One of the very first personal 3D printer manufacturers was Delta Micro Factory / PP3DP, a division on China’s Tiertime, who produced the widely used Up! 3D printer. Now its successor, the venerable Up! Plus, is to be replaced by a new version, the UP Plus 2. The new 3D printer is styled similar… Continue reading The UP Plus 2
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HYREL Achieves Multi-Part 3D Printing
In almost every 3D printer we’ve seen, even those with multiple heads, only one print head is actually used at a time. First you print the model material, then you print support material, layer by layer, one extruder at a time. But now that’s changed. HYREL, notable for 3D printing clay, Sugru and other… Continue reading HYREL Achieves Multi-Part 3D Printing
3Doodler: CLONED
You always hear about offshore product cloning, but it’s a shock to see them. We were directed to the “Good Luck Buy” site, where we saw what appears to be an almost perfect clone of the famous 3Doodler 3D printing pen: the 3D Printing Pen for 3D Prototype Modeling. 3Doodler, you may recall, recently… Continue reading 3Doodler: CLONED
Pirate3D’s Booty
Pirate3D’s crowdfunded launch of their inexpensive Buccaneer personal 3D printer was a success mere minutes after it opened, but how did it end? Their campaign ended as one of the most successful 3D print launches in history. They achieved USD$1,438,765 of their now-modest-seeming USD$100K goal. Formlabs still holds the record for the biggest crowdfunded… Continue reading Pirate3D’s Booty
Optomec’s Mini Metal Printer
In the world of 3D printing, bigger really is better, but New Mexico-based Optomec plans to take things in a different direction. The company will bring selective laser sintering down to the micro scale with their new Laser Engineered Net Shaping printer. Originally created at Sandia National Labs for use by the military and… Continue reading Optomec’s Mini Metal Printer
MendelMax 2 Now Available
Maker’s Tool Works now offers their new MendelMax 2 personal 3D printer. We wrote about this unit some time ago, but now you can actually buy them direct. Maker’s Tool Works successfully completed a beta test involving over 100 testers, who helped certify and refine the final product. Now this product is available in… Continue reading MendelMax 2 Now Available
MakerBot’s First Post-Stratasys 3D Printer?
What will be the next personal 3D printer from MakerBot, post acquisition by Stratasys? We believe MakerBot’s next 3D printer could be significantly different from previous Replicators. Why? Because there will be huge synergies between the two companies technologies, as both use plastic extrusion processes. Extruded plastic 3D printing was invented by Stratasys… Continue reading MakerBot’s First Post-Stratasys 3D Printer?
The Incredibly Inexpensive Nautilus 3D Printer
A fundraising campaign has launched for the Nautilus 3D printer. It’s a resin-based DLP printer, using a process similar to that used by Formlabs and 3D Systems. The Nautilus uses a DLP projection system to fuse each layer of photo-curable resin. The Nautilus was developed by a team of four from Beijing who were… Continue reading The Incredibly Inexpensive Nautilus 3D Printer
World’s Largest 3D printer built in China
Dalian University of Technology has announced the development of the world’s largest 3D printer. The massive laser sintering 3D printer has a build volume of 1.8m3 and can reduce print processing time by some 35%. In addition, the printer’s “contour scanning” printing technique can also reduce manufacturing costs by 40% when compared to other… Continue reading World’s Largest 3D printer built in China
Could the Buccaneer Raise USD$1M?
The launch of Pirate3D’s inexpensive and classy Buccaneer personal 3D printer on Kickstarter was explosive, raising their initial funding goal within mere minutes. Now, weeks later into the campaign, they’re approaching USD$900K in funding and seemingly within reach of the magic USD$1M mark. Will they make it? We think so. The… Continue reading Could the Buccaneer Raise USD$1M?
A 3D Printer From Togo
Yes, Togo. It’s the home of Afate Gnikou of WoeLab, a technology incubator in the small African country. Gnikou has launched a crowdfunding project on Ulule to raise funds to begin building a Togo-designed personal 3D printer. The goal of the project is to design a 3D printer that can be built from commonly… Continue reading A 3D Printer From Togo
Pirate3D’s Buccaneer Sets Sail
Pirate3D released their incredibly inexpensive personal 3D printer for pre-orders last week and it seems to have been a massive success. Their Kickstarter fundraising goal was USD$100,000 – and it was met within mere minutes of the launch. As of this writing, the project has raised well over USD$400,000, putting Pirate3D in the select… Continue reading Pirate3D’s Buccaneer Sets Sail
Get a Buccaneer 3D Printer for Only USD$247!
