# 3D Printing > General 3D Printing Discussion >  making money from 3d printing?

## cipher0

Articles keep popping up on the internet that you can get your money  spent on your 3d printer by selling your 3d prints and maybe even start a  small business.
I don't own a 3d printer yet, but i have been  researching this field and i see while the fun as a hobby is satisfying  enough, i dont see how you could sell anything you 3d printed for  profit.
Does anyone here sell his 3d prints for profit? What would that be?
Because lets look at an example from one of those articles:
Iphone  cases. While there are some flexible filaments, how can even the  highest resolution of modern 3d printers produce a case which looks  aesthetically good? They have lines all over them and jagged edges. Not to mention the time it takes to print.

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## jimc

I have well beyond paid for my printer. I dont actually do any kind of printing svc for people but there are a few products i make using 3d printed parts.

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## cipher0

what would that be? I honestly cant think of anything.

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## squadus

Be creative. Use your imagination. You can literally manufacture anything with 3D printing
And be patient. The technology is only getting better.

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## jimc

here are some gauges i make for older military generators. i have a company make me the guts then i design and print the plastic parts. laser cut the lenses and print the gauge faces. i also make the 3 black knobs on the control panel and some other parts for this thing as well.

$_57.jpg$_57-1.jpg$_57-2.jpg

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## AMID

I made some money for my own printer. Easilly made in the investment. Luckily i work with 3D-printers all day, so i dont have the need to run a small shop to continue playing with other printers.

At www.amid.se/shop you can find my camera stuff. They're cheap, but when you sell a bunch each month is good margin (since ABS/PLA/PETT is soo cheap).

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## cipher0

> Be creative. Use your imagination. You can  literally manufacture anything with 3D printing.


 Oh, I am  creative.   I'm a 3d modeller and I can make some crazy things with a 3d printer  when I get my hands on it. The problem is the resolution (quality) they  print at. I mean here's some things I've thought: 1)  sculptures/figures/toys - as I said, they have lines all over them and  jagged edges, not pretty at all. Acetone baths and sandpaper make them  look only slightly better from what I've seen. 2) cool design phone  cases - same as above. Here you also have symmetry which makes acetone  or sandpaper hard to use and keep it that way. (Can you even use these  techniques with flexible filaments?) 3) jewelery - I know you can use a  plastic print to make a sand mold, but the plastic print will have the  same problems as above. And for jewelery you need it to look even more  perfect. 4) holders/accessories for cameras/kinect/phones. Okay pretty  sure some people won't mind the imperfections on the surface of these,  even more if they can't find a not 3d printed version, but there isn't  really a demand for this kind of stuff where I'm from. Almost nobody has  a kinect, has or heard of things like GoPro. I might be lucky to sell  2-3 of these in a year, but that won't be close to covering the cost of  my 3d printer or the filament.




> I made some money for my own printer. Easilly made in   the investment. Luckily i work with 3D-printers all day, so i dont have   the need to run a small shop to continue playing with other printers.
> 
> At www.amid.se/shop   you can find my camera stuff. They're cheap, but when you sell a bunch   each month is good margin (since ABS/PLA/PETT is soo cheap).


That's cool.   unfortunately like I said above where I'm from it will be hard to sell  specialized stuff like these, I might be lucky to sell 2-3 of these in a  year, but that won't be close to covering the cost of my 3d printer or  even just the filament. 




> here are some gauges i make for older military   generators. i have a company make me the guts then i design and print   the plastic parts. laser cut the lenses and print the gauge faces. i   also make the 3 black knobs on the control panel and some other parts   for this thing as well.
> 
> $_57.jpg$_57-1.jpg$_57-2.jpg



Cool. But looks like you use more than just a 3d printer for this job though.

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## jimc

Yes there are 4 printed parts. Basically the whole gauge body itself and the bezel. The lens is lexan

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## cipher0

Well there you go. I mean it's cool that you can make money like this, but you're incorporating 3d printing in an existing job, which requires other tools/knowledge, with clients you already had.
So sorry if I'll sound bad, but I don't think your example will help me. I don't have a similar job already where I could use a 3d printer like that.

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## Davo

If you don't like the lines, use thinner layers.

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## RAMTechRob

Its best to start with making something better that you are interested in.  Do you have any hobbies?  I enjoy Radio Control cars, and will be making alot of things for sale that don't need to be shiny and perfect, but are needed to make things better.

