Where could I get something 3-D printed in San Francisco?

June 14, 2019 3:56 PM

I have a 3-D print file for 4" earrings that I created using Tinkercad. I'd like to get them printed with colored plastic. I know nothing about 3D printing and I'm guessing I would need to print a few versions before getting the earrings right, so getting it printed in person seems ideal (feel free to convince me otherwise). Where could I do this in the Bay Area and how much would I be expecting to pay? Experience level: Total newbie.
posted by rogerroger to Media & Arts (13 answers total)

3d printing is pretty cheap if you have the 3d printer. And they're not so expensive. Most maker spaces around have one or more. That would involve a bunch of learning stuff, but then you'd know how to do it, and any good maker space will have classes on how to use the equipment. I haven't used them, but Noisebridge is in San Francisco's Mission District. I'm a member of Ace Monster Toys in Oakland, and they've got 3d printers and classes too, and have a pretty good community structure. Memebership at AMT is like $80/month (less if you can't afford 80, more if you want to kick in extra), and classes are super cheap.
posted by aubilenon at 4:06 PM on June 14, 2019

Oh, if you wanted someone else to do it, these maker spaces also have ways to try to hire someone to do projects. At Ace Monster Toys that's a slack channel (I don't have any 3d printing experience so I won't offer to do it myself; I'm more there for the laser cutter and wood shop stuff). I'm happy to answer any questions about AMT either here or via MeMail.
posted by aubilenon at 4:09 PM on June 14, 2019

Libraries sometimes have 3D printers for (free) use. Up here in Portland, anyway. I can't imagine there's no free community printers in the Bay Area.
posted by spacewrench at 4:09 PM on June 14, 2019

ponoko.com is based on the bay area and does 3d printing (through the mail only, you can't go to their site that I know of). I've used them for laser cutting in the past and they do high quality work, I haven't tried them for 3d printing though.
posted by MillMan at 4:15 PM on June 14, 2019

I'm surprised to see that San Francisco Public Library limits 3D printing to classes and special programs, according to this website.

There's a makerspace called Noisebridge that has 3D printers.
posted by bluedaisy at 4:16 PM on June 14, 2019 [1 favorite]

Actually check that, looking closer it doesn't look like they do extrusion based 3d printing which is what I assume you are looking for.

And yeah noisebridge would work, they are free (although please donate). I have done a bit of laser cutting there.
posted by MillMan at 4:18 PM on June 14, 2019

Sunnyvale Public Library has a MakerBot Replicator 2 that uses PLA plastic filament. Not local, a bit pricey for an individual but fairly quick: I've been happy with Xometry with their higher quality print options. Proto Labs, Inc. is similar option.
posted by tinker at 4:53 PM on June 14, 2019 [1 favorite]

What feature scale are you trying to produce? FDM machines (the ones that squeeze hot plastic through a tube, like the MakerBot discussed up-thread) typically have 0.4mm nozzles, and realistically that bounds the size of features you can print. SLA (UV-curing resins) can make finer detail, but typically smaller volumes overall. Earrings suggests tiny features, maybe? Can’t help with specific vendors though.
posted by Alterscape at 5:34 PM on June 14, 2019 [1 favorite]

makeXYZ is a service that might be able to connect you with an individual in your area who can do the printing for you. You can also filter by printer type to find one that can do the resolution you need.

My friend who has some nice printers used to do peer to peer printing through 3Dhubs (I think), but that site seems to have discontinued that feature.
posted by itesser at 7:10 PM on June 14, 2019

You can book time on either of the Ultimakers at the South San Francisco (a few BART stops away) Public Library, if you are a cardholder, which you are eligible to be as a California resident. I believe it’s either free or very cheap.

Shapeways.com also gets good reviews.
posted by blnkfrnk at 7:46 PM on June 14, 2019 [2 favorites]

Reach out to the good people at Moddler. Maybe they can help you get what you want.
posted by cleverevans at 9:35 PM on June 14, 2019

Heck, it's the weekend and I like to pay it forward. Shoot me a memail if you want someone to run a test print and/or give manufacturability feedback. I'm down in San Jose, only have two printers, and probably don't have the colors of material you want (unless you want orange, black, white, or translucent green, which are what I'm using these days).

Kalessin is right, STL is pretty much the lingua franca of slicers -- think of it like printing a document to a PDF or EPS so you know a print-shop owner will print it the way you want, no matter if they have all the same fonts and whatnot.
posted by Alterscape at 9:28 AM on June 15, 2019

Response by poster: Thanks for everyone's great advice and offers. I'll be MeMailing some of you!
posted by rogerroger at 3:18 PM on June 18, 2019