Pirate3D is launching their super-inexpensive 3D printer today through Kickstarter. The startup company’s first product, the Buccaneer, is a filament extrusion machine they bill as the “world’s most affordable 3D printer”. The list price of the Buc’ will be USD$347, but a “very limited number” of them will be available for only USD$247, which… Continue reading Get a Buccaneer 3D Printer for Only USD$247!
MakerBot – Autodesk Discount Available
If you happen to be interested in purchasing a MakerBot Replicator 2 personal 3D printer and a premium membership in Autodesk’s highly useful 123D apps, you’re in luck: there’s a discount available. If you upgrade from the free version of 123D to premium level, you’ll receive a USD$40 discount on purchase of a MakerBot… Continue reading MakerBot – Autodesk Discount Available
Mataerial Offers a New Way to 3D Print
Virtually all 3D printers today use a layered approach, where the object being printed is “sliced” into layers, or horizontal planes, which are printed using whichever technology is at hand. But a project by researchers from the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia and Joris Laarman Lab proves there is another way. The Mataerial… Continue reading Mataerial Offers a New Way to 3D Print
BotObjects Tells More – But Not Enough
You may recall the mysterious launch of the ProDesk30 from BotObjects the other week? It was said to be an amazing Full Color personal 3D plastic extrusion printer. Many observers were highly skeptical of this claim, particularly because little evidence or even specifications had been released by BotObjects. Now that’s changed. A bit. … Continue reading BotObjects Tells More – But Not Enough
The Zortrax M200 3D Printer
Zortrax is launching their new M200 personal 3D printer on Kickstarter, with a focus on ease of use and aesthetics. They say they “want 3D printing to be a great experience.” Unlike typical filament-based 3D printers that use ABS and PLA plastic, the M200 is specifically designed to print ABS, PC-ABS and Nylon. … Continue reading The Zortrax M200 3D Printer
The Form 1 Ships!
Formlabs has now shipped its first actual production units of their breakthrough resin-based personal 3D printer, the Form 1. The USD$3,299 high-resolution device was launched on Kickstarter some months ago and raised close to USD$3M, a record amount for a technology item. Based on this alone, the Form 1 is a highly desired machine… Continue reading The Form 1 Ships!
The ProDesk3D From BotObjects – In Full Color?
New York City startup BotObjects announced what could be the first full-color plastic 3D printer, the ProDesk3D. While their stealthy launch and impressive claims have generated some buzz, they have also generated major controversy. First, what’s the ProDesk3D? It’s a desktop 3D printer, suitable for consumer or office use. It prints extruded PLA or… Continue reading The ProDesk3D From BotObjects – In Full Color?
Pirate3D Reveals Their Buccaneer
They may be called “Pirate3D”, but their new personal 3D printer, the Buccaneer, is no criminal. The Buccaneer’s design seems significantly different than other personal 3D printers. The most obvious difference is a very refined external look. The shiny case is masterfully simple – it doesn’t even have a single button. We believe in… Continue reading Pirate3D Reveals Their Buccaneer
D-Shape’s Plans
Enrico Dini is the founder of D-Shape, pioneers in large-scale 3D printing using concrete-like materials. They’ve developed a technique for solidifying sand into a kind of sandstone using a chlorine-based fluid. The 3D printer is truly massive and must be erected on the building site – or else you’d better hire trucks and cranes… Continue reading D-Shape’s Plans
Get Ready For Real Chocolate 3D Printing
At a recent conference 3D Systems President and CEO Avi Reichental spoke of his company’s efforts to produce a true chocolate 3D printer. While the project was classed as “Not Soon”, it does indicate significant interest in 3D food printing. We also understand that 3D Systems’ main competitor, Stratasys, has applied for a couple of… Continue reading Get Ready For Real Chocolate 3D Printing
3D Systems Rebrands Their Color 3D Printers
After 3D Systems’ acquisition of ZCorp, they found themselves owners of the Zprinter line of the only full-color 3D printers available. These machines continued to be improved and new variations added up until this week. What happened this week? 3D Systems has rebranded the entire Zprinter line into new ProJet models. No more Zprinters!… Continue reading 3D Systems Rebrands Their Color 3D Printers
