Imagine being able to create anything you could come up with: Any crazy idea you have, you can design it and create it all in your own home.
This is the power of 3D printing and it has become mainstream and more affordable in the past decade. “I think 3D printing is really cool because it allows you to turn your ideas into tangible objects,” junior Charles Freedman said.
3D printing can be used for so much more than just printing little fidget toys, which is what’s most commonly printed in the mainstream. Students use this technology for prototyping and robotics. “I am most interested in building electronics and complex builds. I like to print robot parts, cases for my electronic builds and various machines,” freshman Blake Fenn said.
In my case, I used this technology to make one of my dreams come true. I 3D printed an entire Iron Man suit that I can wear, with electronics. The suit can be found on instagram,@zachderman3d.
If students are interested in 3D printing, multiple outlets are available. Students could join the robotics club, which meets in room 213 after school on Fridays or they can join my own 3D printing club, which I plan to start next year.
A niche part of this hobby that I participate in is 3D printing props and costumes from movies, TV shows and video games. I 3D printed an Iron Man suit, which took me seven months. Other people have also used 3D printers to make Iron Man suits. These suits have tons of moving parts and look like they jumped off of the movie set. “It’s fascinating that we are able to create items such as suits that we see in movies. 3D printing is allowing us to use new mediums to pursue our passions,” Freedman said.
3D printing can also be used to start a side hustle or business. There is a niche of people selling fidget toys on Etsy and making thousands of dollars. One of the most popular items to be sold are flexible dinosaur fidgets.
3D printing has also been used in the biomedical field to create prosthetic limbs. Free STL files are accessible online. People use these files to print items, but others like to design their own items using softwares such as Blender or Fusion360. This can be great for creating a prototype of a unique project idea, especially to test out electronic components.
The Iron Man suit that I created was made using paid files, and I printed the suit on two printers. I sanded and painted the suit and added electronic components, like the faceplate on the helmet, which can open and close.
Other than FDM printers (plastic), there are printers for resin, metal, chocolate and recycled goods. There are also many different sizes for printers including new ones that are big enough to print furniture. The list goes on, and technology continues to evolve to fit every need.
