Field notes.
Settings, comparisons and write-ups from the Lab and from Studio jobs. Each one opens with the short answer, so you can take it and go.
- Buying · 7
- Printers · 12
- Settings · 7
- Materials · 15
- Process · 9
Branded or no-name, every new spool gets checked
Branded filament does not automatically print better than no-name filament; what it gives you is information — a data sheet, a measured diameter tolerance, a lot number and a starting print profile. With no-name filament you measure those things yourself. Any new spool deserves a check before a long print: the bag is still sealed, the diameter is measured on two perpendicular axes, the spool fits the holder or feeder, the material is dried if its type needs it, and temperature and flow are calibrated for that spool. New does not mean dry — Bambu Lab itself recommends drying its own PLA before use and requires it for TPU, PC and nylon.
- The difference between branded and no-name filament is the information you have before printing, not a promise about any one spool.
- Flow scales with the square of diameter: a 1.80 mm strand pushes out about 5.8 % more plastic than 1.75 mm. Measure on two perpendicular axes, because an oval strand read on one axis lies.
- A new spool is not a dry spool. Bambu Lab lists “drying recommended before use” for its own PLA and “required” for TPU, PC and nylon.
The race to multicolour without purge — four architectures, nine names, side by side
K3, SPARKX i8, Snapmaker U1, Bambu H2C, Prusa INDX and the H3C/P3C FCC filings compared: colour-change method, swap time, waste, chamber, materials, price.
HP MJF 1200 — Multi Jet Fusion made smaller, and what it changes about outsourcing
HP MJF 1200: 320 × 165 × 230 mm (12 L) build, PA 12, builds under 12 h, under $60,000, shipping early 2027. How MJF differs from SLS and what it really costs.
Archive
Everything, newest first.
LayerHub — a preset library with real print photos, and why you still calibrate
LayerHub hosts filament presets for Bambu Studio, OrcaSlicer and PrusaSlicer, each with a real print photo. Reading a preset, and 6 steps to recheck it.
Prusa INDX — induction-heated tool changes, and Prusa's August 2026 lineup
Prusa INDX swaps up to 8 tools on a CORE One+, ~12 s and 13 mg of filament per change. How it works, price, shipping, and nozzle wear on carbon fibre.
Bambu PLA Pure — certified ingredient by ingredient, not print by print
Bambu PLA Pure has five ingredients, all EU 10/2011 compliant, plus EN 71-3 and GREENGUARD. What that covers, and why prints still can't hold drinks.
PA12, PA-CF, PA6-GF or PC? Choose by failure mode, not by the biggest number
Comparing engineering 3D printing materials — PA12, PA-CF, PA6-GF, PC Core and PC Blend — on heat resistance, stiffness, impact, machine requirements and relative cost.
Three PLAs, three different jobs — and how to pick the right one
PLA Matte vs PLA High Speed vs PLA-CF: how they differ in composition, surface, stiffness, print speed and price — and which one suits which job.
TPU 95A or 85A? Shore hardness decides both the part and how it prints
TPU 95A vs TPU 85A: what Shore hardness means, how they differ in tear, wear and print speed, and how to design so the harder grade can stand in for the softer one.
PCTG — PETG's sibling, and why its impact number needs a slow read
PCTG is a copolyester in the same family as PETG: tougher, clearer, and it wants a hotter bed. Compared with PETG from extrudr's and Fiberlogy's data, how to print it, and what the data sheets leave out.
PETG 2.0 and matte PETG — read the data sheet before you trust the name
What “PETG 2.0” actually is, and how matte PETG differs from regular PETG: strength, elongation, heat, print speed and stringing — read from the makers' own technical data sheets.
3D printer makers, read by what they publish about themselves
How Bambu Lab, Prusa, Creality, QIDI, ELEGOO, Anycubic and self-built machines differ in ecosystem, chamber heating, temperature range and parts supply — with makers' published specs and retail prices in Vietnam.
