People often describe the FDM (fused deposition modeling) process used by most desktop 3D printers as 'like a hot glue gun extruding plastic'. Well, check out this video of a DIY hot glue gun 3D printer. 

So you want to enter the iPhone 5 contest we are running to win $500 worth of 3D Printing but you do not know where to start? We uploaded some files to TinkerCad so you can get started and now the team from TinkerCad have taken it one step further with a really handy video showing how to customize an iPhone case in TinkerCad.

TinkerCad is a perfect tool to get started designing for 3D Printing thanks to it's drag and drop capabilities.  Because it is browser based you never need to download or update the software. You always have the latest version.

Thanks again to the team at TinkerCad for putting the video together... 

It Arrived!!!

The first 3D Printed iPhone 5 has landed at Shapeways and along with it an update to the design for the iPhone 5 case templates for the contest we are running at Shapeways where you can win $500 worth of 3D Printing by designing an accessory for the iPhone 5.

There are already over 30 3D Printed products already available on Shapeways to fit the iPhone 5, enter your design in the contest to win.

We have updated the downloadable files for customization now that we have been able to test the fit, especially around the corners for the iPhone 5, the case can be downloaded here, and the bumper here. 

Teenage Engineering not only make one of the sexiest synthesizers but also get the prize for being the first electronics company to offer their replacement parts as downloadable 3D Printed files.

This is the first company that I have seen so far that offer replacement parts to be 3D Printed by their consumers.  This is an incredibly smart move as it takes away the need for them to warehouse and distribute replacement parts.  It also means that their fans have an opportunity to modify and customize aspects of their synthesizers.

We work hard to make our OP-1 users happy with free OS updates and added functionality. But sometimes we fail. As some have noted, the shipping cost of the OP-1 accessories is very high. This is because we can't find a good delivery service for small items. Meanwhile, we have decided to put all CAD files of the parts in our library section for you to download. The files are provided in both STEP and STL format. Just download the files and 3D print as many as you want. Next fail is the OP-1 manual update. We are almost there...we promise it will be ready sometime next week. Thank you all for your patience, we promise to work even harder in the future to make you happy.

Teenage OP-1 "fail" Team

The parts are now available on Shapeways if you need to 3D Print replacement parts for your OP-1 synthesizer. 

Teenage Engineering, we LOVE you.... 

UPDATE: These files may not be 100% correct, I will double check ASAP...

UPDATE 2: THE CORRECT FILES ARE NOW AVAILABLE, PLEASE SEE DETAILS HERE.

We announced the contest to win $500 worth of Shapeways 3D Printing last week and have already seen a few designs for the iPhone 5 trickle in but we wanted to make it a little easier for you with a few 3D files to download that might help.

We have used the specifications provided by Apple to 3D model a dummy iPhone 5 suitable for 3D Printing in Nylon and one for Full Color 3D Printing, along with a basic case for the iPhone 5 and a basic bumper.

Please note we are waiting for the 3D Prints to come back and of course we have not yet tested them on an iPhone 5 yet..... 

You can download the STL files to modify in your 3D software of choice as long as it supports STL import, we have also uploaded the case to TinkerCad along with the bumper and the dummy iPhone 5 so you can start customizing the design even if you do not have any 3D CAD skills, yet... 

UPDATE: THE CORRECT 3D FILES ARE NOW AVAILABLE FOR DOWNLOAD, PLEASE SEE HERE.

The iPhone 5 has now been announced and about go on sale on in the U.S. so we want to see what innovative new designs you come up with to 3D Print for the latest iteration of the iPhone to hit the market.

We are running a contest to find the coolest possible 3D Printed accessory for the iPhone 5, be it a case, mount, amplifier, magnifier, connector, stand, spinner, launcher, disguise, necklace, shoe, bottle opener, ping pong paddle, helmet, destroyer, anything.

Upload your NEW design for the iPhone 5 with the tag iPhone5_3D by Friday October 19th for your chance to win $500 worth of Shapeways 3D Printing!

The Shapeways team will choose a winner based on the design we deem to be most awesome... 

You can download the dimensions of the new iPhone 5 from Apple now to make your design perfectly fit the new device and check out their Case Guidelines to ensure your design does not impede the performance of the iPhone 5.

Walter Schreppers has configured his Raspberry Pi with a web interface to control his RepRap 3D Printer, perhaps this could be used for Zach Hoeken's BotQueue to scale up DIY manufacturing to control an army of 3D Printers.

