been super happy with
         | it. In the 18 months I've had it, I've probably gone through
         | 10-20 rolls of filament, in the 4 years I had the Ender I went
         | through maybe 3-4 (because every time I wanted to print
         | something I knew I'd have to spend an hour fiddling with it). A
         | coworker has the Ender 3 though and his has been reliable, so
         | it seems YMMV.
        
           | gambiting wrote:
           | Ha, another Ender survivor here. I had the Ender 5 Pro for a
           | few years, recently bought a Bambu H2D and it's like going
           | from a bicycle to a car with heated steering wheel. It "just
           | works" (it still has the classic 3D printing problems of
           | edges of the print lifting up etc, but that's not the
           | printer's fault). Vast majority of the time it just works.
        
             | hagbard_c wrote:
             | Which problems did you have with the Ender apart from the
             | mentioned _classic 3D printing problems_? As I mentioned in
             | an earlier comment I 'm using one of these machines without
             | too much trouble after fixing the mistakes made by a
             | previous owner. I did put more capable firmware on the
             | thing which improved printing speed - especially in the
             | preparation phase - and to a lesser extent quality but even
             | with the stock firmware it performed well enough with PETG
             | and some complex models after dialing in the temperatures,
             | distances and speeds to the somewhat odd filaments I use. I
             | can send code directly to the printer, no SD card needed, I
             | can follow printing progress in a browser and I don't send
             | a single bit of information to the Creality mothership
             | while doing so. The same is probably harder - but maybe not
             | impossible, I haven't looked into this yet - with Bambu
             | printers?
        
               | gambiting wrote:
               | >>Which problems did you have with the Ender apart from
               | the mentioned classic 3D printing problems?
               | 
               | The kind of problems that could only be solved with a
               | rather embarrasing amount of tuning every time I switched
               | filament types or speeds or the temperature in my garage
               | changed etc etc etc. Things that basically meant that
               | every time I wanted to introduce any change I needed to
               | print a new flow tower, new bridging tower, new
               | temperature tower, the bed levelling took a huge amount
               | of effort to install BL touch on it but it still
               | worked....when it wanted to, with parts of the first
               | layer being too close scraping the bed and others being
               | far enough to not stick.
               | 
               | Don't get me wrong - the Ender 5 could print as well as
               | the H2D can, absolutely. But it would need 10 test prints
               | and me pulling my hair out first to get to the same level
               | of quality - which I have done, repeatedly, but I just
               | lost the appetite for the tinkering. With the H2D I click
               | print and the machine calibrates itself so well I
               | actually feel bad for anyone who only ever experienced
               | this and never had to sit down calibrating extruder steps
               | or flow rates manually. (yes, old man yelling at clouds).
               | 
               | >>and I don't send a single bit of information to the
               | Creality mothership while doing so. The same is probably
               | harder - but maybe not impossible, I haven't looked into
               | this yet - with Bambu printers?
               | 
               | Bambu printers, even with the most recent firmware allow
               | Home Assist integration where you can monitor all print
               | parameters remotely. But to be completely honest with you
               | - I did go through a phase where I cared about stuff like
               | this, now I just want it to work and be more like my
               | dishwasher than like my bike, I want to tinker with the
               | bike but my 3D printer should "just" work.
        
         | jinushaun wrote:
         | I picked up a P1S for Black Friday. I've been printing non-stop
         | since December, including some stuff I modeled myself. Only
         | failed prints have been because I printed the wrong thing. It's
         | been flawless with PLA. Haven't done PETG or ASA yet.
        
         | hagbard_c wrote:
         | I got a cheap Ender-3 V2 with a few modifications (extruder
         | moved to the sled, CR-touch sensor mounted) which - after
         | redoing the wiring which the previous owner somehow messed up,
         | replacing some mismatched bolts, putting nuts and washers on
         | the bolts underneath the hot plate, putting the springs in
         | their correct locations, removing a metric ton of hot glue,
         | aceton-glueing a few broken ABS details, installing more
         | capable firmware [1] and tightening all bolts - seems to work
         | just fine. Thus far I've only used PETG to print spare parts to
         | repair broken appliances, this started out with some hiccups
         | but works fine after installing the mentioned firmware. It
         | isn't particularly fast, it isn't particularly pretty but it
         | does work for my purpose: create parts to repair and build
         | things. I have no doubt that a more modern printer can make
         | life easier but thus far life hasn't been hard with this Ender:
         | design a model, slice and dice it and send it to the printer
         | which does the rest. I've printed some fairly 'hairy' models
         | which came out fine (i.e. not hairy/thready) even though I'm
         | using PETG. For those with some technical aptitude - in other
         | words for people who are wont to build and repair stuff - these
         | machines are an affordable step into the additive manufacturing
         | world with the promise of 'spare parts at your fingertips'.
         | 
         | [1] https://github.com/mriscoc/Ender3V2S1
        
       | VladVladikoff wrote:
       | I still have mixed emotions about 3D printing. I do love the idea
       | of being able to print a part when I need it for something. But I
       | do hate myself at the same time for creating more plastic junk.
       | PLA is not really getting recycled, when it fails someone throws
       | it in the trash and it goes to a landfill. Maybe some really
       | diehard enthusiasts are ensuring all their failed prints and
       | broken parts get properly chemically recycled, but I bet most
       | don't bother and just bin it.
        
