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Featured image of Can Palm Leaf-Filled PLA Filament Compost in Your Backyard?
Leaf it Unproven
Can Palm Leaf-Filled PLA Filament Compost in Your Backyard?

Hembased says its plant-based FDM material is designed to break down in open-air compost, yet scientific analysis and certification details remain unclear.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jul 20, 2026
Weekend Poll
There are many reasons to 3D print.

What's yours?

by  Matthew Mensley Jul 19, 2026
Featured image of The Best Shapeways Alternatives: 7 3D Printing Services Put to the Test
Oodles of Options
The Best Shapeways Alternatives: 7 3D Printing Services Put to the Test

From professional SLS nylon to affordable FDM ASA prints, discover which Shapeways alternatives offer the best service for your models' needs.

by Nutan Jaeger Jul 18, 2026
Cut, Fold, Print
The Snapmaker U1's official enclosure is a $150 add-on.

And won't ship for a few months still. This DIY alternative by Printables user cmh probably costs all of a few dollars, with zero 3D printing necessary. The project is hosted on Printables but the key file is a JPG image, not a 3D model. Scroll on through the project's gallery and you find a JPG with the dimensions and pattern for cutting a foldable bucket lid from a flat sheet of cardboard or corrugated plastic. Super smart. Credit to Hackaday for flagging.

by  Matthew Mensley Jul 17, 2026
Source: cmh, via Printables (remixed)
Featured image of PETG Filament Quick Guide: When to Use It & When Not To
Master Your Materials
PETG Filament Quick Guide: When to Use It & When Not To

Stop treating PETG as simply “stronger PLA.” Discover which projects benefit from its toughness, weather resistance, and slight flexibility, and which are better printed with another material.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jul 17, 2026
Featured image of 3D Printed Seawall Startup Rides a $21M Wave of Investment
Kind Designs’ Rapid Rise
3D Printed Seawall Startup Rides a $21M Wave of Investment

Investors are betting millions on Kind Designs, a startup using large-format concrete printing to turn ordinarily flat coastal barriers into customized infrastructure with habitat features and architectural appeal.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jul 17, 2026
The Shape of Pru
Shapr3D users just got a neat, export-to-slicer option for their models.

The tablet-centric design app (but also available on desktop,) Shapr3D now lets you export your 3D models directly to PrusaSlicer and EasyPrint, for an immediate design-to-print workflow. This is great news not just for owners of Prusa's 3D printers – EasyPrint is Prusa's cloud-based slicer, and it can send prints to many non-Prusa 3D printers via LAN, too. It offers all the essential controls needed to set up and send jobs to your printer, cutting full slicing software out of the picture.

by  Matthew Mensley Jul 17, 2026
Source: Shapr3D (remixed)
Featured image of 3D Printer Broken? Here’s How to Get It Fixed
Support Ticket
3D Printer Broken? Here’s How to Get It Fixed

Manufacturer support, warranties, returns, repair services, and authorized resellers compared. Plus how to choose the fastest route back to printing.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jul 16, 2026
Featured image of 3D Printed Contact Lenses Customized in Just 20 Minutes
20/20 via 3D
3D Printed Contact Lenses Customized in Just 20 Minutes

Researchers have developed an end-to-end digital manufacturing workflow that turns a patient's corneal scan into a customized contact lens with a post-processing technique that smooths printed optics without ever touching them.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jul 15, 2026
Bavaria Gets Bubbly
Meshcast wants to turn your STLs into soap.

Daniel Haag turned us on to the browser tool Meshcast that he created to convert uploaded 3D models into printable molds for candles, soap, resin casting, and more in seconds. We gave it a spin with our decidedly complex Bavaria Statue STL, and, impressively, it produced a mold that appeared ready for soap-making duty. Bavaria soap is now within reach finally solving a problem nobody knew they had. Meshcast also does cookie cutters, stamps, and other printable odds and ends, but the mold generator is the main attraction. It's free for a few downloads, then there's a paid plan.

by  Carolyn Schwaar Jul 15, 2026
Source: Meshcast
Featured image of This Low-Cost 3D Printer Fume Control Achieves 99% Particle-Capture, but Practical Gaps Remain
Enclosed but Exposed
This Low-Cost 3D Printer Fume Control Achieves 99% Particle-Capture, but Practical Gaps Remain

A new study suggests that well-designed nozzle extraction and fully ventilated enclosures can reduce particles released while printing ABS by 99%, but leaves users without a practical safety solution.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jul 14, 2026
Print for a Cause
In late June, Venezuela was hit by its most powerful earthquake in over a century.