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## 3dfilemarket.com

Hi, the way to go with 3dprinting is with digital downloads. I set up the 3dfilemarket.com after cubify took down their open marketplace as I had over 80 designs on cubify that had a few hundred paid downloads. When they closed their marketplace I had no where to host my designs so I decided to set up my own website and people are downloading. Check out the accessories section of the site and you will see some nice iphone cases with excellent finishes if printed on a good printer. I have a solidoodle 2 printer and with a heated metal print bed with kapton tape. This gives an amazing surface finish.......

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## barto

you might be able to offer your 3D printer as a service to print others designs. theres a few places locally that have makerbots where you could get your files printed but if i owned one, i would offer it as a service too to help pay for the printer.

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## cipher0

> If you don't like the lines, use thinner layers.


It's not that *I* don't like the lines, I mean I don't think anyone and not just me would be willing to buy an iphone case, a figure, etc. with even their design of choice because it will look so unfinished. And finishing methods I'm familiar with, sanding and acetone vapor from what I've seen won't improve it much (look like any other phone case or figure made with professional tools), not to mention I don't think sanding will work for rubbery filaments used more for things like phone cases.




> Its best to start with making something better  that you are interested in.  Do you have any hobbies?  I enjoy Radio  Control cars, and will be making alot of things for sale that don't need  to be shiny and perfect, but are needed to make things better.


Thanks for your reply, but I think your example is similar toAMID's example, to which I replied that pretty  sure some people won't mind the imperfections on the  surface of these stuff,  even more if they can't find a not 3d printed  version, but there isn't  really a demand for these kind of stuff where  I'm from. I might be lucky to sell  2-3 of these in a year, but that won't  be close to covering the cost of  my 3d printer or the filament.




> Hi, the way to go with 3dprinting is with  digital downloads. I set up the 3dfilemarket.com after cubify took down  their open marketplace as I had over 80 designs on cubify that had a few  hundred paid downloads. When they closed their marketplace I had no  where to host my designs so I decided to set up my own website and  people are downloading. Check out the accessories section of the site  and you will see some nice iphone cases with excellent finishes if  printed on a good printer. I have a solidoodle 2 printer and with a  heated metal print bed with kapton tape. This gives an amazing surface  finish.......


Hi there 3dfilemarket.com. I'm not sure I understand. You mean I can sell 3d models on the internet instead of printing them and selling physical versions, but then isn't the person buying it going to print with the same imperfections because he's using a similar FFF printer? So why will he buy 3d models of such things whose point is to look pretty (phone case, figure, etc) if they won't look good when printed with their 3d printers?




> you might be able to offer your 3D printer as a  service to print others designs. theres a few places locally that have  makerbots where you could get your files printed but if i owned one, i  would offer it as a service too to help pay for the printer.


This might just work actually. But there are people who offer such service with a more precise CNC machines already. And won't the customers be dissatisfied from the quality of the model? I think that should really matter for designers.
And again this is a problem because from what I've heard from the CNC guys from my town, the demand for such a thing is really low.
But thank you for the idea. I'll keep it in mind, though I don't think it's enough "guarantee" for me to spend my savings on a 3d printer.

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## IanJohnson

> Cool. But looks like you use more than just a 3d printer for this job though.


A 3D printer can be the cornerstone of a digital workshop, but it isn't the whole workshop by itself.  If you want to sell only things that can be produced in their entirety on the printer, then you are restricted to things that are made only of plastic.  At the very least you might have to add some nuts and bolts.  My printer has paid for itself through selling the FilaWinder which only has 5 printed parts, but it wouldn't be possible without those parts.  I used it extensively in prototyping, and I'm working on building up a stock of the prints so I can sell them directly as an option for those that don't want to print their own.  The rest of the kit includes electronics, laser cut wood, motors, nuts, bolts, etc.  

The only tool I have is the printer, but I can produce the kit because someone else does the laser cutting, I buy the motors, and have the electronics produced and assembled for me.  That is more complex than creating a chunk of plastic and selling it, but the potential for products and the amount you can charge is much greater.  For a print-only product, the value will need to come from the fact that it is the only solution available for a particular problem, or far cheaper than available alternatives.  Otherwise it's just trinkets.  At the very least they will need to be trinkets that can't be molded and replicated through mass production because a printer can't compete with that.

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## cipher0

*IanJohnson*, again, it is cool that you can use 3d printed parts for some equipment you sell, like *jimc*.  But you make it sound like parts for professional or hobbyist equipment  is the only thing that are made of plastic and can be sold. At this  point im just repeating myself. Sure, for those kind of stuff the  finishing of the plastic might not be a worry for the buyer, but  everything else which you can make with plastic (and btw you're not  really limited to plastic because you can make molds) is something which  needs to look good (as in smooth and high res), doesn't it? If not, please tell me what aren't.  because that's why I started this thread.
But please don't give another example of using a 3d printer for an existing job. I already understand that's a good option, but _if_ you have a job like that where you could make use of your 3d printer.

