Design your own 3d print

New 3D printer? Here's how to create your own printables

Recently I got the chance to spend some time with a Micro 3D Printer, my first foray into the world of turning a spool of plastic filament into, well, just about anything.

I had lots of fun downloading existing designs from sites like Pinshape and Thingiverse, but eventually I wanted to create objects of my own. Unfortunately, I don't have a degree in CAD or access to any kind of 3D-design software.

Good news: Turns out you don't need either one. Autodesk's Tinkercad is a free Web-based design tool that enables you to create 3D objects, then download those creations in a printer-friendly format. Here's how to get started.

Step 1: Head to Tinkercad and sign up for a free account using Facebook, Twitter or your e-mail address.

Step 2: The service will immediately walk you through a lesson to help you learn basic navigation, followed by another lesson that teaches camera controls, and so on. It's a good idea to go through all of these, just to familiarize yourself with the environment.

Enlarge Image Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET

Step 3: When you're ready to create your own object, return to the Tinkercad dashboard, then click Create New Design. The tool will immediately send you to the design page, complete with a randomly assigned (and often amusing, like Tremendous Snaget-Fulffy) name for your project. You can change the name by clicking Design > Properties, though this can happen at any point along the way.

Step 4: Now it's time to start assembling your object. The toolbar on the right side is home to a wide assortment of prefab shapes you can drag to the workplane and modify as needed. (You can also import existing SVG (2D) or STL (3D) shapes if you have any.) For purposes of our tutorial, click Geometric, then drag the Hexagonal Prism to your workplane.

Enlarge Image Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET

Step 5: Notice that the shape has five white "handles": one at each corner and one in the center at the top. When you mouse over any of them, you'll see corresponding measurements appear. Click and drag any of the corners to resize the prism in that direction; click and drag and center one to adjust the height. (The thing that looks like a black teardrop above the center handle is used to raise and lower the object relative to the workplane.)

Enlarge Image Screenshot by Rick Broida/CNET

Step 6: As you add and modify more objects, remember the size of your 3D printer's print bed and build accordingly. When you're done, click Design > Download for 3D Printing and you'll immediately get an STL file you can load into your printer. (As you'll see, Tinkercad also has options for Minecraft versions, ordering 3D prints and uploading to Thingiverse.)

And that's all there is to it. This is a great place to start creating 3D objects to print.

Before you get back to it, here are some quick tips for the Tinkercad beginner:

Use your mouse wheel to quickly zoom in and out.
Click and hold the right mouse button, then move your mouse to change the viewing angle.
After selecting an option, you'll see an Inspector window. Click the Hole option to make that shape "pass through" any solid shape. That's how you would, for example, create a cylindrical hole down the center of your prism.
To make finer adjustments to object placement, click the Snap grid pull-down and choose a number smaller than the 1.0 default.

Have you found another good tool for creating 3D printer-ready designs? Name it in the comments!

Full Guide! – 3D Solved

You bought your first 3D printer and already printed the files that came with it as well as some of the free 3D models available on the web.

However, once you’ve done that it’s time to start designing your own prints, but to do that you’re going to have to learn some 3D design.

So, in this article, I will be giving you a full guide on how to start designing your own 3D models to print afterwards, what software to use, where to find courses for those 3D design software, and much more.

So, without any further ado, let’s get started!

Table Of Contents

Design your Model using a CAD software
- Free CAD Software
  - Tinkercad
  - Fusion 360 Personal License
  - FreeCAD
  - Blender
- Paid CAD Alternatives
- Free 3D Design Courses
- Some 3D modelling tips
  - Design the parts with a flat base
  - Avoid Steep Overhangs
  - Consider Layer Line direction (Stronger prints)
  - Pay attention to size for dimensional accuracy
Slice the model using a Slicer
- Free Slicers
  - Ultimaker Cura
  - PrusaSlicer
- Premium Slicer Alternatives
- Save the Model to the SD card
- Use Octoprint as an alternative
Conclusion
Check out our recommended products section

Design your Model using a CAD software

Fusion 360 CAD.

CAD software, or Computer Aided Design software, lets you build 3D models on a computer which can then be 3D printed. Of course, these types of software are not only good for designing your prints but are also used for creating any kind of 3D element, be it for video games, animation, and more.