The EZ3D Desktop Printer
Another 3D printer project is listed on Kickstarter: The EZ3D Desktop Printer. The project expires today and unfortunately it appears that it will not achieve its fundraising goal of USD$25,000, having raised only about half of that. Nevertheless this printer has some interesting features that we thought we’d point out. The EZ3D surprisingly… Continue reading The EZ3D Desktop Printer
The Gigabot
When the name of the product is “Gigabot”, it’s not hard to imagine their key feature: size. From Texas-based re:3D, the Gigabot has one of the largest print volumes we’ve seen in a personal 3D printer: a whopping 600x600x600mm (that’s two FEET cubed, for you Imperial measurers). The Gigabot is capable of layer sizes… Continue reading The Gigabot
The mUVe 1 3D Printer
With the expiration of key patents around photo-curable 3D printer techniques, we’ve seen several new resin-based personal 3D printer projects. Now another has emerged, the mUVe 1 from mUVe 3D, created as a part-time project by maker Michigan-based Dean Piper. The mUVe 1 is the first product from mUVe 3D, now seeking initial funding via… Continue reading The mUVe 1 3D Printer
The RigidBot 3D Printer
Another 3D printer startup has shown up on Kickstarter: The RigidBot by Michael Lundwall of Utah. As there are so many small 3D printer startups recently, any new entrants must distinguish themselves from the rest of the pack. How does RigidBot do that? They have a couple of interesting advantages, one being expandability. They… Continue reading The RigidBot 3D Printer
Meet NEMO, The 3D Water Printer
We’ve been given exclusive pre-public access to a new 3D printer project that could appear on crowdfunding sites very soon: NEMO, the 3D Water Printer. The project is being kept behind closed doors as much as possible, but we were permitted to publish the image above showing a portion of NEMO’s unique internals. We… Continue reading Meet NEMO, The 3D Water Printer
The B9Creator Returns
Readers may recall the hugely successful B9Creator 3D printer kit Kickstarter project last year: it raised a ridiculous USD$513,422 to develop a revolutionary personal 3D printer based on photo-cured resin technology. The project was obviously successful and a number of “version 1’s” were sent to happy customers. But now founder Michael Joyce has returned… Continue reading The B9Creator Returns
A 3D Printing Dreambox
Every school and office should have a Dreambox. It’s literally a 3D printing service in a box. A box that looks suspiciously like a vending machine. The machine works much like a 3D print service: you upload a 3D model from your computer or insert a USB stick into the Dreambox, which then sets… Continue reading A 3D Printing Dreambox
The Adafruit-Flavored MakerBot
Do you build electronics projects? Do you 3D print objects? Do you print 3D cases for your electronics projects? If you answered yes to any of those questions, especially the last one, you’ll be interested in a fascinating collaborative offer from electronics kits distributor Adafruit and personal 3D printer manufacturer MakerBot. The two companies… Continue reading The Adafruit-Flavored MakerBot
Multi-Armed Bioprinting
Researchers at the University of Iowa College of Engineering’s Center for Computer Aided Design have developed a rather interesting prototype bioprinter, capable of printing living tissue. The device, made by Ibrahim Ozbolat, assistant professor of mechanical and industrial engineering and doctoral student Howard Chen, does something no other 3D printer can do, whether for bioprinting… Continue reading Multi-Armed Bioprinting
A New Industrial RepRap Emerges
Designed by brothers Jonas and Simon Kühling, the Kühling&Kühling Industrial 3D printer is a true RepRap. Incorporating many features of previous RepRap incarnations, the Kühling&Kühling advances the state of the art by adding a suite of new features that can help create better prints. Among these new features are: A heated chamber capable of… Continue reading A New Industrial RepRap Emerges
MakerBot’s Replicator 2X Ships
MakerBot’s latest and greatest personal 3D printer is now in the mail – if you ordered one, that is. The Replicator 2X, announced at CES in January has emerged from manufacturing. Coincidentally, MakerBot has also released version 2.0 of MakerWare, the software used to drive the MakerBot. The 2X differs from its sibling, the… Continue reading MakerBot’s Replicator 2X Ships