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## papabur

I profited 200$ last week from prototyping business card stands...its easier then you might imagine...just got to be creative.

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## Jacobito

You can make money with 3D printing! For example: create an account in 3D marketplace site and sell your 3D objects. Try www.threeding.com. It's a new one, but they offer really good terms. For example they took only 8% commission. I made some bucks selling there.

And the other thing - YES at the moment resolution isn't good. But the technology will only get better. Just have a little patience.

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## 4Unow

> you might be able to offer your 3D printer as a service to print others designs. theres a few places locally that have makerbots where you could get your files printed but if i owned one, i would offer it as a service too to help pay for the printer.


3DHubs might be a good site to try out.  They allow you to let others in your area use your 3D printer to print out their designs.  You of course charge for this service.  It's a way to utilize your printers to make a few bucks.

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## Davo

> If you don't like the lines, use thinner layers.





> It's not that *I* don't like the lines, I mean I don't think anyone and not just me would be willing to buy an iphone case, a figure, etc. with even their design of choice because it will look so unfinished. And finishing methods I'm familiar with, sanding and acetone vapor from what I've seen won't improve it much (look like any other phone case or figure made with professional tools), not to mention I don't think sanding will work for rubbery filaments used more for things like phone cases.


Let me rephrase then: use thinner layers.

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## LambdaFF

Have you thought about printing miniatures for architects, replicas for museums and/or highly personalized decoration stuff for small local businesses ?

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## aWsomeABE

> Have you thought about printing miniatures for architects, replicas for museums and/or highly personalized decoration stuff for small local businesses ?


Do you really think FDM printers are capable right now of making prints that are high enough quality to sell to others?  I personally think it has a ways to go before architects, museums, and local businesses will be outsourcing to FDM printers.

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## cipher0

> Let me rephrase then: use thinner layers.


I don't know why I even need to respond to this. Am I missing something obvious which makes your suggestion actually helpful? Because I'll be glad to be proven wrong.
Because when I say there are ugly lines, which make FDM 3d printers not good for producing things like figures, miniatures, phone cases or anything plastic really that *has to* look good, I'm talking about things printed with layers of as low as 50 microns. Can your printers go below that? Mind showing me some close-up pictures of their prints?

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## Davo

cipher0, I'm not trying to argue with you; I am trying to offer a helpful suggestion. If my suggestion is not helpful, I will stop posting on your thread. If you would like, I will remove my comments from your thread.

Here you see 25 micron layers (white) next to 300 micron layers (green). That's the smallest layer thickness we've announced to date. The edge facing the camera in the top image is a compound curve, more easily seen in the green part.

The jaggedness on the end has been corrected. I'll get a newer print at 25 this week and post it here.





Please note that printing at 25 microns takes a very long time.

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## cipher0

I'm not trying to argue with you either, I just don't see how someone  representing Hyrel3D would think a suggestion like using even the  thinnest layer height possible would help print phone cases and  everything else mentioned above at good enough quality for selling. I  know you replied suggesting to use thinner layers if I don't want ugly  lines, but you're next suggestion (which is the same suggestion) quotes  me saying people won't buy something looking so "unfinished".

And yes I know a layer height like that would cause a  very long print. Which btw is another reason your suggestion to use  thinner layers isn't a good one in my opinion, but since it's not that  big of a deal if you're printing a mold I decided not to mention it.

As  for your photos, thanks for posting them. I didn't know Hyrel could go  lower than 50 microns.  Looking at the image of the 25 print, I don't  see lines, which is very good. But then again I see other impurities on  the surface (not talking about the part which you say has been fixed).  I'm sure others will agree they see them as well and they wouldn't buy a figurine, phone case, etc looking like that.
Maybe  it's just the  image compression, filament quality or something else though. So please  post better pictures when you can. Right now you haven't convinced me  that the print can be "high enough quality to sell to others" as someone  else said above, just proven that lines can be eliminated for the naked  eye at lower layer height prints.

Actually, if Hyrel or similar company sells some printed samples so people can see and feel the print quality themselves I'd buy that.

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## Davo

Thanks, I'm working on printed samples to send out to people now. I'll shoot one to you when they're done.

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## Feign

As an alternate to Davo's suggestion.  If you don't like the lines, do some postprocessing.  A careful acetone vapor bath or even just sanding and painting a piece after it's printed can absolutely make it consumer grade.

I think you've gotten yourself into the mindset that if you can't sell something directly out of your printer, then it's not worth the time.  If you're asking for an affordable desktop 3D printer that makes money _all by itself_, then you'll be dissapointed.  If you look at it as a tool among multiple tools in a craft, then yes it can be a very powerful tool for making you money.