Bambu Lab R1 — a 55 W CO2 laser, and where it fits next to a 3D printer
The Bambu Lab R1 is a 55 W CO2 laser cutter and engraver, Bambu Lab's first device that isn't a 3D printer: working area, cuttable materials, safety, published price, and what it adds to a 3D printing workshop.
X2D Pro and H3C — two names in FCC filings, not yet two printers
The Bambu Lab X2D Pro and H3C appeared in FCC filings on 11/09/2026. This article separates what the filings actually say from rumour, and sets them beside the X2D on sale today.
Creality K3 and SPARKX i8 — two ways to print multicolour without purge
The Creality K3 with its KliTek nozzle changer and the SPARKX i8 with its four-channel QuarTeks toolhead: the makers' published specs, sale dates, listed materials, and what's still unknown.
Multi-toolhead printers in 2026 — four approaches, and what they change for your filament
Snapmaker U1, Flashforge Creator 5 Pro, the upcoming Creality K3, Sovol M1D and Co Print Quadro: toolchanger, nozzle changer, IDEX plus toolchanger, and four independent heads on one axis — the makers' published specs, what's not yet published, and what it means for materials.
Multicolour printing: the plastic you pay for but never see on the part
Purge and prime-tower waste when printing multicolour on a single-nozzle machine: why it can outweigh the part, how to estimate it in money, and six ways to reduce it — using Bambu Lab's figures.
What "open source" really means for a 3D printer
RepRap has published every drawing under the GPL since 2004. Voron Design still does: it sells drawings, not printers. Prusa changed course — CORE One launched without hardware files, then more than a year later republished them under a licence of its own. Three very different readings of "open", and the difference decides what you may do with the machine you paid for.
The investment threshold for SLS and metal printing is nothing like FDM's
A benchtop SLS printer costs hundreds of millions of VND; an industrial DMLS machine can run to tens of billions — and both carry hidden running costs the price list leaves out. How to read the real threshold before deciding to buy a machine or use a service.
A maintenance schedule belongs to the printer, not to 3D printing
Two makers, two maintenance schedules, and one point where they contradict each other: the Z lead screws. How to read your maker's schedule, the jobs whose frequency changes with ABS or fibre-filled filament, and three things not to do.
Design for the nozzle, not for the screen
45° overhangs, 5 mm bridges, 5 mm pins, vertical holes that always print undersize, and corners always rounded by the nozzle. Five geometric thresholds that decide whether a part prints or the drawing needs fixing.
The question isn't the spool
Four things decide whether a 3D printed part may touch food: the material, the colourants, the nozzle material, and the gaps between layers. The spool is only one of the four, and the easiest one.
Calibrate per spool, not per printer
Six tests, one order, and what each test actually measures. Why the same kind of PLA from two makers needs two different values, and the faults no calibration can fix.
First layer won't stick — and first layer sticks too hard
First-layer adhesion comes down to four things: a clean surface, nozzle height, bed temperature and contact area. Which plate suits which material, when glue is needed, and why glue is sometimes a release agent rather than an adhesive.
Soluble support materials — and what they cost in a humid climate
PVA dissolves in water, HIPS in limonene, and which pairs with which material is a requirement, not a preference. A compatibility table, drying requirements, purge-tower waste, and when same-material support is the better choice.
Post-processing 3D prints, from the build plate to a finished surface
The four steps after a print finishes, what each sandpaper grit does, which materials can be solvent-smoothed, and when to stop instead of sanding further.
Annealing: when it adds strength, and when it just shrinks the part
Annealing does two different things — relieves stress and raises crystallinity — and only the second changes mechanical properties. Which materials are worth annealing, the process, and the price paid in dimensions.
Joining 3D printed parts: which glue bonds what, and which threads hold load
An adhesive table by plastic, why solvent-welded ABS is the strongest joint, three ways to make threads in a 3D print, and how to split a large part into pieces that print better.
Painting 3D prints — the primer is the coat that decides it
Why 3D prints need primer, which primer suits which plastic, how to spray in humid weather, and when an outdoor topcoat is a requirement rather than decoration.
Washing, drying and curing resin parts — the step that sets the properties
A resin part fresh off the printer is far weaker than its data sheet. The IPA wash process, cure times by resin type, signs of under- and over-curing, and how to handle the waste.