The Mysterious Pirate3D Printer
We’ve been peeking at the website of Pirate3D, a new startup attempting to build an inexpensive 3D printer. The Palo Alto, California-based company is not revealing much about their project. We don’t know the release date for the printer (although you can pre-order one in April). We don’t know the price of the unit.… Continue reading The Mysterious Pirate3D Printer
Three Colors For Your RepRap
Many readers may have a RepRap 3D printer, but most of them will print in only a single color at a time as they have but one extruder. Now you can purchase a personal 3D printer RepRap kit capable of printing not two but THREE colors. RepRapPro is now selling their “Tricolour Mendel 3D… Continue reading Three Colors For Your RepRap
3Doodler – A 3D Pen Printer
It’s billed as the first “3D printing pen”, and we believe it is indeed the first handheld 3D printer that you can purchase. Wait, “handheld 3D printer”? That’s precisely what it is. The device is held in your hand and slowly waved through 3D space. As it moves, it extrudes melted thermoplastic, just like… Continue reading 3Doodler – A 3D Pen Printer
Micrometer Scale 3D Printing
German-based Nanoscribe announced a new micrometer-scale 3D printer, the Photonic Professional GT, billed as the “world’s fastest commercially available 3D printer for micro- and nanostructures”. The Photonic Professional GT uses a highly accurate, mirror-guided laser system to polymerize photosensitive material into solid objects of incredibly tiny size. The machine is capable of producing fine… Continue reading Micrometer Scale 3D Printing
Three Dead 3D Printers
With numerous inexpensive 3D printers continually emerging, many won’t survive. But the latest wave of failures is not the first. Indeed, several bold attempts at creating revolutionary 3D printers came and went before the days of crowd funding. Today we’ll remember three notable 3D printers of the past. Desktop Factory was the original commercial personal… Continue reading Three Dead 3D Printers
Type A Machines
Type A Machines produces the Series 1 personal 3D printer. It’s claim to fame? Bigness. They say: We were tired of building things that could fit into little boxes so we designed the Series 1 to fit really large objects without a drastic increase in overall machine size. Forget having to redesign your ideas… Continue reading Type A Machines
The Robo Personal 3D Printer
Yes, Robo is another one of those new 3D printers that appear on crowdfunding sites, but what makes it different? For one thing you’ll immediately notice that it’s got a very attractive case – and that’s just the start. Each new filament-based 3D printer startup focuses on a particular aspect to make them stand… Continue reading The Robo Personal 3D Printer
The Future is 3-D Counts Down
We’ve been looking at The Future Is 3-D’s website and found they’ve been working on a new model to join their existing Glacier 3D printer: it’s called the “Avalanche”. We don’t know much about it, other than there’s a countdown page to the launch. We do know that their existing machine, the Glacier, is… Continue reading The Future is 3-D Counts Down
The List of Personal 3D Printers, 2013
After updating our resources page, we realized we had produced a useful list of personal 3D printers. If you’re in the mood for 3D printer shopping, we suggest you try our list. It includes links to companies offering low-cost pre-assembled, personal 3D printers. It does not include 3D printer kit options, which you can… Continue reading The List of Personal 3D Printers, 2013
New Space-Based 3D Printer
You might not realize it, but there are actually two companies pursuing asteroid mining today. One is Planetary Resources, backed by notables such as James Cameron, Larry Page, Eric Schmidt and more. The other company is Deep Space Industries. And they’re making a space-based 3D printer. Their purpose is to seek out asteroids… Continue reading New Space-Based 3D Printer
iRobot Moving Into 3D Printing?
A very detailed patent was recently issued to iRobot and Raytheon for a “Robot Fabricator”. iRobot is well-known for their Roomba series of household cleaning ‘bots, but they’re also manufacturers of many commercial and military robots. Raytheon is a long-time high-tech industrial focusing on military and electronics markets. Together they bring a huge amount… Continue reading iRobot Moving Into 3D Printing?
