WTFFF?! 3D Printing Podcast: 3D Print Tips | 3D Print Tools | 3D Start Point

We first met Taj Chiu, then of Toy Builder Labs, at the first SoCal MakerCon. We sat down with her again to learn why she was exhibiting at this SoCal MakerCon in a Raise 3D booth. In this WTFFF?! episode brought to you live from the show floor, Tom and Tracy learn about the recent Kickstarter campaign, and printer advancements coming to the American 3D Printer market by Raise 3D. To send us a voicemail, go to 3dstartpoint.com or wtfffpodcast.com or shoot us a message at info@wtfffpodcast.com or on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

This year's SoCal MakerCon Convention attracted so many more attendees and exhibitors than last year that it had to be moved to a larger building a month before the show. In this WTFFF?! episode Tom and Tracy discuss their experience exhibiting, giving a talk on Makers Making Profits, and preview 9 upcoming interviews conducted live from the show floor. To send us a voicemail, go to 3dstartpoint.com or wtfffpodcast.com or shoot us a message at info@wtfffpodcast.com or on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

In this WTFFF?! episode Tom and Tracy interview their own 6 year old daughter, Lannea, about her recent experience with learning CAD software and 3D Printing. They then discuss successes and the challenges of teaching a young child how to create and print their own models, and what the 3D printer manufacturers are still lacking to improve the learning experience and keep kids satisfied. To send us a voicemail, go to 3dstartpoint.com or wtfffpodcast.com or shoot us a message at info@wtfffpodcast.com or on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

In just two years XYZ Printing has grown from a 3D Printing start-up to being the company to beat, with the best selling 3D printer world-wide! In this episode of WTFFF?! Tom and Tracy interview Phair Tsai, Business Development Manager of XYZ Printing. We learn about their comprehensive line of 3D Printers that starts with the entry level $350 Davinci Jr., which was featured at a "Mini Maker Faire Event" in 650 Barnes & Noble stores throughout the USA, and continues with a robust line of more advanced 3D printers and scanners. This company is focused on providing printers that are easy to use, and finding unique ways to get younger generations involved in 3D Printing.  LINKS MENTIONED: XYZ Printing Barnes & Noble Mini Maker Faire Event XYZ Video Support Page   To send us a voicemail, go to 3dstartpoint.com or wtfffpodcast.com or shoot us a message at info@wtfffpodcast.com or on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

The most frequent question we get is "What printer should I buy?" Closely related to that question is "How can I tell if a printer is going to be reliable?" In this WTFFF?! episode Tom and Tracy discuss the realities of 3D printer reliability, and how you can protect yourself from ending up with an expensive paper weight. To send us a voicemail, go to 3dstartpoint.com or wtfffpodcast.com or shoot us a message at info@wtfffpodcast.com or on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

If you have kids in school, then the science projects inevitably come home. In this WTFFF?! episode Tom and Tracy answer a listener's question who asks "Should we use 3D Printing as a tool to complete my kid's science project?" This is a great question and the answer may surprise you. Also covered in this episode is a cautionary note regarding kinds getting involved in 3D Printing, and using online resources. To send us a voicemail, go to 3dstartpoint.com or wtfffpodcast.com or shoot us a message at info@wtfffpodcast.com or on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

Looking to buy a new 3D Printer? Considering all the options can be daunting, especially when it comes to what kinds of filament the printer is able to use. Some printers are happy to run any filament you want to run in them, while others will only accept cartridges loaded with their own filament. In this WTFFF?! episode Tom and Tracy answer a listener's question who asks "Should I avoid buying a printer that requires proprietary filament?"  To send us a voicemail, go to 3dstartpoint.com or wtfffpodcast.com or shoot us a message at info@wtfffpodcast.com or on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

In this WTFFF?! episode Tom and Tracy answer a question from their 3D Printing business mentorship winner,  Kelechi from Nigeria. As he builds his business Kelechi is wondering how he will train his CAD technicians to produce great quality 3D Printable designs. Is that the best way to add design to your 3D Printing service business?  To send us a voicemail, go to 3dstartpoint.com or wtfffpodcast.com or shoot us a message at info@wtfffpodcast.com or on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

In recent years so much has been reported about the fall of Detroit that we were surprised to learn that Detroit is now a hotbed of tech startups, revitalized US manufacturing, and a robust assortment of support companies. "Tech Town Detroit", as it is now called, is home to MakerOS. Tom & Tracy interview Mike Moceri, Founder and CEO of MakerOS, to learn how MakerOS is helping 3D Printing, design, and engineering companies operate more efficiently and professionally through their robust and secure Customer Relation Management and Resource Planning platform.  LINKS MENTIONED: MakerOS MakerOS Youtube Videos Basecamp   To send us a voicemail, go to 3dstartpoint.com or wtfffpodcast.com or shoot us a message at info@wtfffpodcast.com or on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

In this WTFFF?! episode Tom and Tracy cover a question that arose from their mentoring Kelechi from Nigeria. What is the difference between a Mentor and a Coach? No one knows everything, all business owners and entrepreneurs should seek experienced advisers to gain knowledge and guidance. 3DP business owners are no exception, in fact it may be even more critical to their success. Do you have a question? Ask Us Anything! Leave us a voice message at our website hazzdesign.com or feel free to contact us on facebook or twitter as well @hazzdesign!

