3D Printing Newbies Overwhelmed
Several posts from new 3D printing users express intimidation and a lack of direction. They seek advice on getting started, finding free print guides, and troubleshooting common issues like clogged nozzles and bed adhesion.
SOURCES (60)
“Got a 3D printer recently and I’m pretty sure I’ve already developed a serious condition. I have absolutely no idea what to make, so I’ve just been printing random things that looked remotely interesting . 😂 Three completely unrelated objects, zero practical purpose, and somehow…”
“Hello. I’m new to 3D printing and I’ve done a lot of searching, reading, etc. to try and learn the basics. I was given a P2S for my birthday a few months ago. But I feel like I’m still hacking my way through everything. I see all the models in Makerworld, Thingiverse, etc. and am at a loss for how to get to the point where I can make something myself. Can anyone give some advice on where to begin? I understand some of the basics but my fundamental knowledge of 3D concepts and putting it all toge”
“Hi! Very new to 3D printing and i recently bought A1. Did this test print. Can someone please explain what needs to be updated or fixed. I’m using esun PLA+ . submitted by /u/HEATH_CLIFF__ [link] [comments]”
“Super beginner here, this is like my third time. I printed my pieces and it went great, now i have to attach everything together. I got the right glue by asking around, and attached everything, but the edges dont coincide perfectly. Idk if its normal, or if its about practice, but its like a mm or less off. That, together, with the lines being kinda visible looks kinda bad. I was wondering on how to fix it. Is it time to use plaster and abrasive paper and repeat until i like the result? Are ther”
“I would like to know how to dismantle the top frame of the k1C so I can change the x gantry bushing, I can't seem to get it off. Thanks in advance! submitted by /u/kinoshita-josuke [link] [comments]”
“Has anyone had a thermal runaway in their printer? My ender 3 halted because of that. What causes it? submitted by /u/Limp_Hovercraft_7468 [link] [comments]”
“I am new to 3D printing. I’m using the Qidi Q2 box combo. I’m just using some high speed PLA that I found on Amazon. I’m using Qidi studio to slice and manage prints. I didn’t have supports turned on for this build. I noticed during the print that some sections were choppy but didn’t know the bends were not filling in completely and then I stopped the print when the base of the stand broke off the plate. Was hoping I could get some advice on how to keep future prints from ending up like this. &#”
“I learned to do CAD designs in college. After some time I got back into it but I'm still a bit rusty. I started modeling using Onshape. I finally felt that I could progress and start printing my models. I purchased a 3d printer (ELEGOO). I want to start using my printer with designs I create, can anyone suggest projects so I can start from and use my 3d printer? submitted by /u/Extension_Bee_4902 [link] [comments]”
“Hi everyone, I’m completely new to 3D printing and I need some help. I have a Bambu Lab A1 and Numakers PLA+ filaments. I bought the printer recently and I’m still learning how everything works. I need to print a gift for my biology teacher, and the print will take around 12 hours. I need to have it ready in about 2 days, so I’m a little nervous about starting such a long print when I have very little experience. I have already printed a Benchy using the Numakers settings for the Bambu Lab A1 th”
“After 8 years I have bought my first 3D printer, and I can't see this tape on the unboxing video, I finished the setup and I will be able to print my first print this afternoon. Is this piece of tape to be removed or is it to keep there? NOTE: It is not the holder tape, that one was white and "cloth-like". I don't know what this is and why it doesn't appear to be there in the BambuLab unboxing video. https://preview.redd.it/m0ug74nbsanh1.png?width=1030&format=png&au”
“What filament should I use submitted by /u/Jolly-Astronaut5750 [link] [comments]”
“To all the people that have been 3D printing for quite some time, As someone who just got into 3D printing a few months ago, what are some of the must have materials If my goal is to experiment and learn some cool things with my Bambu X2D? PS: I already have PLA, PETG and TPU and have done some basic prints at home for myself and have gifted a few things. Looking for materials that’ll look really cool for gifts Also, feel free to include materials that are not the best for beginners like me. ”
“Recently acquired an old anycubic mega s 3D printer, and looking for any recommendations or tips for filament, material, model ideas etc… submitted by /u/Odinbreakr [link] [comments]”
“Okay this is a bit awkward, but here goes. I'm still pretty new to 3D printing. Somehow I already have a Flying Bear Ghost 6 and a Voron 2.4 300… and I still feel like I don't really know what I'm doing when it comes to upgrades. I open shops, look at nozzles / hotends / fans / lighter parts, close the tab. I don't want to throw money at random stuff just because it looks cool. So I started making a small local tool that reads G-code in the browser and tries to show where print t”
“After cleanup, https://ibb.co/6R2N080X Printer is Markhor Enabler D8500 submitted by /u/Cpt_Soaps [link] [comments]”
“Just picked up this Adventurer 5M Pro & Ender 3 V2. I have never owned a 3d printer let alone two, I plan on using these to print sim racing accessories/equipment. Can you guys who have been in the game with this hobby please give me some pointers? Just picked up this Thanks in advance. submitted by /u/theo_vons_mullet [link] [comments]”
“I’m not sure exactly how to update an og post, but I wanted to thank everybody who helped with the question I had for my 3d printer! (linked above) the prints still come out with some minor damages, but nothing that can’t be fixed. but the printer IS WORKING! submitted by /u/Ok-Librarian7894 [link] [comments]”
“I used to print with a Prusa, but since moving to a new city, I decided to try a different printer—the K2 Plus. I'm trying to print this model, and it's coming out looking terrible. Could it be my settings? They're set to default; I remember my Prusa MK4S printed perfectly using the default settings. Printed on 0.20mm high Quality setting with ASA or PLA is the same printing results. Btw this is a SIDE mirror for a Jeep I also noticed that the small parts are honestly garbage.”
“Hi ! Im trying to figure out how to repair this FLsun s1 3d printer Im not sure this is the right or the best place to post this, Give me recommendation of better r/ Ive saved a S1 that would have finished in the trash because it was an after-sale printer and the guy repairing them did not have enough space. What it currently miss is the energy board, probably because one of the driver board heavily burnt and I think it burned with it. Another energy board was marked as "down ?" The al”
“I’m two weeks into exploring 3D printing and love it so far. In fact I’m already considering a second printer as I’ve found myself being bottlenecked on throughput. However, I’m worried I’m simply going through an initial phase that will wane and I’ll end up with gear I ignore after 6 months. Tell me about your journey and feel free to speak for those you know who didn’t stick around to read this post and comment 😎 submitted by /u/theNEOone [link] [comments]”
“Hi everyone, it's a pleasure to meet you all, I have been trying to dial in my printer settings but I am at a point where I am confused as to whether my z axis is too high or too low given the amazing looking first line , and then an awful first layer. I use orcaslicer software and I use an elgoo neptune 3 printer reading from the card Thanks all ! submitted by /u/MPZ05 [link] [comments]”
“Fairly new to 3d, and having good results with my stock A5M. Curious why so many people seem determined to ditch their printer's standard firmware and install something else. Do you get a whole lot of extra functionality? Is it really worth the trouble? My theory is that because 3D printing basically arose out of the "Maker" movement, there's an inborn compulsion in many practitioners to tinker with, well, everything . How many of you folks took apart a watch to see what makes”
“Hi, we are recently new to the 3D printing and recently we’ve had 2 builds come apart.. like we built a fidget egg and when we went to play with it all the pieces fell off so for some reason it’s not all sticking together correctly like the previous one we built.. and then we did another little dodger toy that was shaped like a spider web and all the layers of the web detached themselves from it when we played with it as well.. we’ve replaced the nozzle, cleaned the bed etc.. unsure what’s causi”
“Newbie here, I tried searching here but I didn't manage to find a solution, although probably this is a very normal issue. I got this Bambulab P1S for some weeks, I've done aprox 150h of printing with PETG, mostly consecutively, with no issues. But today this started happening in all the prints I've tried. I'm guessing it has to do with the nozzle, which may have accumulated some dirt. I cleaned it superficially, and it seemed to extrude well, but after the initial pre-print cali”
“I’m using an Elegoo Neptune 4 Max. It was a cheap easy way to get into printing. I realize it’s far from top quality, but it does pretty good for what I need if I could just get all the settings figured out. I have struggled with this for a while. The 1st layer always looks like the nozzle is clogged or the extruder rate is too slow, just not enough filament. I’ve leveled and re-leveled, I’ve adjusted rate, tried different filament, but I can’t make the 1st layer right. Layers 2 through Top are”
“So Im new to this and may not understand everything you guys say (sorry in advance). I have a anycubic kobra s1. I have been printing small object with the geeetech abs filament with pretty much no problem. But now I tried something big I keep having the same problem ( I use the regular setting for abs in anycubic slicer) It looks like it is burned but turns out its because of warping what can I do to solve this problem? Anybody got any suggestions? What I already tried: using a brim, cutingbig”
“So I just got the Flashforge Finder 3 gifted and I can‘t get any print to work. I‘ve leveled it a tons of times and cleaned the buildplate. (It‘s my first time 3d printing) I‘m printing at 200°, with the plate at 60° (standard settings) submitted by /u/Additional-Attempt93 [link] [comments]”
“My friend recently gave me his old Ender 3. This is my second print and I need some help with layering issues. I think it’s a layering issue. The slicer I used is Ultimaker Cura if that helps. submitted by /u/Competitive_Dot_2119 [link] [comments]”
“hey everyone , im quite new to 3d printing , and im using my college printer to print this file for a project but it keeps on failing , i have my last chance to print it before the faculty kicks me out , the support it print for the print are so tiny at the upper surface that the tool head just fucks em up at the last stage submitted by /u/No-Bus-8290 [link] [comments]”
“I have a friend who told me she wanted to get her 3D printer set up after she got it really cheap at a garage sale a year ago. Little did I expect the model to be from over a decade ago. Would it be worth retrofitting this printer? submitted by /u/TheSquidTD [link] [comments]”
“We live in an age where prototypes are increasingly cheap. The fact that you’re iterating and leaning from them quickly is a good thing. Also, if you’re new, there is likely a learning curve here you’re climbing as well, so don’t beat yourself up. Pull in others for their feedback as well. The goal is to make great products, not to beat yourself up by the process.”