A DIY BioPrinter
Not satisfied with printing in plastic? Why not print ACTUAL LIVING CELLS? You can today if you can execute the Instructable created by BioCurious, which you can build for the incredibly low cost of USD$150. Simply acquire the necessary parts and follow all the assembly steps. This hack involves combining parts from a… Continue reading A DIY BioPrinter
The DeltaMaker 3D Printer
Aha! Another Kickstarter project has launched the DeltaMaker 3D printer. Recent 3D printer launches on Kickstarter have suffered from an inability to distinguish themselves from each other, but we believe DeltaMaker may not have that issue. Why? Because they’re using a very different design for their device: instead of the traditional 3-axis rail design,… Continue reading The DeltaMaker 3D Printer
The MendelMax 2.0 3D Printer
Open source 3D printers tend to evolve quickly, and the MendelMax personal 3D printer is no exception. Version 2.0 was recently announced by MakersToolWorks, the folks behind the MendelMax line. The Max2.0 is actually available now in kit or assembled form from MakersToolWorks – but it’s a beta version. The beta testers will “receive… Continue reading The MendelMax 2.0 3D Printer
A Bit More on the CubeX 3D Printer
At CES we discussed the design of 3D System’s new CubeX personal 3D printer with Ian Adkins, the original developer of the BFB line of 3D printers. Adkins now works for 3D Systems after Bits From Bytes was acquired a few years ago. It turns out there are a number of subtle improvements and… Continue reading A Bit More on the CubeX 3D Printer
Examining The Form 1’s Output
At CES we were able to get a very close look at the Form 1’s printed results, as Formlabs had several prints on display. (Click to enlarge the images for a really good look.) We found the accuracy to be outstanding for a printer at this price range (USD$3,299), exceeding typical (and better) plastic… Continue reading Examining The Form 1’s Output
The Form 1, Live
At CES we spent some quality time with Formlabs Co-Founder Maxim Lobovsky. After we sorted out the bizarre food ordering procedure at a funky Japanese burger food truck, we talked about Formlab’s experience so far. As a startup company, they’re heavily concerned with focusing on delivering a quality product. Lobovsky says, “Everyone has ideas… Continue reading The Form 1, Live
The Cube’s Been Updated
3D Systems’ consumer-level 3D printer has been updated. The friendly-looking Cube of 2013 includes several improvements that should make this machine even more attractive than its 2012 ancestor. The original cube could print only PLA plastic. While we love PLA, there are times you do need to print ABS plastic, particularly when you need… Continue reading The Cube’s Been Updated
An Afina Update
We had a very hard time finding Afinia at CES; they seemed to have the absolute worst booth location of any vendor – at the almost deserted corner at the far end of the top floor of the south building. Almost no foot traffic existed, which while not the greatest for Afina, permitted us to… Continue reading An Afina Update
MakerBot’s New Replicator 2X
MakerBot has announced it’s latest personal 3D printer at CES. The new device has been hinted at for some time now, but it was revealed publicly for the first time by Bre Pettis himself at CES. The new device is optimized for printing ABS plastic, whereas its partner, the Replicator 2 (no “X”) was,… Continue reading MakerBot’s New Replicator 2X
The New CubeX 3D Printer
We wondered what would happen to Bits From Bytes (or “BFB”) as they were known. They last updated their 3D printer line with the 3DTouch about a year ago. Would they announce a new printer in 2013? Yes and no, it seems. Parent company 3D Systems announced the new CubeX personal 3D printer, the… Continue reading The New CubeX 3D Printer
The EchoRap 3D Printer
The EchoRap Rev1 is another variation on the standard RepRap design with the unique feature of using tubes instead of threaded rods. The design permits a very large build volume by simply using longer tubes. Designed by Robotic Sequencing of Montreal’s ÉchoFab, the EchoRap is a very inexpensive way to get started in 3D… Continue reading The EchoRap 3D Printer
The Portabee 3D Printer
You might guess from the name of the “Portabee” that its unique feature is that it’s portable. And you’d be right. The Portabee is a RepRap-derived plastic extrusion personal 3D printer, sold in kit form for the definitely low price of USD$499. You’ll need 3mm filament to use the Portabee, and you’ll print… Continue reading The Portabee 3D Printer
