3D printing is a technology that could one day completely change the way that we think about our relationship with products and businesses. Rather than buying products that are designed and manufactured by a business, we would buy the files needed to print those items out for ourselves. Click here for some 3d printer for miniatures review.
We aren’t quite at that point yet, but 3D printing is a technology that is rapidly being deployed in a number of different use cases. The trend for 3D printed jewellery is growing and will likely explode once 3D printers are sophisticated enough to work with precious metals.
But before you jump too far down the rabbit hole of 3D modeling, there are some things you need to know. Having this information going in will save you a lot of headaches further down the road.
Maximum Printing Size
Whether you are planning on sending your blueprints to another business to manufacture for you, or you plan on printing the jewelry out on your own 3D printer, you will need to ascertain your maximum printing size. Many of the businesses that will take your designs and print them using precious metals such as gold, silver, and bronze will often set limits of ~125 mm X 125 mm X 125 mm.
Find the Right Software
The range of jewelry design software is constantly growing, 3D jewelry modelers today are spoiled for choice. If you are just starting out, take the time to go through the different software packages that are available until you find one that works for you. The most important thing is that you find it relatively easy to use.
Minimum Wall Thickness
The minimum wall thickness is a very important concept in 3D printing. While 3D printing enables us to realize designs that are too intricate or difficult for a human to do themselves, there is a limit to this intricacy.
Put simply, the minimum wall thickness refers to the minimum possible thickness that your model can have at any point. The exception to this is when you want to make a cone shape or a point – where the thinner piece is not structurally important, it may be possible to print thinner pieces.
If you try to make your model below the minimum wall thickness, you will either find that the machine can’t handle it, or the results are unstable and unreliable.
The minimum wall thickness will depend on the exact printer and materials that are being used, there is no universal value. If you will be printing it yourself, check the limitations of your 3D printer. If you will be sending the blueprints to a 3D printing business, make sure to check the specs with them first.
In addition to the above, the other two important things to check are that any hollow parts of your jewelry are designed with a minimum of three small release holes. They only need to be a millimeter or so in size, but they are very important to include. As long as you keep all of this in mind, you are free to experiment to your heart’s content!