In this WTFFF?! episode Tom and Tracy discuss a listener's question regarding what are the best practices for communicating effectively with customers? Especially in a service related business of providing designs for 3D printing, engineering, architecture, or even prototyping services, communication is key to customer satisfaction. Since it is much easier to keep a current customer happy than it is to obtain a new one, the tips in this episode are key.  Do you have a question? Ask Us Anything! Leave us a voice message at our website hazzdesign.com or feel free to contact us on facebook or twitter as well @hazzdesign!

In this WTFFF?! episode Tom and Tracy answer a question from a loyal listener from Brazil, Eduardo Martini. He asks when should he file a patent on his 3D Printed designs, and when did Tom and Tracy file for Patents on their designs? This is a great question that applies to all 3DP content creators. Do you have a question? Ask Us Anything! Leave us a voice message at our website hazzdesign.com or feel free to contact us on facebook or twitter as well @hazzdesign!

How does a 3D Printing service business get started, and what does it take to grow it to be meaningful and profitable? How do you decide what to charge, and what the lead time for your services should be? Should you discount your prices to try to gain business? How do you manage customer expectations? Adam Clark started Tangible Solutions in a garage with two printers in 2013, and now it is a thriving business serving the greater Dayton, Ohio area. Tom & Tracy discuss all aspects of the business with Adam, and learn how he is engaging with the community to educate potential clients and the next generation of 3D printers. LINKS MENTIONED: Makerbot Fortis 3D Printers Tangible Solutions We’d like to remind our listeners that we will be taking a hiatus from our “Ask Us Anything” segments for the rest of October to get out into the field and bring you some cutting edge content straight from the show floor. However, this does not mean we will be stopping all together – our regular Thursday Podcasts will still be on time! If you have a question about 3D print design, production, sales or more, Ask Us Anything and we will store it away in our super special box of questions and dive into them when we get back into the swing of things at the end of October. Thank you to all the loyal fans who will be sticking through this with us, we hope to bring you the very best information about this rapidly expanding industry we all love!   To send us a voicemail, go to hazzdesign.com or shoot us a message on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!

In this episode, Tom and Tracy discuss the importance of finding the right trade show for your needs as they explain their experience at the 2015 San Diego Maker Faire. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook to ask us any questions and to stay tuned for our upcoming SoCal Maker Con interviews in November!

Once we started trying to print with a two-color machine, we quickly began to understand why there were so few such machines available on the market. Most dual extrusion 3D printers have two nozzles that move together in the same plane, causing prints to fail more often than not. We gave it s serious effort over a period of nine months before we gave up. Earlier this summer a 3D print colleague of ours, who has been a guest on WTFFF?!, Brandon Davis, introduced us to a distributor named US Cutter, and the Builder Dual 3D Printer. This printer is very unique in that it is a two-color printer, but has only one nozzle! US Cutter was so convinced that the Builder was much better than other two-color printers, that they agreed to submit it for a review. So for about two months now we have been working with the Builder Dual 3D Printer. In this episode of WTFFF?! we interview Les Lewis and Sean Weaver of US Cutter, and discuss our experience with the printer. To see the entire detailed 3D Printer review with photos and a video please click here to go to the blog post. LINKS MENTIONED: US Cutter 3DPrinter4U.com Cura Simplify 3D Repetier We’d like to remind our listeners that we will be taking a hiatus from our “Ask Us Anything” segments for the rest of October to get out into the field and bring you some cutting edge content straight from the show floor. However, this does not mean we will be stopping all together – our regular Thursday Podcasts will still be on time! If you have a question about 3D print design, production, sales or more, Ask Us Anything and we will store it away in our super special box of questions and dive into them when we get back into the swing of things at the end of October. Thank you to all the loyal fans who will be sticking through this with us, we hope to bring you the very best information about this rapidly expanding industry we all love!   Go to hazzdesign.com or shoot us a message on our facebook or twitter! Its absolutely free, so ask away and and don’t forget to subscribe so you can hear more on our regularly scheduled Thursday podcast episodes!