PrinterKid

 

So Santa was good to you this year and brought you a shiny new 3D printer to turn you into your very own toy workshop? Now what? Come join us this Wednesday January 9th so we can help you get started with your new gear and get you printing like a pro in no time. Of course if you are already a pro we would love to have you come share your knowledge with everyone too. This event as always is free and open to the public. We will get started around 7pm at AS220 labs in Providence, RI. The entrance can be found around back on Lucie Way. We hoep to see you there even if you are still in your footy pajamas from not putting down your printer since the holidays.

The year is wrapping up and for our 6th meeting (wow half a year already) and final meeting of the year, we are going to forgo our normal formula and just have a good time without a presentation. We will have a collection of printers and creating ornaments as well as some of the other equipment at Labs running demos. We encourage you to bring your printer also if you have one, the more the merrier. We’re going to have some snacks and beverages but if you have a holiday favorite we would love to try it too! If you have never made it to one of our meetings before this is a great time to meet the group and either share your knowledge or ask the questions you have been dying to discover. We will be meeting as normal at 7PM at AS220 Labs on Wednesday. I hope to see you all there!

Tonight Make Magazine is putting on it’s first International Maker Meetup to launch it’s new special issue magazine the “Ultimate Guide To 3D Printing”. AS220 Labs is playing host to the local Providence meetup starting at 7pm. We invite all the 3DPPVD crowd to join us in learning about what make did as part of this issue and what they learned during their testing. Please sign up at the link bellow to RSVP if you think you can join us.

http://www.meetup.com/makermeetup/Providence/827542/

This month experienced 3D printer builder Bruce Wattendorf will be joining us to introduce the concepts and common parts involved in building your own printer. If you can’t pick out your idler from your extruder or what rods work with a lm8uu bearings, this will be the night for you. With our upcoming printer build weekend being honed in on, this is a great opportunity to come up to speed on what you will need to know to join us. Of course there will also be plenty of time before and after to hang out and chat about 3D printers and what is going on in the digital fabrication world. We will kick things off at 7pm on Wednesday, November14th at AS220 Labs. This meeting is free and open to the public.

This month, Thingiverese’s own mad scientist Tony Buser will be joining us remotely to discuss his updated process for cleaning and prepping scanned models to be ready for printing. Tony is the largest contributor to Thingiverse and his previous video on cleaning models is considered the go to source for those who want to use reconstructme to create their own head scans. There is also lots to discuss after Maker Faire New York and it’s impressive showing of 3D printers. Join us on Wednesday October 10th at 7pm to learn from the master. We will be meeting again at AS220 Labs and as usual will be hanging out after the presentation.

MIT Media Lab startup Formlabs has launched their new desktop stereo lithography 3D printer. This is the first commercially available true stereo lithography printer offered to a hobbyist or small company market. Unlike other resin printers that we have seen in the past, this machine does not use a projector to cure the resin but instead uses a laser to do the job. We are looking forward to seeing these bots in the wild but if you can’t wait to get your hands on one, head on over to their kickstarter to be one of the first to own one.

 

September is here and it brings our third meeting on Wednesday September 12th. This time Matt Donley of MasterSketchup.com is taking the reigns to give everyone an introduction to one of the most popular tools for getting started in 3D design. Even if you are a whiz at Sketchup Matt is sure to have some tips to help you take your design to the next level. This meeting like always is free and open to the public. Things will get started around 7pm with plenty of time to hang out and discuss everything going on in the 3d printing world after the presentation.

 

As a follow up to last nights discussion I wanted to post up links to Mini Maker Faire Rhode Island. This is a great event for makers, hackers, and 3D Printing enthusiasts with lots to see and do. If you are available this Saturday August 11th between 1pm and 10pm stop by and check out the festivities.

Maker Faire RI

We are also still looking for volunteers so if you would like to help please follow the link bellow to sign up.

Volunteers

August is here and it’s time for our second meeting. We will be back at AS220 Labs on Wednesday August 8th at 7pm. We are going to have a brief introduction to OpenSCAD, a tool commonly used for creating 3D printable designs. This will be a basic overview showing how easy it is to get started and explaining some of the principles of parametric design.

Of course there will also be lots of time for questions and answers and to discuss what’s going on in the 3D printing world (lots of new bots and happenings in the past month). Even if you didn’t make the last meeting please join us this time around as we will always be open for newcomers.

Our first meeting was a huge success. There were about 20 attendees for this inaugural meeting. We had lots of interest in continuing to meet and everyone agreed that the second Wednesday of every month was a good time. So with that plan our next meeting will be Wednesday August 8th at 7pm at AS220 again. Thanks to Richard for all the great photos of the event and to Josh for volunteering to start up a google group for the group. We will be sure to post a link to that group once it’s setup. Until then you can follow us on twitter @3dppvd for any updates.

Be sure to check out Matt’s (@MasterSketchup) excelent blog post about the event too. What Is 3D Printing

Answering questions with the replicator and the start of a reprap Wallace.

 

Mustache rings for all!