The CB-Printer
There were a number of new 3D printers on display at Euromold, including this one, the CB-Printer. Designed by Bartosz Cieluch in Poznan, Poland, the CB-Printer is targeted at “domestic use and for small and medium size businesses”. The CB-Printer is a RepRap-style device with open sides. The distinguishing feature is solid engineering using… Continue reading The CB-Printer
The CeraFab 7500 3D Printer
We spoke with Dr. Martin Schwentenwein, who’s associated with Lithoz, a new Austrian company based in Vienna that has just developed a brand new ceramic 3D printer, the CeraFab 7500. This fridge-sized device is specifically designed to 3D print ceramic materials. Lithoz’s LCM technology prints Objects by repeatedly photo-curing whole layers within a… Continue reading The CeraFab 7500 3D Printer
Inside the Mcor IRIS
At Euromold 2012 we managed to get deep inside the Mcor IRIS color 3D paper printer. This device uses standard paper as it’s build material. Each layer (or page in this case) is formed by cutting the outline of each page appropriately. That’s perfectly understandable, but how do they print in color? The answer… Continue reading Inside the Mcor IRIS
The Highly Defined 3D Systems ProJet 3500 HDmax
We took a very close look at 3D Systems’ new professional 3D printer, the ProJet 3500 HDmax. This new 3D printer is quite an update over its predecessors, beyond the rather nice exterior rework. It definitely does not look like any other ProJet. What else has changed? The internal change mainly is the processing… Continue reading The Highly Defined 3D Systems ProJet 3500 HDmax
Objet’s New 1000
Perhaps the “biggest” announcement at Euromold was Objet’s new “Wide Format” 3D printer, the Objet 1000. Indeed, it is truly massive, as you can see in the image above. Essentially it’s the same as its smaller siblings, except everything is oversized, notably the print volume, which is a staggering 1000 x 800 x 500mm.… Continue reading Objet’s New 1000
Solidoodle Turns 3
Solidoodle has announced a ten 3 version of their personal 3D printer. This very “solid” 3D printer was designed by aerospace engineers to ensure a very robust product. How robust is it? Check this: The all-steel frame is so strong, in fact, that a 200lb man can literally stand on top of the machine… Continue reading Solidoodle Turns 3
The 2BEIGH3 3D Printer Prints Nylon
The 2BEIGH3 is a 3D printer – but it’s also a CNC machine. This unique (and experimental) design permits both functions within the same device by undergoing a 1 hour conversion process. For those wanting both kinds of machine, this could be your answer. Normally we’d provide the specs for a 3D printer, but… Continue reading The 2BEIGH3 3D Printer Prints Nylon
3D Systems’ VisiJet Jewel Automates Jewelry Manufacturing
3D Systems announced the immediate availability of VisiJet Jewel, a new specialized material formulated for high volume jewelry production. Developed expressly for use with the ProJet 6000 and 7000 professional 3D printers, VisiJet Jewel allows manufacturers to produce master models for direct casting of cost effective jewelry with unparalleled detail, accuracy and quality, in hours… Continue reading 3D Systems’ VisiJet Jewel Automates Jewelry Manufacturing
Form 1 Spotted!
The folks at Engadget spotted the elusive Form 1 resin-based personal 3D printer in the wild at London’s 3D Printshow and managed to capture a short video of it in action. In the video you can see the machine’s laser fusing each layer of an exquisite 3D print, slowly emerging from the photo-curable resin.… Continue reading Form 1 Spotted!
PandaBot Succeeds – and Fails
We wondered what might happen to the Toronto-based project attempting to produce a user-friendly personal 3D printer. Their Kickstarter campaign languished and didn’t seem to have the momentum to make to their target, and it seems they didn’t. Their campaign was abruptly closed with a total slightly south of USD$40K. That’s the bad news.… Continue reading PandaBot Succeeds – and Fails
Will PandaBot Make It?
We’re watching the PandaBot 3D printer fundraising campaign closely and we’re wondering if the project will reach its goal of USD$50,000. Currently they’re running over USD$10,000 short with over a week to go. If you read through the comments on their Kickstarter page, you’ll encounter some controversy surrounding the print quality and ability of… Continue reading Will PandaBot Make It?
