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I'm going to a 3d print meetup tomorrow, taking my printer along so it can print during, and I'm looking for an impressive-looking model to print that is also unlikely to fail on me "in front of the audience" as it were.

What are some good choices for models that I can demo printing?

Ideally, this is what I'm looking for:
- Easy print
- Can print at high speed (so probably no steep overhangs)
- Shows off the build volume
- Prints in short amount of time

My first thought is vases, which is fine, but I'm wondering if there's anything cooler that would also fit the bill. Advice?

If the meetup is people who also 3D print and aren't being introduced to the concept... Print calibration pieces. Bring the Make Magazine torture tests. Benchy. Things like that. Assemblies and things that move usually go over well with other printers. http://www.thingiverse.com/gzumwalt/designs You could also bring things that everyone is familiar with (like the owl facing left) to compare your parts with what others have pulled off.


If you're doing a demo for people who haven't seen 3D printing before:

A gear bearing is always a great demo of something that you can 3D print, but can't be created any other way. The fact that all 8 (or however many) gears print at the same time, already meshed, as an assembly blows people's minds.

The Nasa wrench is a nice demo piece. I'd also recommend printing a socket to turn it with because the 3/8" drive anvil is tough to spin by hand.

Zampik makes simple, yet flashy looking parts. http://www.thingiverse.com/Zampik/about

The Shark-Clip is another quick, but fun print. http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:910216

Vases are always a hit at the shows I've done. http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:104694 or http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:31722

Wow, those Zumwalt designs are awesome! I will be definitely be printing some of those, probably a bit too late to have one ready for tomorrow though. Definitely thanks for sharing though!

Hi Ben, What model did you finally use to show off?


Sorry, too late...
Great designs: http://www.thingiverse.com/be3D_printers/designs
Articulated elephant: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:257911

Thanks for the ideas anyway, and actually someone else brought in that elephant! So that's funny.

It wound up being a moot issue. My wife and I brought the printer into our garage this morning and found out it didn't fit in the car, so we couldn't bring it to the meetup with us.

Oh well... they'll have another meetup in October I think, so we'll see if one of our neighbors can loan us their SUV or something!

BenTheRighteous wrote:It wound up being a moot issue. My wife and I brought the printer into our garage this morning and found out it didn't fit in the car, so we couldn't bring it to the meetup with us.

I lay mine down across the back seat... Works in a compact.

Good luck next time!

Roof rack?

I didn't want to lay it down sideways because I didn't want to risk damage to/from the enclosure I built for it. Otherwise I'm sure that would've worked.