3D Printing Fun During Times of COVID

Our latest quarantine project has become 3D printing and BOY is it a time sucker! What can you use them for, you ask? Let’s just say, we have been like a broken record over here….I think half of our conversations have ended with the words “you can make THAT with a 3D printer”. So, below I will share with you what you need to have your own 3D printing fun.

Printers range in price from $300-$500 and the filament is about $20-$30 for enough to make quite a few items. The printer comes with a slicing software and then the rest of it is free online! Last year, I took a quick 3D printing class at our local library. By using Thingiverse, I was introduced to the world of free design. People post all kinds of free designs that you can print yourself or modify for personal use. Then, by using TinkerCad, the world of 3D modeling became even more fun. In Tinkercad, you can use all kinds of fun geometric shapes to make anything from a phone holder to a part for your Nerf gun. Both software programs are free to use and, at the time, the library had a Makerbot that we could use where they would charge for the amount of material utilized.

We have since made all kinds of stuff – chopstick holders, phone/ipad holders, face shields, nerf gun attachments, and even a little game board. There is a slight learning curve but, thanks to youTube, we have been able to work our way through the mistakes.

The plastic we have been using is PLA, which is biodegradable, not stinky, and is actually pretty strong. It comes in all kinds of colors – just make sure you get the right diameter size to match the nozzle – duh! The printer will actually take TPU, ABS, and other materials.

What’s been really fun is seeing the kids build in a 3D environment and having fun while learning how to work with design constraints. We went for a big printer, but we figured this would be about as much as we would have spent on a Summer camp. And so now my days are fully packed with projects and the kids are taking over more and more of my print time and I am staying up until 1 in the morning waiting to put the next project on the bed : ) Yes, a highly recommended addition to all nerdy families out there.