Once you’re done printing the free test prints that come with your printer, you generally download designs that other people made (you can use our own search engine to find amazing designs here). However, the ultimate challenge is to create them yourself using a CAD software, but this is definitely a lot harder to do than it may seem since 3D design can be quite complex.

There are some free CAD alternatives out there that are really simple to learn and use as well as some others that offer way more functionality at the cost of having a steeper learning curve. Of course, if you want to learn how to create your own models via a course, then check out this post I wrote about some of the best online 3D design & 3D Printing courses available (Free and also Paid).

Now, let’s check out some free CAD software!

Free CAD Software

I just want to note that Free software isn’t necessarily worse than their premium counterparts. In fact, Fusion 360, which is the go-to design software used by most 3D printing enthusiasts, offers a free license for personal use with only a couple limitations. However, it’s not the easiest CAD to learn.

Tinkercad

Tinkercad (Link to Review) is a browser-based CAD that is 100% free and that is ideal for absolute beginners since it relies on a drag-and-drop interface where you can select different objects, such as squares, circles, etc., and use those to create the final design.

In addition to this, even though it’s really simple and straight forward to use, it’s also a lot more powerful than it seems and will suit most of your 3D design needs, plus every design you create gets saved in the cloud and you can always access them from any device.

Check out Tinkercad here.

Fusion 360 Personal License

Fusion 360 (Link to Review) is probably the best-known CAD currently being used by 3D printing enthusiasts since it’s extremely powerful and capable of creating every 3D model imaginable.

The learning curve is a lot steeper than the one of Tinkercad, but it’s also a much more professional software capable of creating more complex designs.

It offers a couple different pricing options and let me tell you, it’s not a cheap software, but they offer a personal license that you can use for free for 3 years and that only comes with some minor limitations when compared to the premium version.

If you’re a complete novice when it comes to 3D design, Fusion 360 might not be the friendliest CAD to get you started, but if you follow some courses and if you take the time to learn it, you’ll be able to create much better designs than with something like Tinkercad.

FreeCAD

FreeCAD (Link to Review) is a general-purpose and open-source 3D parametric design software that has a wide range of uses. Its main purpose is for designing mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and architectural objects.

For that reason, it is best used for geometric designs like accurate replacement parts, detailed technological parts, scale models, and edit gadgets.

FreeCAD (link to website) could be considered a middle ground between Fusion 360 and Tinkercad since it’s a bit more powerful than Tinkercad while also being more beginner-friendly than Fusion 360, and there’s also loads of online resources available where you can learn the ins and outs of FreeCAD to design your own 3D models successfully.

Blender

Blender (link to review) is a 100% free 3D design software and it’s the most used software for 3D printing when it comes to creating organic shapes. Otherwise, it is not the most practical software for designing precise and technical objects for which there are better-suited programs, like Fusion 360.

If you want to model organic shapes such as animals, humans, or monsters, Blender is one of the best options available simply because of the fact that it is free, open-source, has powerful features, and a thriving community that is constantly improving the program.

Paid CAD Alternatives

Most paid CADs are not aimed at hobbyist designers but rather professionals and corporations that use this software for commercial purposes, which is why their licenses are usually very expensive and paid yearly.

For 99% of people reading this, none of these alternatives will be of much use to you since you can definitely get by using Fusion 360’s personal license and achieve astounding results with it.

However, some paid CADs include: AutoCAD, Fusion 360 (not the personal license one), Solidworks, Sketchup Pro, Solidedge, ZBrush, and many more.

Free 3D Design Courses

There are multiple free online 3D printing and Design courses available, but here are some of the ones I found to be the most useful:

Tinkercad Tutorial Series by Promo Ambitions.
Fusion 360 for 3D Printing 2021 by Austen Hartley.
Foundations of Blender: Jewelry Design in 3D (By Gesa Pickbrenner).

These three courses are all completely free and you have one for Tinkercad, one for Fusion 360, and another one for Blender, which should cover 99% of your needs.

Note: The Skillshare courses are not free but you can sign up for the free trial that lasts a month and finish all the courses you want.

