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Robots meet rulebooks.
Standards body aims to herd AI on the factory floor, before it herds us.

ASTM, an International standards organization, is gathering the sharpest minds in hard hats and hoodies for a March 4–5 summit in Pennsylvania, where the standards body will decide whether to formalize a new committee devoted to taming AI on the factory floor. With algorithms already running machines, crunching data, and occasionally acting like opinionated supervisors, ASTM says it’s time to bring some order, common language, and guardrails to the mix. All3DP will have its eyes on developments. Register here to participate.

by  Carolyn Schwaar Feb 6, 2026
Source: ASTM
Featured image of Creality Targets Handheld Scanning with the Sermoon P1, Now Available to Preorder
Cord-Cutter
Creality Targets Handheld Scanning with the Sermoon P1, Now Available to Preorder

The device marks a new direction for Creality scanning hardware, leaving the data cables behind in favor of handheld, onboard processing for more agile workflows.

by Matthew Mensley Feb 6, 2026
Featured image of Five Technologies to 3D Print the Same Part: Which is Best When Ordering Online?
The Real Cost
Five Technologies to 3D Print the Same Part: Which is Best When Ordering Online?

From $25 plastic to $380 metal, we look at five 3D printing technologies (FDM, SLS, MJF, SLA, LPBF) to explore price, strength, and real-world value.

by Jillian Veader Feb 6, 2026
Featured image of Klipper on a Thing-O-Matic? ‘This Old 3D Printer’ Modernizes the Classics
Golden Oldies
Klipper on a Thing-O-Matic? ‘This Old 3D Printer’ Modernizes the Classics

Printer restoration and upgrade project This Old 3D Printer is posting a print every day this year using old and iconic 3D printing hardware.

by Matthew Mensley Feb 5, 2026
One Guitar to Rule Them All
This 3D printed Lord of the Rings guitar is fit for Gandalf on tour.

In a dazzling blend of fantasy fandom and cutting-edge fabrication, Olaf Diegel, who runs the additive manufacturing program at the Univ. of Auckland and has a side gig making custom guitars, just debuted this Iceman-style electric guitar called “Faerlind" (Elvish for music of the soul, of course). It's nylon 12 printed on a Voxeljet VX1000 selective laser sintering system and painted matte silver.

by  Carolyn Schwaar Feb 5, 2026
Featured image of New MakerWorld Copyright Protection Scheme Helps You Fight IP Abuse
IP IP Hooray
New MakerWorld Copyright Protection Scheme Helps You Fight IP Abuse

Following its closed beta, MakerWorld's copyright protection scheme is opening up to more users. In exchange for platform exclusivity, you get a centralized mechanism to report, collect evidence, and support cases.

by Matthew Mensley Feb 4, 2026
Featured image of The Strongest Infill Patterns for Maximum 3D Print Strength
The Results are In
The Strongest Infill Patterns for Maximum 3D Print Strength

We compiled tests of popular 3D printing infill patterns to reveal which geometries offer the best strength and structural integrity.

by Nutan Jaeger Feb 4, 2026
Featured image of Rescuing the EV Supply Chain, New 3D Printed Electric Motors Need Far Fewer (or no) Rare Earths
The Rare-Earth Alternative
Rescuing the EV Supply Chain, New 3D Printed Electric Motors Need Far Fewer (or no) Rare Earths

With €25 million in new funding and innovative 3D printing techniques, researchers and startups are now achieving 98% efficiency in electric motors—while slashing the need for critical and rare minerals.

by Carolyn Schwaar Feb 4, 2026
What's In the Box!?
I can appreciate a good, efficient print name.

MakerWorld user Lorenz's parametric Any Box is one example. It lets you create and print just about any box you could wish for, making it a triumph of code and customization. There are plenty of sliders, scalers and hinge styles, giving seemingly infinite flexibility – and it features Gridfinity compatibility, too.

by  Matthew Mensley Feb 3, 2026
Source: All3DP
Featured image of Master Your Flow: The Only Extruder Calibration Guide You Need
Fine-Tuning with Filament
Master Your Flow: The Only Extruder Calibration Guide You Need

Whether it's E-steps or rotation distance, Marlin or Klipper, calibrating your extruder is critical to printing success. Here's how to get it set correctly.

