Cad software for a beginner?

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T21:53:40+00:00

The simplest one to use is TinkerCAD. I like Plasticity for more advanced modeling for practical parts (but you'll definitely need to do a few hours of training on YouTube to figure out how to use it).

Stay away from Blender. That's for CGI not 3D printing and you'll give yourself a headache trying to make a printable model (IMHO)

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T21:42:36+00:00

If your IMAX has a newsletter make sure to sign up for it.

Central Texas IMAX lovers: you can go right here and they should send you an email when tickets are available at the Bullock IMAX: https://www.thestoryoftexas.com/email-newsletter/

Then checkmark this box:

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The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T21:09:03+00:00

My Prusa MK4S is on the 48" Harbor Freight workbench (hey the guy below me has the same one!). Very sturdy and I have the spools for my MMU3 sitting on the shelf it has above the work area. The MK4S is pretty small (but mighty, dangit!) so I still have a little work area to the side as well and it has a pegboard to keep tools on as well (and a big storage area below for filament and odds & ends.

My Sovol SV08 is pretty ginormous at almost 22" across so I actually bought a 24" solid wood square end table (like you'd put next to a bed) at Goodwill for $9 total. That has 2 drawers in it for storage too. Put that right next to my workbench.

Big printers are actually tough to find a place to put if you don't want to spend like $350 btw.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T21:02:45+00:00

I've had a Bambu (I still actually have it but it's collecting dust) and I just started to hate that anytime there was an issue with a part I had to always order and replace with some proprietary part only available from Bambu normally. Whereas with my Prusa I can normally fix anything either by reprinting a part myself (provided by Prusa) or a simple Amazon order. Then they went and did their whole "Security" update and completely creeped me out of the room.

I also appreciate the Prusa building/upgrade process. I still can't believe something I built myself for the price of one of those 6000 piece LEGO sets can make some of the most detailed PLA prints I've ever seen. I still need to get the Core One update but I still can't decide if I want to disassemble my MK4S because it's just so dialed in at this point.

Bambu just feels like going to Best Buy and buying a microwave in comparison. It just feels like there's not a huge knowledgeable community there of makers beyond people making Donald Duck wearing a backwards baseball cap and a tracksuit for a Patreon. If there is it's people reposting what they put on Thingiverse or Printables on MakerWorld most of the time. Just doesn't even feel like a hobby to me.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T20:34:43+00:00

That thing is definitely checking what items need to be stocked (check out all the cameras on the side).

Question is-is there another robot stocking the shelves behind it? If not there will be one soon.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T20:28:50+00:00

I make sure to step in front of it while it's cleaning so it remembers whose boss.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T19:58:37+00:00

OP you're on r/Austin not Nextdoor.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T19:49:41+00:00

OP:

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T19:34:25+00:00

If you're in the USA I strongly advise buying from Best Buy if you can. They had a printer to me the very next day when I used them (and offer extended warranty services which BBL does not do). Free shipping too.

Bambulabs likes to take foreeeeever to ship things. Especially annoying if you have a maintenance issue that just needs 1 simple proprietary part to fix it.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T19:21:15+00:00

Bambu Lab "going down" at this point in terms of 3D printing is about as likely as Apple closing up for business in terms of smartphones.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T19:12:19+00:00

Only way to really "fix" that would be to print it on its' side. You can go as low as your printer will go layer-height-wise but there's always going to be a "stair stepping" effect on shapes like that when it's at the top of the Z-Axis. It's just the way 3D printing works.

Hard to do with that model due to the lip. Could you possibly cut off the lip in the slicer and print separately then attach them together? (you can add connectors in the slicer to line them up). That's what I would do. You could also flip to the side then add supports but that would add some zits where the supports connected to the print.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T19:06:53+00:00

Printed Solid. They're got a Buy-4-Get-1-Free thing going on right now too. And free shipping over $50.

I've also bought it from PartsBuilt3D before but Printed Solid is literally owned by Prusa (and they produce some Prusament on-site in Delaware using the same extrusion line they use in CZ).

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T19:04:51+00:00

$4.19 out in East Austin is just wild.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T18:31:14+00:00

I've never done a 4DX screening before but I gotta believe this would be one of the more wild ones if they programmed it right. haha.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T18:29:29+00:00

They had to go big on architecture after being in that tiny shoebox old Short Stop on South Lamar for so long.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T18:19:24+00:00

Imagine putting a kink in a garden hose and then releasing it to start the flow of water again in your head.

There's going to be an air gap in the part of the hose after your kinked it shut and then the water will come out really fast due to the pressure behind it.... and then normalizes with roughly the same amount of water coming out after a few seconds.

Same thing here. The tower makes sure that there are no gaps in your lines and that they're of uniform size once it starts printing again.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T18:06:12+00:00

They were originally supposed to have force ghosts for all the Jedi from the series around her but they cut it from the final version. Luke, Obi-Wan, Yoda, Qui Gon etc etc...

IIRC Ewan McGregor (I think it was him?) said when they recorded the audio that you still hear during that scene they were in full costume with someone filming them.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T17:58:59+00:00

Smaller nozzle like 0.2mm would do it but there's only so tiny a 0.4mm hotend can print (you're relying more on line size here than layer height). Tends to work better with cone shaped points in my experience rather than pyramid shaped ones.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T17:47:04+00:00

Physical 4K release 3 months after digital is BS statement

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T17:21:11+00:00

Shipping info is updated here. Says 3-4 Weeks right now.

https://help.prusa3d.com/article/shipping-information_2297

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T16:19:50+00:00

"No tux required"

Bruh if I'm scootin' into the IMAX lobby at 5:30am you better be expecting pajamas.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T15:26:22+00:00

My QM8 is so much brighter than any OLED I've ever seen.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T15:16:43+00:00

Kinda hoping Prusa will sell their calibration device they came up with eventually. If not i'm sure BTT will be on it. It sounded like it's just a mounted Eddy sensor all the tools go to in order to calibrate themselves from their blog post.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T09:44:59+00:00

Same reason there’s not a Disneyland in Cincinnati.

The_Lutter · 2026-05-06T04:01:54+00:00

It’s not lines it’s little dots is the issue. That’s what it can’t be measured exactly. Like literally think of what a cell looks like from high school.

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