Can't decide whether to 3D Print Stairway to Heaven or the Star Wars Theme for you Fisher Price turntable? No Problem, you can simply order the Double Sided Disc hot from the Shapeways 3D Printer.

You do not need to settle for this double disc of 70's nostalgia when you can design your own thanks to an Instructables by our latest hero Fred Murphy aka Fred27 aka Fred27.

"Attached you'll find the new version of my Fisher Price music editing software. It's included as an executable and (if you don't trust randomly downloaded software from the internet) the C# source code is there too. Feel free to take a nose around in the source code and compile it with the free version of Visual C# 2010 Express.

You'll also need a copy of OpenSCAD. This amazing software allows the scripting of 3D CAD objects and is what turns the idea of what you want into the STL file that a 3D printer accepts.

Wow - all this software and no need to pay a penny for any of it.

If this all sounds like too much trouble, then you can just open one of the pre-generated STL files. Your jukebox comprises of Stairway to Heaven, the Star Wars theme and You are my Sunshine. If none of those float your boat then don't complain... get editing. I'd love to hear what you can do."

Tinkecad has been turning up the awesome dial on their WebGL browser based 3D modeling application over the past year but they just made it even better with the ability to import 3D STL files.... 

This will make it SUPER easy to customize an existing 3D model to 3D Print at Shapeways, whether it be your own file you have created in another software, or a downloadable file from Shapeways, or other 3D model repositories like Thingiverse and GrabCad. You can also grab multiples STL files and mash them together, add text, geometry, anything.... AWESOME.

One limitation is the STL import is currently limited to 25,000 triangles so don't go throwing zBrush madness at it just yet, and of course, make sure you have permission to use the 3D files, and if you modify them, be sure to adhere to the terms by which the original 3D model was shared..

Thanks to the Tinkercad crew for such a fantastic move. 

Now you can cook direct from the 3D Printer with Ruben Alexander's Tea Light Cooker 3D Printed in Ceramics by Shapeways.

Whether you want to cook Portugese sausage with green tomatoes and garlic, a mini fondu or bake a small spice cake.

This little cooker is designed around the lowly tealight. First meals have been with a standard tealight (38mm x 38mm x 16mm) as the heat source and safflower oil inside the cooking vessel with minced green tomatoes, Portuguese sausage, and sliced garlic. After those tasty results, I progressed to make a variety of dishes.

I first came a cross this great little cooker when we had our Shapeways Meetup at the Quirky office, Ruben was augmenting our catering efforts with some freshly cooked delights direct from the 3D Printed ceramic cooker.... Take a look at the product page to see the experiments and limitations that Ruben has found so far.

Possibly the most advanced 3D Print ever to hit Shapeways from browser based 3D modeling software Tinkercad is the Brewster Station by emmyceru AKA Emily AKA Cat Girl.... Simply amazing... And yes, this is a photograph....

Emily based her 3D Model on a photograph from the 1930's of Brewster station from a postcard from the collection of Steve Swirsky and also visited the site to get more of the details.

In what must have been an epic feat of 3D modeling endurance (especially for a first 3D modeling project) Emily assembled the model brick by brick in Tinkercad with amazing precision and stunning results.

Congratulations to Emily on what is a fantastic first effort at 3D modeling, we hope it inspires others to play with Tinkercad and other free 3D modeling tools and start 3D Printing their designs for real.  You can see more images and get more info on her blog, I Ride the Harlem Line....

Sometimes when you buy a new car you can find there is a little something missing, whether it be an extra-large cup holder, iPhone mount or a custom gear shifter. Mark Moore found his new Volvo C30 came with the facility to hang dry cleaning but they provided no hook, only a slot.  The solution,  a 3D Printed hook to support coat hangers that slides right into the provided slot.

Mark has designed a long and a short version, the bottom of the longer version can be seen from outside the vehicle through the back window so that you can hang your cleaning without craning your neck inside the door to see what your doing. However, the long hook is long enough that you may want to remove it temporarily if you are going to have rear-seat passengers. An elegant solution to perfectly fit the functionality and aesthetic of the car....

Check out some more of the 3D Printed Volvo compatible parts in the Shapeways gallery.

Volvo C30 Coat/Dry Cleaning Hook - Short

$14.63

CarPC 7" display mount for Volvo S60

$35.18

FrontPlate Volvo FH 2008

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VPC-13007-1

$308.48