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## squadus

^ Right..

We're still a few years away from "mass manufacturing from our desktops" but the technology is all there. You can always send off the model to shapeways, sculpteo, etc or even overseas to China, Thailand, etc to be mass fabricated. There is always a way..

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## cipher0

> Thanks, I'm working on printed samples to send out to  people now. I'll shoot one to you when they're done.


Okay, thanks.




> As an alternate to Davo's suggestion.  If you don't like the lines, do some postprocessing.  A careful acetone vapor bath or even just sanding and painting a piece after it's printed can absolutely make it consumer grade.


I've talked about acetone "vapor baths", dipping in liquid acetone as well as sandpapering and why they aren't really great in this thread already.




> ^ Right..
> 
> We're still a few years away from "mass manufacturing from our desktops"  but the technology is all there.


Who said mass manufacturing? My arguments apply even to unique phone cases, miniature sculptures, etc.




> You can always send off the model to  shapeways, sculpteo, etc or even overseas to China, Thailand, etc to be  mass fabricated. There is always a way..


I don't need a 3d printer and 3d printing myself to make money like that though, which this thread is about.

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## MeoWorks

> I think you've gotten yourself into the mindset that if you can't sell something directly out of your printer, then it's not worth the time.  If you're asking for an affordable desktop 3D printer that makes money _all by itself_, then you'll be dissapointed.  If you look at it as a tool among multiple tools in a craft, then yes it can be a very powerful tool for making you money.


Well said. Even with VERY expensive pro printers, printed "stuff" will still need to have a little bit of post processing to get a good, clean prototype product. 3D printing is not simply print and sell, probably never will be, you should consider all printed parts to be non sell-able prototypes.

EDIT: Let me rephrase that. Even the prints coming out of the very best printers right now will still need to reworked in some way or form. Earlier in the thread you mentioned that it seems in order to make money from 3D printing, you'll need knowledge from other fields as well. This is very true, nothing is easy in life LOL. 

Here's a list of knowledge I've accumulated in my years just sculpting from clay to present day digital sculpting. 

-Tools
-Medium of all sorts
-Casting Methods
-Plastics/silicones
-Physics
-Mathematics
-Computer tech and building
-Computer software and troubleshooting
-Electric work
-Electronics
-Hazardous material handling and disposal
-and probably a ton of other things. 

In the end one does not simply buy a 3D printer and expect to make major bucks without some sort of other effort. It honestly seems like that's what you're looking for, printing out a perfect piece that will sell right away without any work to it. It won't happen. Sorry. You're into 3D, you should know that gravity does not exist in a 3D environment, if you sculpt a dynamic human sculpt, be prepared to reprint that sculpt at least twice or three times before you get your master copy perfectly the way you want it, with the correct balance etc. Then you have to post process it. 

OR you can simply take your first print and cast it to a workable material such as wax and make your adjustments there and then use that wax master to make resin copies. It takes work, but hey, nothing is easy. 

I'm just rambling now but it just seems like you expect these printers to be mini factories that'll do all the work for you. It's just a tool  :Smile:

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## cipher0

> OR you can simply take your first print and cast  it to a workable material such as wax and make your adjustments there  and then use that wax master to make resin copies. It takes work, but  hey, nothing is easy.


Hi.
I've already talked about  post-processing and why I don't see how that will work for the things I  mentioned. In short: try to use acetone vapor or sandpaper to get a good  quality results on things which have symmetry (most of what I mentioned  does).




> I'm just rambling now but it just seems like you expect these  printers to be mini factories that'll do all the work for you. It's just  a tool


Not really what I'm expecting.
You can technically use a screwdriver  instead of a hammer. They're "just tools", right? I hear this statement a  lot, not just here, but in computer software and any hardware. They're  all just tools, but there's a reason why so many musical artists use  Ableton Live and graphics artists use Photoshop. It doesn't all depend  on the artist, the tool has to be good too. Yes, you can create a  masterpiece in Microsoft paint, but it isn't practical. I'm a 3d  modeller btw, I don't expect the 3d printer to do the work for me, I'm  spending my time and using my skills to design the objects in 3d, design  them in the best possible way for the 3d printer, because I understand  how 3d printers work, how to operate them and all that. I don't just  expect to press print as you can see.

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## MeoWorks

Then you're just arguing in circles. What do you want out of a 3D printer? What is it you expect them to do? 

No one here responding seem to get what you're trying to ask or imply because you seem to have a comeback for every response given lol.