         | lm28469 wrote:
         | And that's the best case scenario, I think most people print
         | useless junk to begin with, just look at the top downloads on
         | printables.com, less than 30% are functional prints, most of
         | them are short lived junk, and a lot are AI generated.
        
           | knowitnone3 wrote:
           | which is why I tell the shop techs to not print the benchy
           | boat and print something useful instead.
        
           | AngryData wrote:
           | While they certainly correlate, downloads don't match print
           | rates. Unless you got a ton of printers you are mostly doing
           | one print at a time and each requires setup and cleanup, or
           | possibly multiple attempts if there are difficult to print
           | features.
           | 
           | It can be multiple hours between prints because good prints
           | take time. But you can spend 30 minutes browsing random
           | peoples designs online and say "cool" and press download on
           | 20 different designs that you only print 1 or 2 of
           | ultimately.
           | 
           | Also some designs look cool but the second you load your
           | model up in a slicer you can see it is too finnicky or too
           | long or expensive to print to be worth the effort.
        
         | malfist wrote:
         | In the US almost all PLA comes from corn, outside the US I
         | think it mostly comes from sugarcane.
         | 
         | It can be composted in industrial composters, but even if you
         | dont do that it's still pretty green
        
         | chakintosh wrote:
         | The way I see it is that a 50g piece of 3D printed PLA could be
         | used to fix a 5kg item that would have otherwise gone to the
         | landfill. I for example have a broken hook for the door tray in
         | my fridge, it's a tiny piece but it being broken rendered the
         | entire 1kg tray useless, it's sitting on top of the fridge
         | waiting for me to buy a 3D printer and fix it.
        
         | proee wrote:
         | Seems there is a market for a truly biodegradable print
         | material, if even for doing a prototype before committing to a
         | full plastic print. Or a real recyclable method to take old
         | prints and reuse the material again.
        
           | vablings wrote:
           | The issue with biodegradable is that it is in direct contrast
           | to something that is durable and long lasting.
        
         | ofrzeta wrote:
         | I feel the same and that has kept me from buying a printer.
         | That is not to say that I never will but for the time being if
         | I really need a particular part I can always use a printing
         | service.
        
         | knowitnone3 wrote:
         | if you printed what you NEED, how is that junk?
         | 
         | Let's see how much you really care: https://all3dp.com/2/best-
         | diy-filament-extruder-kit-maker/
        
       | mysterydip wrote:
       | In the past I've mostly printed intersting/amusing things from
       | places like thingiverse. But this year I had a project I needed
       | an enclosure for, and instead of using something off the shelf I
       | decided to print my own.
       | 
       | Being able to design, print, test, change, print again really
       | made the potential of 3D printing shine for me. I must have went
       | through a couple dozen iterations as the hardware choices
       | solidified and I saw what worked and what didn't (like "oh, I
       | actually can't reach that screw once these two pieces are put
       | together"). It was a really rewarding experience and I'm looking
       | forward to the next project.
        
       | lawn wrote:
       | Nice. I mostly print parts for other 3D printers...
        
       | RicoElectrico wrote:
       | At first I assumed it's going to be this guy:
       | https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGje7toBDzsiIrHIHG-eL...
        
       | bborud wrote:
       | I would encourage people who have never designed physical objects
       | before to try to only print things they have designed themselves
       | as an exercise. For perhaps a year or so.
       | 
       | If you have never designed physical objects before it is really
       | challenging at first. The learning curve is pretty steep and, at
       | least in my case, I discovered that I didn't have a mental
       | language for thinking about functional 3D and mechanical design.
       | You also start to look more closely at the objects around you and
       | think about what went into designing them.
       | 
       | I started doing 3D design about a decade ago, when I got my first
       | 3D printer. At first using free modeling in CAD and then later
       | learning how to do constraint based and parametric designs in
       | Fusion 360. This felt slow and perhaps limiting at first, but
       | when you get used to it, it will save you a lot of time later and
       | allow you to make more useful designs that are much easier to
       | evolve and vary.
       | 
       | I think it took something like 4-5 years before I printed
       | something someone else had designed. Mostly because I used 3D
       | printing to make custom parts for my own projects, but also in an
       | effort to force myself to learn. I know the learning curve was
       | steep, but for some reason I have forgotten how much work it was
       | to learn.
       | 
       | Now there are so many useful designs, designed by people who are
       | a lot better than me available everywhere that I do print a lot
       | of things others have designed. But I think learning to design
       | things yourself is a really good opportunity to learn useful
       | skills.
       | 
       | For instance, I had never anticipated that I, a software
       | engineer, would get paid, by an actual customer, to design parts
       | for their projects. Or even consult on physical design for
       | someone doing product development. I am by no means at the level
       | where I'd put it front and center on a resume, but I can design,
       | and to some degree, manufacture simple mechanical parts.
       | 
       | (Along with 3D printing I've been doing some CNC at a very
       | hobbyist level. I would still say I am very much a beginner when
       | it comes to machining metals, but it is really fun to see that
       | you can make reasonably precise metal parts for real applications
       | (car parts) at home in my garage with not that much effort. This
       | weekend I'll be doing thread milling in aluminum for the first
       | time on a part that requires M3 screws)
        