In the article I just linked, there are many more free courses as well as paid ones, but there’s also plenty of YouTube tutorials out there that provide excellent information for each of those CADs.

Some 3D modelling tips

Here are some tips I thought of that should improve your chances of success while printing the models you designed, since there are some fairly common mistakes you can make that may end up ruining your print.

Design the parts with a flat base

Left: Round base, pool adhesion.
Right: Flat base, much better adhesion.

Probably the most important factor when it comes to a successful print is achieving a good bed adhesion, which means that the surface of the model that’s contacting with the bed should be as big as possible.

Imagine printing a round sphere where the bottom is rounded as well. In that case, there’s not a lot of surface available to achieve a good bed adhesion, which means that the print will detach from the bed and the printer will continue printing in mid-air, leaving plastic strings all over the print surface.

However, if you change the shape of the bottom of the model so that it’s completely flat, and if possible also with a large surface area, then bed adhesion will be much better and your prints success rate will be much higher.

Avoid Steep Overhangs

3D printing is done layer by layer from the ground up and the printer can print at an angle without any issues or loss in printing quality as long as that overhang angle isn’t too steep.

If you look at the image below, you’ll see that it has an angled overhang on the left, a bridge overhang in the middle, and a cantilever overhang on the right. This is an object designed to show you what types of overhangs your printer can deal with as well as which ones it can’t.

The angled and bridged overhangs (left and middle) are no problem for the printer since there’s enough support material available to keep the print from failing. But the right overhang, since the printer would need to print in mid-air, will fail since there’s no support structure for the filament to grab onto.

To circumvent this issue, you should either print using overhangs of no more than 45° or include supports (a setting that is enabled in the slicer) since these will form a support structure under any overhang above a specific angle to keep it from failing.

Consider Layer Line direction (Stronger prints)

Since FDM 3D printing is done in layers from the ground up, we can adjust the position of the model in the slicer before printing it to make it stronger.

Left: Vertical layer lines, much stronger when a “pulling” force is applied.
Right: Horizontal layer lines.

This works because layer lines are very strong but the adhesion between those layers isn’t. So, if you look at the image above where I sliced the exact same model but one gets printed vertically and the other one horizontally, the one with horizontal layer lines won’t withstand as much of a pulling force while the one with the vertical layer lines will be much stronger.

You should always adjust the position of the model in the slicer so that the layer lines are parallel to the force that the object is going to be subjected to and not perpendicular, this way you aren’t relying on the strength of layer adhesion as much.

Pay attention to size for dimensional accuracy

When first starting out you’ll probably design something that needs to be functional and fit tightly with another object, only to find that the dimensions you set were completely off.

In Tinkercad, as well as every other CAD, you can see the grid (generally in millimeters) which gives you a visual cue of how large the model is going to be. But you can also click on the model and adjust the length, width and height easily by typing it in.

Always make sure to use calipers to take the right measurements and enter those into your CAD to be as precise as possible.

Slice the model using a Slicer

FDM 3D printing works in layers: The printer starts from the very bottom, prints an entire layer and then moves up to the next one, etc. until the printing process is complete. Slicers essentially “slice” the model up in different layers from the bottom up and create a gcode file which contains all the information the printer needs in order to print the object.

Luckily, all free Slicer currently available are absolutely fantastic and work really well, and there’s rarely a case where going with a premium Slicer makes any sense nowadays.

Here’s a list of the best free Slicers:

Free Slicers

There’s probably a dozen different free Slicers out there, however, I’m only going to list two since I think that those will cover all your needs!

Let’s start with the one I use, Cura.

Ultimaker Cura

Cura is the most-used Slicer out there simply because it works, it’s intuitive, it gets consistent updates, and it also feature a huge number of free plugins that you can install and which will make your life a lot easier.

For example: If you are trying to find a way of positioning the model to be sliced so that it uses the least amount of support material possible, well Cura has got you covered.

Definitely check Cura out, it’s a great software.

PrusaSlicer

PrusaSlicer, contrary to Cura, not only works with FDM printers but also SLA (resin printers), which makes it extremely versatile.

However, it doesn’t come with any free plugins that you can install, but it does offer bridge detection and “if-statements”, plus it’s also getting updated regularly, meaning that it’s only going to get better over time.

