What counts as “high temperature” in 3D printing The term “high temperature” in FDM 3D printing refers to two overlapping properties: the temperature the nozzle needs to reach to melt the filament (the extrusion temperature), and the temperature the finished part can withstand before it deforms (the heat deflection temperature, or HDT). A material that…
The definition that actually matters A CoreXY printer is an FDM 3D printer that moves its toolhead in both the X and Y axes using two stationary motors and a crossed belt system, while keeping the bed fixed in the horizontal plane. That is the whole definition. Everything about CoreXY — its speed, its complexity,…
What “cheapest enclosed 3D printer” actually means in 2026 Search this query and you get two categories of result: expensive machines that happen to be “under $1000” and ancient Flashforge designs from 2019 that Amazon still lists. Neither is what someone asking the question wants. The real question is: what is the lowest-cost printer shipping…
What “highest quality” actually means for PLA Most “best PLA” rankings optimise for value: what is the cheapest spool that prints acceptably? That is a fair question for hobbyists working their way through ten kilos of PLA per month. But it is not the question the prosumer running engineering prototypes, the model maker finishing a…
The short answer, and why it matters OctoPrint is a web application that runs on a small computer — almost always a Raspberry Pi — which is physically connected to your 3D printer over USB. It takes the G-code file you would normally drop on an SD card, streams those commands to the printer one…
What wet filament actually is and why it ruins prints “Wet filament” is the hobby term for a 3D printing filament that has absorbed atmospheric moisture. All the plastics we print — PLA, PETG, ABS, ASA, TPU, nylon, polycarbonate — are hygroscopic to varying degrees, meaning they pull water vapor out of the air and…
Why a camera is the first OctoPrint upgrade worth installing OctoPrint camera setup is not something I bothered with for my first year of printing, and I regret that more than almost any other decision in this hobby. I resisted putting a camera on my OctoPrint instance for longer than I should have. The turning…
Why cure time is not a single number How long to cure resin prints is the question every new SLA owner asks by their third print, and the honest answer is “it depends.” The first resin print I ever cured sat under a 405 nm UV station for forty minutes because I panicked and assumed…
What “strongest” actually means for PETG “Strongest PETG” is an incomplete question until you specify which kind of strength. Tensile strength — how much force the print takes before a wall pulls apart — is one metric. Impact strength, the ability to absorb a sudden hit without cracking, is another. Layer adhesion, the glue between…
The kinematic style most beginners buy without realizing it When I teach new hobbyists at my local maker space, the same question surfaces within ten minutes of them seeing my Ender 3 next to a Voron 2.4: “Why does your bed move on that one and not on the other one?” That difference is the…