         | malfist wrote:
         | I echo this sentiment. So many random annoyances around the
         | house that I've fixed with self designed prints. Its a steep
         | learning curve but you can start simple. First thing I designed
         | was a spacer to go behind silverware organizers to keep them
         | from sliding around. Still in use almost 8 years later.
         | Horrible print quality and all.
         | 
         | Last year I printed a peg leg for a nonstandard luggage wheel
         | that broke off my suitcase and Samsonite won't sent a
         | replacement for, a cleanable coil denitrifier for a saltwater
         | aquarium, custom shadowbox drawer organizers for a toolbox, and
         | during an aquarium emergency printed a metric to US pipe
         | bushing.
         | 
         | I also put the skills to use for woodworking modeling a set of
         | couch doggie stairs and a couple years ago designing the
         | building for my observatory.
         | 
         | It's a really really useful skill
        
         | bdunks wrote:
         | I will add that FreeCAD has come a long way in constraint based
         | and parametric part design, and I'm able to use it exclusively
         | running an Arch-based distro.
         | 
         | Deltahedra has extremely impressive tutorials on YouTube. No
         | fluff -- no long intros or filler -- 30-60 minutes of dense
         | content, clearly explained:
         | https://www.youtube.com/@deltahedra3D
        
         | Fomite wrote:
         | I don't do this because I don't have the time to design
         | wargaming terrain, but I've definitely pushed myself to do more
         | designing for household things.
         | 
         | It's a really good feeling to be able to put something together
         | that solves your problem. As I asked my wife, "Is this why
         | people with wood shops are always so smug?"
         | 
         | It's also fun to be able to feel your skills building. I now
         | have _opinions_ on friction fit box lids.
        
         | randusername wrote:
         | 3D printing has been humbling for me.
         | 
         | I can express myself well spatially in code, but that doesn't
         | help much in CAD where you have to figure out what combination
         | of buttons and parameters will do what I want.
         | 
         | I can manage dependencies well in code, but that doesn't help
         | much in CAD. I continually struggle to design parts with
         | geometry that is dependent on the spatial relationships and
         | constraints of how multiple parts connect together.
        
           | n00shie wrote:
           | Have you ever tried https://openscad.org/?
        
           | qazxcvbnmlp wrote:
           | Cad in general isn't good at modeling spacial relationships
           | between parts as a graph.
        
       | jagermo wrote:
       | gridfinity is really addictive. I have no idea what I want to do
       | with it, but I want to print more.
        
       | dgroshev wrote:
       | I'd encourage people doing engineering/functional parts to also
       | try ASA and PC(-CF). Both are pretty easy to print on enclosed
       | printer like Prusa Core One, and they offer unique qualities that
       | are impossible to achieve with PLA or PETG.
       | 
       | Prusament PC Blend is insanely strong and stiff, I saw a 3mm PC
       | bracket bending a high quality metal wood screw into an S-shape
       | without breaking. PC-CF is much easier to print, looks great, and
       | is stiffer still, even if a bit less strong. ASA looks great and
       | is tougher than PC. Both creep less than PLA and PETG. Both shrug
       | off 100C under load.
        
       | jasonblick wrote:
       | Hello, what are you using to render the models in the webpage?
       | and what format did you export the models as to do that? It looks
       | very nice!
        
         | brookke wrote:
         | Hey! It's using three.js with rapier for physics. The models
         | are being loaded as STLs using the three.js stl loader
         | https://threejs.org/docs/#STLLoader.
         | 
         | https://github.com/Brookke/brookke.github.io/blob/main/src/c...
        
       | SilverElfin wrote:
       | Multiple states are trying to ban 3D printing and CNCs
       | 
       | https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=46713872
        
         | phkahler wrote:
         | Reminds me of when Hollywood wanted to ban A2D converters to
         | "plug the analog hole".
        
       | coldcity_again wrote:
       | Good article, but I really really enjoyed the (non-
       | deterministic!) falling objects with physics engine at the top of
       | the page.
        
       | numpad0 wrote:
       | Can't help but wonder looking through the gifs, am I actually
       | insane that I MUST fillet, chamfer, or chamfer AND fillet
       | basically every single one of those edges[1] with with tangency
       | weight of 1.5 where possible, until the shape takes a generic
       | apple/bauhaus/lego/ikea style? I'm aware that doing so don't
       | necessarily improve load distribution, but I just can't stop
       | rounding those corners.
       | 
       | Am I really the only one?
       | 
       | 1: http://numpad0.com/imgs/2026-01-23%20001128.png
        
       | Igor_Wiwi wrote:
       | By: motherfucker - Cults3D - I really like the 3D printing
       | community
        
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       (page generated 2026-01-22 23:00 UTC)