MCOR Rolls Out the Matrix 300+
MCOR announced their new Matrix 300+ paper-based 3D printer. This device is similar to the 300, but offers improved performance in how the models are constructed. They’ve included a new feature called “Selectable Layer Thickness”, in which you could print in either “Draft” or “Presentation”. We suspect what might be happening here is that… Continue reading MCOR Rolls Out the Matrix 300+
PandaBot is on Kickstarter
Toronto-based Panda Robotics has finally launched their first personal 3D printer, the PandaBot, on Kickstarter. They’re raising funds for their first big production run, a modest USD$50,000. In their video, Panda Robotics’ Design Engineer Liav Koren explains their goal is to produce a unit suitable for anyone to have on their desk. This means… Continue reading PandaBot is on Kickstarter
The Ultra-Bot 3D Printer
The Ultra-Bot is yet another Kickstarter project producing a unique 3D printer. This one is already successful, raising over 5x its goal of USD$7,500. Project creator William Steele of Indiana did indeed do something very unique on this project. No, he didn’t invent or incorporate a new technology. No, he didn’t make something incredibly… Continue reading The Ultra-Bot 3D Printer
The Incredible Form 1 3D Printer
You heard the rumors, as did we. Formlabs has been working on a top secret “revolutionary” personal 3D printer and today it’s unveiled for your consideration. We consider the new Form 1 3D printer to be a very important step in the development of personal 3D printing, and something you’ll want to check out. … Continue reading The Incredible Form 1 3D Printer
The Massive Kamermaker 3D Printer
Unveiled this month, the Kamermaker 3D printer must be one of the largest RepRap-technology based devices yet. How big is it? Let’s just say that the exterior case was originally a standard 20 ft metal container! How big is its build envelope? Well, normally we quote build envelopes in millimeters, but this goes well… Continue reading The Massive Kamermaker 3D Printer
MakerBot’s 4th Gen 3D Printer: The Replicator 2
We waited nine months and guess what happens? It’s another new 3D printer from MakerBot, their most awesome device yet: the Replicator 2. Visually, the Rep2 appears structurally similar to its predecessor, the un-numbered Replicator. But there’s a major difference: The Rep2 is made from “Industrial strength powder coated steel” painted a sleek black.… Continue reading MakerBot’s 4th Gen 3D Printer: The Replicator 2
Formlabs’ Secret Project To Be Revealed
Readers may recall a post from last year in which we introduced the mysterious Formlabs, a startup by three folks from the famous MIT Media Lab, who evidently were working on “something”. Something interesting to the 3D printing space, apparently. Now we see their website has suddenly livened up a bit with the words: … Continue reading Formlabs’ Secret Project To Be Revealed
ExOne’s M-FLEX 3D Printing System
ExOne announced a new metal 3D printer, the M-FLEX 3D Printing System. This device is capable of printing metal parts within a rather large build chamber of 400mm x 250mm x 250mm (15.75 x 9.8 x 9.8 inches). The M-FLEX prints in metal, but it appears it will be able to do a lot… Continue reading ExOne’s M-FLEX 3D Printing System
The HYREL 3D Printer
Another KickStarter project is launching an inexpensive 3D printer. It’s the HYREL 3D Printer by Daniel Hutchison of Alpharetta, Georgia. There are so many similar crowd funded 3D printing projects up at the moment it’s becoming difficult to distinguish between them. So what’s different about the HYREL? It’s fully assembled, calibrated and tested,… Continue reading The HYREL 3D Printer
The PandaBot
Yet another 3D printer startup company is launching. Panda Robotics of Seattle/Toronto is developing the eyponomously named “PandaBot”. PandaBot is focused as a consumer-oriented product and thus includes a number of features to make it robust and visually attractive. They say: Our printer’s materials and aesthetics were chosen to ensure that our end product… Continue reading The PandaBot
The Eventorbot 3D Printer
Yet another innovative 3D printer has been announced: The Eventorbot Open Source 3D Printer by maker Duy Dang. Be warned, though, this is not an assembled unit; it is not even a kit but instead is a complete blueprint and parts list, including 3D models of all the parts you can print on your… Continue reading The Eventorbot 3D Printer
The Lunavast XG2 3D Printer Kit
The Lunavast XG2 is a kit to build a resin-based personal 3D printer. The XG2 uses DLP technology to project a pattern onto the surface of a vat of resin to progressively solidify each layer. The XG2 kit does not include the critical DLP projector, which can easily be obtained almost anywhere at low… Continue reading The Lunavast XG2 3D Printer Kit
3D Systems Announces the ProJet 5000
There’s another big dog on the corner and its name is the ProJet 5000. It’s the latest production 3D printer from 3D Systems, offering “maximum productivity in the factory or office”, with a “typical accuracy of 0.025-0.050mm (0.001-0.002 inch) per inch of part dimension “. This device doesn’t just look big on the outside;… Continue reading 3D Systems Announces the ProJet 5000
Is That A MakerBot? Or a TangiBot?
You have to look closely to tell the difference, because the TangiBot is very similar to a MakerBot Replicator. Extremely similar. In fact, it’s literally a clone. Wait, what? How could the fine Replicator be cloned? It’s a project by Mechanical Engineer Matt Strong of Utah that’s currently on Kickstarter. Strong seeks USD$500,000 to… Continue reading Is That A MakerBot? Or a TangiBot?
