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[Guiberu]

Building a DIY Stream Deck (Mini Macro Keyboard) - Parts Not Included

I’ve been doing a little streaming on Twitch, and a lot of streamers I follow have something called an Elgato Stream Deck. The Stream Deck is a small device with 15 buttons, each of which Read more…

www.partsnotincluded.com

This is amazing. I plan on building this, as soon as I overcome my crippling procrastination.

No space for it and I'm an old dog who can't learn new tricks.

You can get really small ones.

And I personally believe anyone can learn anything, given time. Though you definitely can't, if you don't try.

 

[Hotspurr]

ALSO.

Everyone should play with Tinkercad.

It's a free, browser based, simplified 3D editor. You can start from scratch and build with primitives, or import a model and edit from there.

Stupid simple, but incredibly powerful, and useful.

I've gone from idea, to rough model in Tinkercad, to having it physically in my hands, within an hour.

lifa-cobex You could try importing your model into this, and cutting it in half with a primitive cube. Tinkercad deals with boolean operations rather well, from my experience.

Try DesignSpark Mechanical. It may be a bit more powerful and it is direct modeling so extremely fast and intuitive. (And free)

I'd love to get into 3d printing as i have done 3d modelling and sculpting as a hobby for years but i can't handle the thought of having to wait hours to see the result. Once they get proper fast, i'm in

You are missing out big time as you would love it. You don't have to sit there and watch it print for 3 hours. Just go watch TV or play videogames in the meantime.

 

[lifa-cobex]

 

[#Phonepunk#]

i would only jump in if i could print a vinyl record at very high quality. currently the resolution is not interesting enough and it's uses seem very limited. vinyl records are really the only physical product i would want to make. my visual art tends to be 2D rather than 3D.

when they come out with a Star Trek style replicator i'll totally get one of those. but i don't need a coffee cup with my low res face on it.

 

[Hotspurr]

Whow that is awesome. You model it yourself?
The paint job is great. I'm learning to paint properly myself. Right now figuring out how to do layering. I'm using liquitex soft body paints, I know people prefer Vallejo for this kinda stuff but I find the artist paints more vibrant and better mixing control. Also a bit cheaper.

 

[lifa-cobex]

Whow that is awesome. You model it yourself?
The paint job is great. I'm learning to paint properly myself. Right now figuring out how to do layering. I'm using liquitex soft body paints, I know people prefer Vallejo for this kinda stuff but I find the artist paints more vibrant and better mixing control. Also a bit cheaper.

I wish I could model this well. I found the file on myminifactory.com
Really great site for finding stuff like this.

I've honestly tried so many different types of paints but the only ones i'm comfortable using is Citadel paints. The're over priced and go off quick but I always get the result I want.
Doesn't help that a Games workshop is just down the road either.

Layering is defiantly the key skill to painting imo. Nice thin layers and slowly build them up.

 

[Hotspurr]

Working on this piece and it's taking forever....any Darksiders fans?

 

[Jeffery223]

Oh wow, yea 3D printing is my main hobby outside of gaming..
My first printer was a Monoprice Mini, but I returned it after having tons of issues (later learned that my profiles meant to reduce stringing were the actual issue causing clogs, if you retract too far hot filament into a cold PTFE tube connector results in clogs)

So I then got an Anet A8 for $150, and I never really got it quite right TBH, it's a helluva deal but takes a ton of work to make it great.
So then I moved on to a Prusa i3 MK2S Kit and I love that printer, still is my primary

I retired my Anet and replaced it with a Creality Ender 3, the Ender is the one I'd suggest to all my friends being the print quality with hp 564 vs 564xl ink equals my Prusa but at a pricetag of under $250 (my Prusa took me an entire day to put together, the Ender 3 took me 30 minutes).

My last major print

We strive to do that at work because it is a very excellent practice. Print a rapid model with no regard for dimensional accuracy. Examine the model to determine if there are any flaws. It usually helps with milling, but you'd be amazed how many terrible designs get through for turning.

I enjoy 3d printing, however there comes a point where you can simply create what you print on a machine. It's entertaining, but it gets old quickly in my opinion. However, it has its uses; for example, I use my printer to print trays for items in my toolbox to improve organization.

 

[Dural]

I got my son the Voxlab Aries for Christmas and have been using it myself for some desk decorations. I've made Spaceship Earth and The Hollywood Tower Hotel and both turned out great. The HTH I printed with glow in the dark filament and the glow is great. Had the glow in the dark jam and make a glob on the nozzle while printing overnight, still have to take care of that.

 

[fran.fernandez]

I bought mine 3 years ago an barely used. Did all this last Halloween (also the 3D in Maya). Legs and lighting as well lol.

 

[AJUMP23]

I have no practical use for it, and it would be a novelty for me.

 

[///PATRIOT]

I don't play with toys.

 

[Artoris]

I think 3D printing is the most exciting thing in hobby tech right now. It's a chance to learn a valuable skill, be creative and do useful things. I want to encourage people to check it out, while also putting some of your concerns away.

Cost - there are models in the US that will cost you $200-300 and will do a decent job. A spool of 1 kg of plastic (enough for 400 chess pieces, for example, will run $20).

Software - there is plenty of free software that rivals professional tools. Check out: DesignSpark Mechanical, Fusion 360 and Blender. The complexity is not too bad. I was able to teach a person with zero 3D modeling experience to put together a little jig to fit in a beaker for a science experiment in an afternoon. If you have an art or engineering background it might be easier. There is also free splicing software like Cura.

Time - you can generally print meaningful things, like models or things for around the home in tens of minutes or several hours.

Space - the footprint for the printers is surprisingly small. I have a prusa i3 v2, and it fits on my small work desk that already houses my PC and monitor.

Safety - 3d printers are generally safe, but due to temperatures of ,200 C + the risk of fire is there. You do not want to leave them alone for extended periods of time (eg. overnight) without supervision or you can build a metal enclosure. In my experience, the worst that has happened is either a filament jam or part lifting off. I would most machines as quite safe but you need to keep an eye on them occassionally.

purpose - I have 2 printers. One at home and one at work. The work one saves me (my company really) thousands of dollars in mechanical parts for various experimental setups or customer demos. For most people here, it will be for home, so here is what you can do:
things around the house : shelves, stands, hooks, coasters, signs, spare parts for consumer goods, office trinkets

artistic models : design your own or download for free models of characters and finish them with acrylic paints. Learning blender was very gratifying for me and it was surprisingly straightforward after watching some YouTube tutorials.

Gifts : make highly personalized gifts for friend and family. People really appreciate the effort and thought, and there is lots of sentimental value attached as a result.

Electro-mechanical : I have seen people make drones, remote controlled cars, and other really cool things. There is really no limit to how creative you can get.


That's all I can think of for now. Will happily answer questions about models and where to start with software. I also recommend checking out airbrushing to decorate your creations.

You have convinced me, I want one

 

[Ailynn]

3D printing is awesome, but alas...