All articles
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Guides
Variable Layer Height: How Adaptive Slicing Gets Better Surface Quality Without the Time Penalty
Adaptive or variable layer height lets slicers use thin layers where they matter and thick layers where they don't. The result is better surface quality at nearly the same print time.
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Materials
Glass Fiber vs Carbon Fiber Filament: Which Reinforcement Is Right for Your Application?
Both add stiffness and reduce weight compared to base filaments. But GF and CF have different mechanical profiles, abrasion demands, and cost structures that make them suited to different tasks.
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Guides
Threading 3D Prints: Printed Threads, Heat-Set Inserts, and Captured Nuts
Bolting 3D printed parts together reliably requires understanding when printed threads work, when heat-set inserts are worth it, and when a captured nut is the right call.
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Guides
Resin Printing Safety: Ventilation, PPE, and Proper Disposal — What You Actually Need
Photopolymer resin contains skin sensitizers and volatile acrylate monomers. Setting up a safe workspace isn't optional — here's exactly what's required and why.
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Guides
Living Hinges and Flex Joints: Designing Bendable Features Directly Into FDM Prints
A living hinge folds thousands of times without a fastener. In FDM, making it work requires specific geometry, the right material, and a print orientation that isn't obvious.
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Guides
Designing and Printing Watertight Parts: Vases, Containers, and Plumbing Fittings
FDM prints aren't watertight by default. Layer gaps, infill voids, and perimeter seams all leak. Here's how to close them — in the slicer, the design, and post-processing.
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Guides
First-Time 3D Printer Setup: From Unboxing to First Successful Print
New printer, blank slate. The gap between unboxing and a clean first print is narrower than it used to be — but getting there still requires understanding a few non-obvious steps.
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Guides
Ironing in FDM: The Slicer Setting That Makes Flat Surfaces Glass-Smooth
Ironing passes a nearly-dry nozzle over the top layer after it's printed, remelting the surface into a flat, glossy finish. Here's how it works and when to use it.
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Guides
Designing for Strength: How Wall Count, Infill, and Print Orientation Determine Part Performance
A 3D printed part's strength isn't fixed at purchase — it's determined by your design choices, slicer settings, and how you orient the model. Here's what actually matters.
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Materials
Tri-Color Silk PLA: Multicolor Gradients Without an AMS or Tool Changer
Tri-color and multi-gradient silk PLA spools produce shifting rainbow effects from a single extruder. Here's what's actually happening and how to get the best results.
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Industry
How Hollywood Uses 3D Printing for Props and Practical Effects
From hero props to breakaway stunt duplicates, additive manufacturing has fundamentally changed how film and TV productions fabricate physical objects on set.
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Printers
Bambu Lab A1 Combo Review: The Full-Size A1 with AMS Lite Finds Its Audience
The A1 Combo sits between the A1 Mini and the P1S — a bed-slinger with multicolor capability aimed at makers who want a larger bed without stepping up to a CoreXY machine.
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