Out of the grade you need? What swaps for what, and what it costs you
Which 3D printing materials substitute for each other: a swap table by grade, what you give up in each direction, a relative cost index, and the substitutions that look sensible but are not.
Carbon or glass fibre? What the fibre does, and what it costs you
Fibre-filled 3D printing filament explained: what chopped fibre does inside the material, why stiffness rises while toughness falls, nozzle wear, and PLA-CF, PETG-CF, PA-CF and PA6-GF compared.
Filament types, read from composition up to properties
A guide to FDM filament and resin families: what the base polymer does, what the additives do, and why composition predicts heat resistance, toughness and print behaviour.
Enclosed, heated, and which parts need which
The difference between a passive enclosure and an actively heated chamber, the chamber temperatures makers publish, and the part sizes at which a missing chamber means warping or delamination.
ABS or ASA? One ingredient apart, and it changes everything outdoors
ABS vs ASA for 3D printing: the difference in composition, UV resistance, mechanical properties, print settings and cost — and how to decide which one your part needs.
Nozzles — choose the material first, then the diameter
How brass, hardened steel, bimetal and hard-tipped nozzles differ, when carbon fibre forces a change, and what 0.2–0.8 mm diameters change in flow rate and print time.
Costing one 3D printed part: the formula and a full worked example
The formula for what one 3D printed part really costs: material, machine time, electricity, depreciation, failure rate and post-processing labour — with a worked example for a PETG part.
Four numbers on the printer decide which materials you can print
Match your printer's nozzle temperature, bed temperature, enclosure and nozzle material against what PLA, PETG, TPU, ABS/ASA, nylon and PC need — with the published specs of popular printers.
Your first 3D printer — what to pay for, and in what order
Four budget tiers based on machine prices observed in Vietnam, the order to spend extra money in, the support budget few people plan for, and five mistakes that leave a printer idle after two months.
Three 3D printing technologies, and which parts belong to which
The three main 3D printing technologies — FDM, resin MSLA and SLS — compared on resolution, published mechanical properties, post-processing and cost, with retail machine prices in Vietnam.
3D printed parts melting in the car — which filament should you use?
The real temperatures inside a car parked in tropical sun, why PLA sags instead of cracking, and the right material for each location: cabin, dashboard, engine bay.
Common 3D printing problems: diagnose in order, don't guess
A quick-reference table of common FDM print failures and the first cause to check: first layer not sticking, layer separation, stringing, clogs, layer shift, under-extrusion.
How to dry filament, and how to tell when it is wet
Drying temperatures and times for PLA, PETG, ABS, TPU, nylon and PC, how to recognise a wet spool while printing, and how to store filament so it stays dry.
3D printed parts outdoors in a tropical climate: what to use, how to design
The three things that destroy outdoor 3D prints, in the order they do it — UV, heat, then water — and how to choose material, design and surface finish for a tropical climate.
PLA, PETG or ABS? Start with what the part has to survive
A practical comparison of PLA, PETG and ABS for FDM printing: strength, heat resistance, UV, print difficulty and the failure each one actually has.
Is 3D printing toxic? Fumes, ultrafine particles and what to do about them
What a 3D printer emits while it runs, which materials emit the most, how to set up an enclosure and extraction, and the safety rules for working with resin.
How to read a filament data sheet
What tensile strength, elongation, HDT and Izod impact really tell you about a printed part, which numbers are measured on moulded samples, and the questions a data sheet should answer.
Which print settings actually make a part stronger?
Wall count, orientation, temperature and layer height ranked by how much they change the strength of an FDM part — with the settings that make almost no difference.
Carbon fibre nylon: what it is good at, and what it is not
What carbon fibre adds to nylon, what it takes away, the hardware you need, and how to decide between PA-CF, PA12 and PA6-GF for a functional part.
How to print TPU without the tangles
Shore hardness explained, direct drive versus Bowden, retraction and speed settings for flexible filament, and how to design a printed TPU gasket that actually seals.