Noted 3D Designer Turns Paid Designs Into Free Downloads

Israeli 3D designer Asher Nahmias, aka Dizingof, has unexpectedly marked many incredible designs as free downloads.

Dizingof is well known in 3D print circles, as his designs, as we said in 2012:

Dizingof’s creations are typically complex, flowing and invariably beautiful. Browsing through his extensive portfolio of dozens of designs, you’ll see vases, jewelry, bowls, lamp shades and a few trays and holders, but mostly it’s just art, amazing mathematical art.

Five years later, those words remain true, as Dizingof’s online shop now boasts, by our count, 498 3D designs. The shop operates by selling you a copy of the STL for you to print on your own equipment, or on a 3D print service. The majority of these designs are priced at only USD$10, a very inexpensive price for such complex and beautiful works. 

Dizingof is a self-taught 3D modeler, and uses a wide variety of mostly open source tools to develop these models. Some of them appear to be mathematically generated, as you might be able to tell from their geometry, while others are simply ingenious applications of 3D modeling tools. 

However, the complexity of many of the designs is such that they could often be challenging for those using desktop 3D printers. In many cases the best option would be to request a professional 3D print in a strong material like nylon or even metal from a 3D print service bureau like i.Materialise or similar operations. 

Dizingof also provides a set of now 70 free downloads. While the designer has always provided some free downloads on his own site as well as Thingiverse, he just freed up a number of new items that were previously paid downloads. 

Among the free designs are several “two color” 3D models, which are a relatively rare thing to find in free 3D model repositories (see example at top). Those equipped with the newly emerging set of good quality multi-material machines should take note of these designs. 

In a post on Twitter, Dizingof explains: 

Makers of the world rejoice! Tons of paid designs turned FREE DOWNLOAD! – Enjoy! 

Why might a designer do this to previously revenue-generating items? There are a couple of possible reasons. 

One might be to shuffle out older designs that no longer generate a lot of revenue. Another could be that Dizingof is hoping to “raise the bar” for free 3D models, as many found in public repositories are of low quality, particularly when compared to Dizingof’s designs. 

But I suspect this move is simply to get some well-deserved buzz about the 3D model collection. The new free downloads will certainly draw more visitors to the shop, and many may discover the scope of Dizingof’s vast collection of amazing objects. And it seems to have worked, as we are indeed writing a story about it. 

Check out these models, especially if you have access to a multi-material 3D printer. 

Via Dizingof