The quake has killed and injured thousands and displaced many more, triggering a massive humanitarian crisis. You can help through the IFRC and other verified aid organizations – and, for 48 hours, just by buying filament.

From July 13 to July 15 (8 AM UTC-4), for every sale of Bambu Lab Basic PLA Refills in Red, Yellow, and Blue – the colors of Venezuela's flag – in the U.S. and EU, Bambu Lab will donate an amount equal to each qualifying spool's MSRP to UN Crisis Relief. Use the code "4Venezuela" at checkout to register the donation.

by  Matthew Mensley Jul 13, 2026
Featured image of Did the Metal Filament Bubble Finally Burst? This Kickstarter Printer Project Aims to Restart the Trend
Tempering the Hype
Did the Metal Filament Bubble Finally Burst? This Kickstarter Printer Project Aims to Restart the Trend

Startup Kare 3D just launched a Kickstarter campaign for a high-temp desktop 3D printer that it says can process almost any material.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jul 13, 2026
Featured image of Sovol M1D: Can This $1,199 7-Color IDEX Toolchanger Truly End Filament Waste?
Sponsored Content
Sovol M1D: Can This $1,199 7-Color IDEX Toolchanger Truly End Filament Waste?

Launching soon on Kickstarter from $1,199, the Sovol M1D brings a self-developed IDEX toolchanger system, seven-color capability, and five-second toolhead swaps to desktop FDM.

Jul 13, 2026
Weekend Poll
When did you last grease your leadscrew?

No, that's not a euphemism. User manuals prescribe preventative maintenance schedules that, if we're being honest with ourselves, we don't always follow. Some printers will remind you to grease your rods, rails and screws, but even we're prone to occasionally hitting "remind me later."

Following the last weekend poll about confidence hitting "print" and walking away (itself an interesting three-way split between first-layer-only watchers, remote monitors, and hit "print" and don't look backs) we want to know how many of you maintain your machines to the manufacturer's schedule?

by  Matthew Mensley Jul 12, 2026
Featured image of Biqu’s New Panda Hotend Wizard Helps You Clear Clogged Nozzles Off-Printer
Melt Magic
Biqu’s New Panda Hotend Wizard Helps You Clear Clogged Nozzles Off-Printer

This new accessory lets you recover clogged Bambu Lab hotends without needing to use the printer, but it’s pricey: starting at $139.99.

by Matthew Mensley Jul 11, 2026
Featured image of Model & Sculpt from Your Couch: 13 Best iPad & Android Apps
Making Made Mobile
Model & Sculpt from Your Couch: 13 Best iPad & Android Apps

Ditch your desktop. These 13 iPad and Android design apps let you model, sculpt, and export your 3D creations from anywhere.

Jul 11, 2026
Project Spotlight
You don’t need to spend Space Mouse money for the Space Mouse experience.

Designer HackMan3D’s recently released (open source) Orbit controller offers six degrees of freedom panning and moving your work in 3D applications – think CAD, 3D modelling, the slicer for your 3d printer. It’s fully DIY with a printed housing, and uses inexpensive hall effect joysticks, mechanical keyboard key switches, all controlled with an Arduino Pro Micro. Files available on CrealityCloud and Makerworld, full BOM, firmware, and instructions on GitHub.

by  Matthew Mensley Jul 10, 2026
Source: HackMan3D, via CrealityCloud
Featured image of Insta360 Partners with Bambu Lab and Makerworld for Design Competition, Launches 3D Models of Luna Ultra Camera
Say Cheese
Insta360 Partners with Bambu Lab and Makerworld for Design Competition, Launches 3D Models of Luna Ultra Camera

You can use the official downloadable models of Insta360's new camera to help you design 3D printable accessories, entering them into a design competition to win an assortment of hardware prizes, including cameras and 3D printers.

by Matthew Mensley Jul 10, 2026
Featured image of Bypassing the Supply Chain: US Navy 3D Prints Patches to Fix Jets 50% Faster
Tactical Band-Aids
Bypassing the Supply Chain: US Navy 3D Prints Patches to Fix Jets 50% Faster

The US Navy is testing a 3D printed composite repair method that could cut certain F/A-18 Super Hornet repair times by around 50%, potentially giving maintenance crews a faster way to return grounded aircraft to service.

by Carolyn Schwaar Jul 10, 2026
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