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Comment by gattilorenz | Hacker News Reader

Not quite on topic, but I wanted to start 3D printing for a long time, but it feels there’s a huge gap from where I am (0 knowledge of 3D modeling and obviously 0 experience with printing) and where I want to get (design some custom parts that would make my life easier, e.g. a custom support for my Magic Trackpad that integrates with my keyboard).

Does anyone have a good recommendation to go “from zero to hero”?

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> a good recommendation to go “from zero to hero”

Below is pretty much how I did it:

Step 1:

Buy an Ender 3. It's cheap and there are tons of upgrades out there. Start printing stuff from Printables/Thingiverse in order to understand how slicing and printing works. Learn the jargon by researching issues you run into (don't just ask on forums, search for yourself).

Step 2:

Find some upgrades for the printer through Youtube, Reddit and the likes. Buy (or print) them and upgrade your printer. Run into issues, fix them and start understanding how the entire thing works.

Step 3:

Print this [0] model and watch this [1] video on how it was designed. It shows really well what constraints you're working with when designing for 3D printing and how to work around them. Then, start designing your own prints in whatever CAD software you want to learn. I started with Fusion 360, but anything is fine, probably.

0: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2064269

1: https://youtu.be/mziT7KV-fRI

To add a few things:

- Start your journey with PLA, and small prints. PLA is the easiest/least fussy material to print because it doesn't tend to string, or warp/shrink/lift off the bed like PETG/ABS. Nothing's worse than having a large print fail (usually boils down to slicer settings, hence the need to get familiar with your printer via smaller prints first).

- PrusaSlicer is, IMO, one of the best slicer options out there... works for virtually all printers and it's free/open source: https://github.com/prusa3d/PrusaSlicer/releases

- TPU filament is AMAZING to have for functional 3d prints... but you need a direct drive extruder to be able to print it reliably. If you can afford it, shoot for an Ender with a direct drive extruder e.g. the S1 or S1 Pro.

- Other stuff: Use Mainsail on a Raspberry Pi or similar for remote control/monitoring from any browser or phone (alternative: Creality Sonic Pad), Klipper firmware for GOING FAST (pressure advance setting), print mods/upgrades for your own printer (e.g. webcam mount, tool holders, parts cooling fan ducts, etc)

Is Mainsail better than Octoprint? I haven't heard of it before.

IMO, yes. I used octoprint for 3+ years before switching to Mainsail a month or two ago. Seems more polished, and haven't had as many problems with updates/slow updates as I did with OctoPrint. Probably won't go back.

For primarily functional parts like that I'd recommend the Prusa Mini. That's exactly the position I was in a few years ago, and to be honest I just jumped in, Fusion360 (for example) is pretty accessible if you have an engineering mindset at least. Clough42 has some great design through to printing videos on YouTube. I think I'd seen some of those, and then had a go at designing something I wanted, (which was easy enough and looked good 'on paper') and then ordered my Mini.

I'm just learning too, but wanted to throw in that for an HN audience, OpenSCAD may be intuitive for modeling. You basically write up models in a simple declarative programming language. I found this easier to get started with than more GUI based tools.

I’m interested which GUI CAD tools you tried? I don’t use it myself but I find Fusion 360 magnitudes more intuitive and capable than OpenSCAD, which I really tried to like!

I was initially interested in FLOSS tooling, so one that i tried and also wanted to like was freecad.

Haven't tried fusion 360 yet. Would stress again that I'm a noob.

Makes sense - my experience is that FreeCAD is just brutally unintuitive to learn and use. (And this despite now being pretty competent with other parametric CAD packages.)

I get the FLOSS preference, but this is an area which sadly lags far behind. If you're really keen to learn CAD, maybe give F360 or OnShape a go? I suspect you'll see a huge difference...

I met someone building a similar trackpad! He's using a 3D printer to create the housing. https://www.reddit.com/r/ErgoMechKeyboards/comments/113rfhm/...