Feb 2, 2026
Winter Printer Wonderland
The BBC 3D prints 700 tiny Olympic athletes, and sidelines the AI

in a refreshingly tactile twist in an age of algorithmic everything. The BBC has opted for 3D printers and painstaking craftsmanship in its Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics coverage promo. The trailer, "Trails Will Blaze", is a lovingly stop-motion world built from hundreds of individually 3D printed athletes skating, skiing, and tumbling across miniature Italian mountains. Watch the making of the promo here.

by  Carolyn Schwaar Feb 2, 2026
Source: BBC
Weekend Poll
Do you sell what you print?

It's a simple question, but one inspired by what we're witnessing in the incredible rise of companies like ZB Designs, building multi-million dollar enterprises printing collectible toys using the same "consumer" 3D printers many of us have sitting on our desks.

It has us wondering: how many of you are monetizing your hardware and expertise? Are you leaning into the entrepreneurial side of the hobby, or do you prefer to keep your printing strictly personal?

by  Matthew Mensley Feb 1, 2026
Featured image of Is This U.S. Start-Up Really Building the World’s Fastest Metal 3D Printer?
Speed or Smoke
Is This U.S. Start-Up Really Building the World’s Fastest Metal 3D Printer?

Precision Additive claims its new PA series hits speeds of 10,000 cm³/h — ten times faster than industry leaders — but is it a breakthrough or just bold marketing?

by Carolyn Schwaar Jan 31, 2026
Featured image of Not Just Another Green: Prusa Launches Škoda Green Filament Collaboration
Official Brand Match
Not Just Another Green: Prusa Launches Škoda Green Filament Collaboration

Prusa partners with Škoda Auto to release "Electric" and "Emerald" greens to your 3D printer in both PLA and PETG.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jan 30, 2026
Building in the Abyss
Jumping the final hurdles of 3D printing underwater,

a team of Cornell Univ. researchers plunged into the next frontier of additive manufacturing with an underwater 3D printer that could redefine maritime construction and infrastructure repair. The process includes specialized concrete "ink" and seafloor sediment as a primary ingredient that's capable of resisting washout while remaining pumpable. A final test slated for March is 3D printing complex underwater arches.

by  Carolyn Schwaar Jan 30, 2026
Source: Cornell Univ.
Featured image of Complete Overview of the Types of 3D Printers
3D Printing Technology Guide
Complete Overview of the Types of 3D Printers

Learn about the 7 main types and more than 20 subtypes of 3D printer technology, including FDM, SLS, MJF, SLA, SLM, and many more methods of additive manufacturing.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jan 29, 2026
Suboptimal Prime
Waking up to support and prime tower failure is a special kind of pain.

This print (the incredible Borderlands 4 "Ripper" mask – Printables) still looks great, even with the errors from so much loose debris thrown around the print volume.

Incidentally, the Snapmaker U1's five-second toolhead swap claim isn't marketing guff – for the most part it is five seconds, depending on when exactly you start the clock. It is quick.

by  Matthew Mensley Jan 29, 2026
Source: All3DP
Featured image of How ExxonMobil Turned to 3D Printing to Solve Its Leaky Part Problem
31-Hour Breakthrough
How ExxonMobil Turned to 3D Printing to Solve Its Leaky Part Problem

Research proves that a 3D printed redesign of a traditional oil industry device can consolidate complex assemblies into a single, high-performance part.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jan 29, 2026
Featured image of No More Midnight Plate Swaps: This Kickstarter Kit Automates Your 3D Printer For Continuous Printing
Automation's Next Frontier
No More Midnight Plate Swaps: This Kickstarter Kit Automates Your 3D Printer For Continuous Printing

While companies like FlyingBear race to automate the desktop FDM workflow, the industry is still searching for the 'gold standard' in reliable, lights-out production.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jan 29, 2026
Featured image of What Is AutoCAD? – Simply Explained
AutoCADically Improve Your Designs!
What Is AutoCAD? – Simply Explained

You've heard about it, but what is AutoCAD? Learn all about the popular CAD giant that brought design software to the masses.

Jan 28, 2026
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