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## cipher0

> Then you're just arguing in circles. What do you want out of a 3D printer? What is it you expect them to do?


With all due respect, did you even read the very first post?




> No one here responding seem to get what you're trying to ask or  imply  because you seem to have a comeback for every response given  lol.


Well you're wrong, because of everything below this:

post number:
#1  - me listing what I think can be printed for selling but saying that I  think the quality of the prints (and so printers) as well as results  from post-processing aren't good enough for them and asking others what they print

#5 and 6 - people giving examples which I asked of prints where the quality doesn't matter to the buyer

#9  - I say how the examples won't work for me because they either use 3d  printed parts as a small part of something else very specialized they  make or they are accessories for somewhat rare things so selling those  especially where I'm from won't get me far

#10 - suggested to use thinner layer heights

#12 - suggested to sell virtual 3d models instead for making money

#  13 - suggested to offer 3d printing others designs, to which I replied  there are already people here offering such services here with far more  precise CNC machines.

#17 - suggested to offer 3d printing for prototyping, I think it's the same as above suggestion

#18 - same as # 12

#21 - same as # 13, 18. Post #22 says 3d prints won't be good enough quality, I think the same way (as I mentioned in # 13)

#24 - being shown that thinner layers actually look good, I agree partially.

#27 - suggested to do post-processing, which I've mentioned in post #1 why I don't think will work.

#28 - same as # 12?

#29 - Your post. (post processing was mentioned in # 27).

Pretty helpful thread to me IMO. Some posts are repeats but all are appreciated.

A disagreeing "reply" to a post isn't a "comeback". if you personally don't understand what I want, then I don't know how else to explain. Thanks for trying to help any way. Can we continue with the topic?

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## WiZE3D

I've compiled some statistical data at WiZE3D | History of 3D Printing. My new website designed to help encourage someone like yourself to buy a 3D printer, or better yet start a business!

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## RAMTechRob

Wise3D, why don;t you post your findings here, instead of just advertising your site.

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## WiZE3D

It's WiZE 3D Rob. And because forums are a great place to get constructive criticism. Why don't you stay on topic instead of antagonizing people

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## Geoff

> Articles keep popping up on the internet that you can get your money  spent on your 3d printer by selling your 3d prints and maybe even start a  small business.
> I don't own a 3d printer yet, but i have been  researching this field and i see while the fun as a hobby is satisfying  enough, i dont see how you could sell anything you 3d printed for  profit.
> Does anyone here sell his 3d prints for profit? What would that be?
> Because lets look at an example from one of those articles:
> Iphone  cases. While there are some flexible filaments, how can even the  highest resolution of modern 3d printers produce a case which looks  aesthetically good? They have lines all over them and jagged edges. Not to mention the time it takes to print.


In an effort to steer this thread back on course...

I sell all sorts of things on Ebay, enough to pay for my printer several times over. Pick a niche market and go for it. I went for hobbies and RC parts, quadcopters etc.  The only thing I will say is you need to test your own product. Everything I print and sell I have used myself, so I do not get returns and I make sure they are printed well so people are not unhappy. I have only ever had to give 1 replacement to anyone and to be honest, they were just picky. Find things that are small and easy to print and easy to post to maximise your profit. 

Make sure the things you sell are under the 'share a like' commons creative license (or of course if they are your own nevermind) and you can sell them to your hearts content. I have to perfectly honest,it took me quite a few months before my printer was printing at a quality I would say was commercial, but it finally got there.

I also sort of laugh at anyone that says they cannot be a mass production machine. I have a machine here that works night and day.. so far it fulfills all orders in time and if it ever gets to the point where it can't, I'll add another on the assembly line. 

With a very very small amount of work (and arduino, 2 servos and some printed parts - and an instructables tutorial...) you can make a very simple device that moves the print (or 'swipes' ) it off the build platform after a certain time, clearing it for an automated process. i.e Your print will take 30 mins, you program it to swipe every 40 mins to allow for cooling. Then the machine (via macro on the PC) starts up and builds a new part. It's not rocket science, and in fact if my dumb ass can do it, anyone can  :Smile:

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## cipher0

Yeah lets try to get the thread back on track.

*WiZE3D*,  you can make your own topic if you want. You link to your webpage which  itself links to your webstore, and other than that contains nothing  useful for me. You have little analysis of the 3d printing history there  which I don't need and your list of items which can be made by a 3d  printer aren't helpful because they are very general and also mention  items (cars, bikes, furniture, bone repair, etc) which can only be  printed by professional printers worth tens of thousands of dollars,  which is also not helpful for me. So you just seem to be trying to  advertise your site here.

Anyway, *Geoff*  thanks for your post. