One of the hottest products of the very hot 3D printing marketplace is the 3Doodler.
One reason is that this handheld 3D “printer” is very affordable – you can now own a 3D printer for under $100 (the 3Doodler goes for $99.99).
OK, it’s not really a 3D printer, but in many ways, the 3Doodler is more interesting, or at least differently interesting, in that it allows you to draw three dimensionally …
Innumerable people have recommended to me that I get one or told me that they have one. It’s probably no surprise to you that I already do – I am a gadget guy!
But I probably use the 3Doodler a little different than most people do.
Sure, I started out like most people, wanting to draw with it, and I did play around with that application.
The problem is, I can’t draw.
Yeah, I know that seems weird, because I’m a full-time artist, but I work in three dimensions, which is a totally different way of looking at things.
Not being able to draw has created some small hassles for me in that, on occasion, I’ve had to hire an artist for a rendering, but it actually led me toward 3D printing. That’s because it pushed me to learn CAD (Computer Aided Design), which then set me up to jump into 3D printing. Yeah, there are no accidents ….
So while I’ve had some fun playing with the 3Doodler as a pen, I’ve actually found it is really useful for working with prints that may not come out exactly right.
It turns out that the 3Doodler takes 3 mm filament, which I use in my Gigante 3D printer! So I am able to take any of the filament I use in that printer and run it through the 3Doodler.
On occasion I’ve had a place I want to fill or clean up a bit, so voila! I take the 3Doodler, load it up with the same filament I printed a piece with, and fire it up. The filament is, obviously, an exact match. Now if I could just keep my hand steady …..
I’m sure there’s some great work out there using the 3Doodler. If you’ve created some, please feel welcome to leave a link here. Thanks.