/r/3DPrinting has a comprehensive guide to getting started with 3D Printing: https://www.reddit.com/r/3DPrinting/wiki/gettingstarted/

The designing and iterating of physical components is a learned skill, just like designing and iterating on software becomes easier with experiences. Best way to learn is to just get started, and have tons of fun!

Awesome! As a side note, mounting the trackpad to my keyboard (at work I glued L brackets to a MS Natural keyboard, and plastered the keypad over) worked wonders for my RSI. I’m going to design a holder for my Matias Ergo Pro, eventually.

3D modelling is the big learning curve, but obviously independent of owning a 3D printer. Running a printer (assuming you get a reliable model) is straightforward in comparison.

Having tried most of the options there are, I’d recommend downloading Fusion 360 and following a few of the many online tutorials. While the free version is a little restricted, it’s a high-quality parametric 3D CAD package, and to my mind is superior to everything else at a hobbyist price point. It’s also faaaaaaar more approachable (IMO) and/or fully-featured than other free options such as OpenSCAD or FreeCAD.

A few weeks of following tutorials and trying to make your own simple models should see you to a level where you can judge whether it’s the right hobby for you, and therefore whether it’s worth investing in a printer.

Zero to hero... no not really. The printing part isn't that hard to pick up. The designing complex models with complex tools is a real mother. Youtube is a good place to start with tools like Fusion 360.

I think FreeCAD or equivalent is the best place to start. See if you can find some sketching and parametric modeling tutorials in FreeCAD and follow them, then design your part. FreeCAD because it's free, open source basis and parametric.

I hope it's not against any rules... it's not as far as I know of, so I plugged your comment into ChatGPT:

Sure, I'd be happy to help you get started with 3D printing! I'll break it down into a few steps, from learning the basics of 3D modeling to printing your first custom part.

Learn the basics of 3D modeling:

To start, it's important to get familiar with 3D modeling software. Two popular free options are Tinkercad and Blender.

Tinkercad (Beginner-friendly): Tinkercad is a browser-based, user-friendly CAD software that helps you create 3D models easily. It's perfect for beginners. Tinkercad tutorial: https://www.tinkercad.com/learn/designs

Blender (Advanced): Blender is an open-source 3D modeling software with a steeper learning curve but offers more advanced features. Blender tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLa1F2ddGya_-UvuAqHAks...

Understand 3D printing basics: Learn about 3D printing technologies, materials, and the process. This will help you make better decisions when designing your parts.

3D Printing basics: https://www.3dhubs.com/guides/3d-printing/

Choose a 3D printer:

When you're ready to buy a 3D printer, consider factors like build volume, material compatibility, and price. A few popular entry-level 3D printers include:

Creality Ender 3: https://www.creality.com/goods-detail/ender-3-3d-printer Prusa i3 MK3S: https://www.prusa3d.com/original-prusa-i3-mk3s

Learn to prepare models for printing:

Once you've designed your 3D model, you'll need to prepare it for printing using slicer software. This software converts your model into instructions for the 3D printer. Popular slicer software includes:

Ultimaker Cura: https://ultimaker.com/software/ultimaker-cura PrusaSlicer: https://www.prusa3d.com/prusaslicer/

Print your first project:

Start with something simple to familiarize yourself with the 3D printing process. Then, move on to more complex projects like your custom Magic Trackpad support.

Join online communities:

Participate in online forums and communities to get advice, feedback, and inspiration. A few popular 3D printing communities include:

r/3Dprinting subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/ Thingiverse: https://www.thingiverse.com/

Follow these steps, practice regularly, and you'll be well on your way to becoming a 3D printing hero. Good luck!

This is good advice. Tinkercad is hardly more difficult than Microsoft Paint and can be easy enough to start doing some basic DIY modeling in an afternoon.

I don't think it is. It starts with the design phase, which is arguably the hardest part, especially if you have no clue how printers work. It's much easier to just start printing pre-made stuff and then learn how to design your own, also taking inspiration from the stuff you've already printed.

Agreed. I'd also argue that Blender is a poor suggestion compared to OnShape or Fusion360, which better suited for this type of design.

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