Premium Slicer Alternatives

I already mentioned that I don’t think that most people will ever need to pay for a premium slicer, especially considering how fast all the free ones are improving.

However, going with something like Simplify3D may make sense if you’re running a 3D printing shop, but I generally recommend going with the free alternatives.

Save the Model to the SD card

This is a very easy and straightforward step, but you need to do it in order to get the information over to the printer if you want to be able to print the model.

Cura automatically lets you save the file to the removable drive and even ejects it for you, but depending on the slicer you might have to do this manually. Make sure to always name the file appropriately so that you know what file you’re selecting from the printer.

However, if you’re running a printing farm or if you want to control the printer remotely, then there’s a more efficient way of doing things.

Use Octoprint as an alternative

OctoPrint is a web interface for your 3D printer that allows you to control and monitor all aspects of your printer and print jobs right from your within your browser.

You can access a webcam feed to make sure the print is moving forward as expected, as well as being able to take a look at temperatures, view reports on the progress of the prints, control the printer itself, create a printing queue, analyze the bed level via the bed level visualizer, and more.

Conclusion

Creating 3D models that can be printed on your 3D printer is a fairly simple process, with the hardest part being designing the actual model itself.

I’d recommend starting with Tinkercad since it’s extremely intuitive and easy to use, and as long as you don’t need to create really complex models don’t upgrade to Fusion 360 since it will take you a lot longer to learn the software.

The rest of the process is extremely simple, really, so I’d mainly worry about learning 3D design.

I hope this was useful!

Have a great day!

We created a recommended products section that will allow you to remove the guesswork and reduce the time spent researching what printer, filament, or upgrades to get, since we know that this can be a very daunting task and which generally leads to a lot of confusion.

We have selected just a handful of 3D printers that we consider to be good for beginners as well as intermediates, and even experts, making the decision easier, and the filaments, as well as the upgrades listed, were all tested by us and carefully selected, so you know that whichever one you choose will work as intended.

HOW TO CREATE A MODEL FOR 3D PRINTING

Hello everyone, my name is Bogdan, I'm a concept artist, I'm most interested in Hard Surface. He graduated from several courses, for example, Super Maya - Yuri Snytko's video course, Hard Surface XYZ course. Now I'm studying the Movie Man XYZ course. Participated in various concept art competitions:

https://www.ggac.com/v2/work/detail/169998

https://render.ru/ru/gallery/artwork/211240

At the moment I'm just starting out in the gaming industry, so I'm open to any job offers.

My favorite hobby is board games, I really enjoy building and painting models and then playing with them. Having mastered the basic skills of design and modeling, I decided to start developing my own wargame from the lineup. The first unit was the Ferus BMP (here it is on ArtStation: https://www.artstation.com/artwork/8wo90m) because Hard Surface is my favorite direction and I could test the assembly without glue, turning wheels and the tower. After choosing a topic, I began to select references. Usually I don't limit myself in the number of images, as they can be conveniently saved and sorted in the wonderful PureRef program.

I usually use ZBrush and Maya for modeling. In Maya, you can very quickly make Blockout and Kitbash for a future model, after which you can work on the shape, silhouette and guide lines in ZBrush, put the model together.

Due to the lack of clay modeling skills, as well as the absence of my own 3D printer (but it will appear soon :)), I turned to a company that prints on an SLA printer.

Before sending the model to be printed, I went through a few steps. Below is a short guide.

1) Make sure the model is solid. This can be verified in ZBrush using the 3D Print Hub plugin. If the parts do not pass the test, then you can correct the geometry using the functions in the Geometry menu.

2) Then you need to reduce the number of polygons using the Decimation Master plugin, and then repeat the test.

3) Next, check that all parts are to the correct scale. Since OBJ and FBX do not contain information about the size of parts in real dimensions, you need to use the 3D Print Hub plugin to export from ZBrush (watch the dimensions carefully!), Or use a simple but long method so as not to be mistaken. I decided on the dimensions and, using a box, scaled each detail and saved it in STL format.

4) After that, don't forget to make holes in the parts to reduce material consumption, check the mesh again.