The Series 1 From Type A Machines
Type “A” personalities are known to be leaders, sometimes with an aggressive approach to life. San Francisco-based Type A Machines may take a bit of that attitude with their new product, the Series 1. It’s a personal 3D printer whose design takes it to another level. The Series 1 is a fully assembled unit,… Continue reading The Series 1 From Type A Machines
The Second Generation Imagine 3D Printer
Essential Dynamics has announced a new version of their non-plastic 3D printer to replace their first model. The Imagine 3D printer is a little different from most commonly available personal 3D printers. It’s an extrusion based device that doesn’t use melted plastic as its material. Instead the Imagine uses any extrudable substance by mechanically… Continue reading The Second Generation Imagine 3D Printer
The Stone Spray 3D Printer
This is interesting: a sand-powered 3D printer called The Stone Spray Project. Created by Anna Kulik, Inder Shergill and Petr Novikov of the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia, this robotic-arm device mixes plain old sand with a liquid binder to gradually create arbitrary shapes out of sand, like the sand stool pictured above. … Continue reading The Stone Spray 3D Printer
Pwdr: An Open Source Powder-Based 3D Printer
While the first open source personal 3D printers were plastic extrusion-based and recently we’ve seen several resin-based open source 3D printers emerge, we now see yet another 3D printing process appear in open source form: powder-based 3D printing. The open source Pwdr project includes design for hardware and software to build and operate a… Continue reading Pwdr: An Open Source Powder-Based 3D Printer
Leapfrog’s 3D Printers
Leapfrog offers not one, but two different low-cost 3D printers: the Creatr and the Xeed. First, let’s check out the Creatr. It’s a USD$1500 entry level personal 3D printer that is fully assembled out of beautiful laser-cut aluminum panels. It comes with a single extruder, but an alternate dual-extruder version is available for USD$1850.… Continue reading Leapfrog’s 3D Printers
The Afinia H-Series 3D Printer
Yet another low-cost 3D printer has suddenly appeared on the market: the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer, produced by Afina, which appears to be a division of Minnesota-based Microboards LLC, who specialize in printing solutions of various kinds. Located in Chanhassen, Minnesota, they are only a few short miles from Stratasys headquarters. Coincidence? The relevant… Continue reading The Afinia H-Series 3D Printer
The Monolith 3D Printer
With a name like “Monolith”, you’d expect this 3D printer to be big – and you won’t be disappointed. The Monolith, developed by Acme Design Co., is one of the largest low-cost 3D printers we’ve seen. It also seems to be one of the shiniest. How big is it? What material does it consume?… Continue reading The Monolith 3D Printer
Solidscape Launches Next Generation 3D Printing System
Solidscape, Inc. announced the launch of the 3ZPRO 3D printer for direct manufacturing of wax patterns. With one-touch simplicity, the fully automated 3ZPRO printer brings the power of high-precision 3D printing to the office desktop and retail environments. Read More at Engineering.com
The Folding 3D Printer
There was once a time when your 3D printer arrived as bags of teeny parts that you had to carefully assemble over a weekend. Then there came a time when your 3D printer would arrive fully assembled. Now is the time when your 3D printer can arrive folded. Folded? Yes, folded. Maker Emmanuel… Continue reading The Folding 3D Printer
3D Printer Releases at RAPID 2012
At the SME’s RAPID 2012 conference and exposition, four new 3D printers were announced by Objet, Mcor, envisionTEC and 3D Systems. These systems cover the whole gamut: tiny 3D printers to big parts and parts in full color to parts with advanced materials. View the Video at Engineering.com
A Real Robot 3D Printer
The folks at Hackaday found a 190 pound experimental 3D printer made from a scrap industrial robot arm – and it actually works. Made by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute undergrad and maker extraordinary Dane Kouttron, this project required an enormous amount of effort to convert the surplus robot arm into a working 3D printer. The… Continue reading A Real Robot 3D Printer
Another Open Source Resin 3D Printer: Sedgwick
We’ve uncovered another resin-based 3D printer project. The “Sedgwick Open Source 3D DLP Printer” by Ron Light is now crowd funding on Kickstarter with the very precise goal of USD$24,750 by July 14th. So far the project has had limited success raising funds, but there is plenty of time left to achieve their goal. … Continue reading Another Open Source Resin 3D Printer: Sedgwick
Matt Underwood’s 3D Vision
Manufacturing engineer Matt Underwood’s Kickstarter project is the Vision 3D printer. Yes, it’s another RepRap variant, but with quite a few interesting improvements. Underwood observed that while many inexpensive 3D printer kits are available they are typically difficult and time consuming to build, making them beyond the reach of non-technical mortals. He set out… Continue reading Matt Underwood’s 3D Vision