“Hello all, I bought my first 3d printer, an x2d. I am trying to print a benchy but no matter what I do I can’t get the filament to extrude, it doesn’t even sound like the motor is trying to feed the filament in. I’ve got the filament pressed all the way in but alas it won’t feed. Any ideas? Brand new printer btw. submitted by /u/Pitiful-Wasabi950 [link] [comments]”
“Ello, as the title says I'm just getting into 3d printing. I started with the k1c 2025 but couldnt get the cfs upgrade kit to install the firmware update so just returned it and git the k2 pro. Now I'm having the issue of my few prints coming out with random strings of filament 😑 ive done all the google searching and tried tweaking all the settings, such as retraction speed(which i can't find the setting for in creality cloud pc version but able to see it on the mobile app?) I was w”
“Does anybody know why my bf 3d printer is creating it to look like stringers and not 1 peice submitted by /u/Glittering_Chard5749 [link] [comments]”
“Hello everyone. I am interested in 3D printing and have nowhere to ideally use my printer. I live with my family so the only available spots were my porch and my bedroom. I was concerned about using my bedroom due to fumes but now there's a glass table between my steps of my bedroom and the porch, making it nigh impossible to move it now (my mother prefers aesthetic over maneuverability). I purchased an Elegoo Neptune 4 Pro because I have had a very bad time lately. I need an outlet and time”
“K2 Creality printer just screwed up big time… help? submitted by /u/PersonalityOk4366 [link] [comments]”
“been wanting to get a 3d printing, but i’m worried about how expensive the hobby would end up being. i don’t plan on printing large scale stuff yet (so no full size iron man etc), but i do want to print stuff at max the size of a fruit washing bowl. submitted by /u/Happy_Stand6826 [link] [comments]”
“So i have Printer: ANET ET4 PRO Material : Pla from ELEGOO Speed : its default i think. and im using ideamaker slicer because it have default settings for this printers i want to use orca slicer but it laggy on my laptop. And it doesn't have default settings for the printer. I when i try to make one it have this results. I watch and read any tutorial but I want to make it more smooth as default whenever i import the model to the slicer. I want to print again but filament in here kinda expens”
“After a long time I pulled the trigger on buying myself a 3D printer. Firstly, I wanted to go with the Bambu Lab A1 mini, but since it was not available at our local shops in Slovakia, I went with Elegoo Centauri Carbon 2. It cost me 375€. Man, I love this thing. It was easy to setup and the printing process was straightforward. I am using OrcaSlicer since I am on Linux and the Elegoo one is not available for arch. I have also attached some of the 3D prints I printed since owning this thing. ”
“My boy is trying to figure out settings for his printer, and I have been able to help him make it a bit better, but I don't have much experience and need help with figuring out the issues from this point on. He has a Creality CR-10 S5, printed in PLA at 210°C, 60mm/s printed from the teeth up. It was sliced in Cura as well so there's that. I have done some troubleshooting with the machine and that all seems fine, nothing is clogged, nothing is loose, everything is moving and working as i”
“Thought it would be fun to break out the ol MMU2S and try to get it dialed in.... Holy fucking shit I forgot how awful this thing is 😡 Three hours later and I'm rage quitting. Filament is jamming every single mother fucking time at the entrance to the drive gear/shaft area. I guess filament has to be the absolute perfect shape to pass through without catching the lip... You can see in the picture what I mean. The white filament keeps hitting the edge of hole. I tried cleaning the edge up bu”
“Just got a neptune 3 pro second hand. Took my time and went over hardware and belts. Leveled and set z. Using Cura i used a stock pla profile and was pretty pleased at the quality even with the lack of tuning. Printed a benchy or two and moved the z seam to random. I use random on my ender and was able to tune retraction so I did not get any zits or pits. With this elegoo I have changed every retraction setting that I know of multiple times and I'm not getting any changes at all. I need some”
“I’m looking to buy one at auction used. Is that a good option? submitted by /u/Fun_Honeydew_803 [link] [comments]”