5) Next, you need to arrange supports for printing, many programs can help you with this, which will place them automatically, you just have to add additional supports in the necessary places or move already generated ones.

After all the preparation steps, I sent the model to the company, where it was printed, dried in an ultraviolet oven and the supports were cut off. I recommend additionally cleaning the model in an alcohol or soapy solution after production, because even small residues of the polymer are quite toxic. For additional protection, you can varnish the model or paint it.

I learned all the necessary information to prepare the model for printing when communicating with the company's employees, or found it on the Internet.

These videos helped me a lot:

If you are interested in a new, yet unknown wargame and want to take part in the discussion or development of the project, something is not clear to you or you have something to say about modeling and preparing the model for printing, write comments, I will be glad to communicate. 9Ol000 cutting 3D models (slicers)

Free slicers
Paid slicers

To summarize

The whole cycle of creating a part on a 3D printer can be fit into three stages: Creating / finding a model, cutting a model in a slicer, printing on a 3D printer. Each stage is tied to its own program. Models are created in special programs, then in the slicer the model is “cut” into steps that the printer will sequentially execute. The resulting list of steps (commands) is either placed on a memory card and run from the printer itself, or sent to the printer via a wired/wireless connection. As a result of all these actions, we get the product. Therefore, looking for a “3D printer program” is wrong: you need to look for a modeling program and a slicer.

3D modeling software

Programs for 3D modeling are divided into two large groups:

Obviously, when creating a drawing, an engineer needs precise tools: a ruler, pencil, compass, etc. But the artist needs more free tools: brushes, pastels, palettes and others. Programs are divided according to the same principle: in engineering programs, there are all the tools that allow you to accurately specify the characteristics of each element of the part, and in art programs, tools are created to give smoother forms so that the model looks as natural as possible. Of course, in art programs it is possible to model technical products, but this is comparable to drawing a drawing with pastel: it is inconvenient, difficult and inaccurate. Therefore, it is very important to determine why you need a simulation program.

Tip: It is best to learn one or two programs at a professional level, as this will allow you to create complex models. But you should also know the basics in other programs, since a large circle of knowledge allows you to more flexibly choose the approach to creating models.

File types for 3D printing

To begin with, it is worth understanding what types of files are involved in the manufacturing process of the part. The first step is to create a model. It can be saved in the format of the program itself (for example, KOMPAS-3D files have the .m3d extension, while 3ds Max has the .MAX file extension). Such files can only be opened in the programs in which they were created. But we need a universal format - STL. All programs can save models in this format. It stores the polygons that create the model.

All files are divided into 3 categories:

Files that store polygonal information (STL, OBJ, etc. ). They are analogues of a raster image. It is possible to increase the quality of 3D models in this format only by smoothing, but in this case small details will be lost, and the file weight will increase greatly.
Files that store the steps for creating a part (STEP, STP, etc.). Here you can draw an analogy with vector images. Each element is specified either using simple dot connections (for example, as in a cube or pyramid), or using formulas (any curved, rounded objects). Models in this format can be scaled without loss of quality, while maintaining a relatively small file size.
Utility files that store steps for a 3D printer (GCODE, GCOD). These files store the commands that the printer executes and, in some cases, comments (for example, with what settings the model was cut). Some slicers can simulate the movements of the printer, thereby rendering the model, but it is impossible to convert a file from this format to a full-fledged model.

Be careful! If you are not sure that the GCODE file is intended for your printer, then you should not print it, because the print area for each printer is different. On third-party firmware there is no limit on the maximum travel distance, some third-party software commands may lead to incorrect operation of the control board. If the printer tries to move the print head out of the printable area many times, then it can harm itself!

If the files are in the same category, then they can be easily converted from one format to another with almost no data loss. The formats indicated in brackets are a kind of “transits”. For example, Inventor has its own file format - itp, and Fusion 360 has its own - f3d. But if you save the file in Inventor in the generic STEP format, you can open it in any engineering program and then save it in that program's format.

Free programs

Usually, free programs are either limited in functionality or created by enthusiasts, which is why they have a very crooked interface and a lot of errors. But their functionality is enough to create simple models, and in some cases, such programs can completely replace paid software.