“And have been given a flashforge 5m pro however I never see that or any flashforge printer on this sub and wondered what everyone thought of it? I want to do more things with it but have no idea how capable it is. Can I do multi color printing? Does anyone know how reliable they are? I really just wanted to hear people’s thoughts on it. Thank you! submitted by /u/BudgetFresh7656 [link] [comments]”
“I´m picking up tomorrow a new (used but new for me) printer, an Elegoo Centauri Carbon. I like it a lot especially because it´s not so loud and it has an enclosure (looks really nice). So far I only used ready to print designs and now I want to create my own designs. I know CAD is probably the best software, but I heard it´s hard to learn/takes time. Is there a different Software I can use to create simple designs ? I mainly use it for Computer parts (Server stuff, adapters and such). I don´t ne”
“Not sure if I’m explaining this properly, but hopefully the video helps 😂 I’m trying to print this keyring with raised letters on top of the base. What I want is for the printer to completely finish the base first, including the final top surface layer , and only then start printing the letters on top of that finished surface. At the moment, it looks like the letters start printing before the base is fully finished, so they interfere with the top layers and leave visible lines/marks around the”
“So, I have an elegoo neptune 4. I tried running a benchy through it. The speed was variable throughout the print that couldn't even complete (look a tmy profile for context) and at certain points it went up to like 250, and 500. So whats up with that? Whys it so fast? Are variable speeds normal for personal prints? Or can I keep it at a specific speed for things I create later on? Is the benchy supposed to print so fast? submitted by /u/EvenInRed [link] [comments]”
“My late grandfather left me his 3d printer setup: - 2x Longer LK5 - 2x Ender Creality 3 - 2x Elegoo 9k resin printer - metric F-ton of filament (he was a bit of a hoarder) My plan right now is to keep one of the Longer printers and then one of the resin printers for finer prints. I’m fine being patient and not having a ridiculous farm. I don’t have any immediate plans for the printers, but like the idea of printing small useful items and D&D minis. Is there something I’m missing? Should I ke”
“Hello printers I’ve just bought myself an “Anycubic Kobra S1 ACE 2 Pro. Combo” I managed to get it for quite cheap and I figured getting into 3D printing will be far more enjoyable with a semi decent printer SO, do you wonderful people have any advice on things to read, learn, do, don’t do, trial anything for a total beginner? I bought this because I’m constantly thinking “I wish I had something for xyz” and the griddify things looks insane submitted by /u/EMCowell [link] [comm”
“So I am having trouble printing thin vertical pieces on my MK4S. They keep getting knocked over by the nozzle clipping these little protrusions. I tried increasing the z-hop but it didn't work. It might not have been enough. Ramping the z-lift was default and that didn't work. Slowing it way tf down didn't work. Increasing retraction speed didn't work. Yeah I understand that the strength of a tall vertical is constrained by the layer adhesion. I switched the z-hop from ramping to”
“I found an old German reprap x400 in our lab. It hasn't been used in years. I want to convert it into a clay printer (no heated or complicated extruder just the motors and end stops). I have only done minor repairs / mods on printers so far. It unfortunately didn't turn on. I want to redo the electronics anyways. I have disassembled it and isolated all the motors and end stops. and taken out the old Arduino and Power supply. It had two Power cables for some reason. (I think one was for t”
“I am fairly new (only 6 weeks in) to 3D printing. I am obsessed so far! Essentially, I am asking people at work what they want me to make and then printing it. I mostly make certain models from a collection I found on makerworld that have 5-7 plates of parts that I put together. I’m looking for recommendations on how I can manage/track the requests from people to make sure I know who is getting what and what colors to print each part in. Any recommendations? submitted by /u/Sea-Till-”
“Hey everyone! I’m pretty new to this hobby. I just bought a cheap Polaroid PlaySmart yesterday, and my first few prints actually worked pretty well. Now, for whatever reason, I just can’t seem to get a good print. I’m using a new roll of PLA. The old roll I was using seemed to break very easily. Pretty much all of my prints start peeling up/warping on the sides, and eventually the lifted parts get caught by the nozzle, ruining the print. Things I’ve already tried: Bed Re-leveling Recalibrating t”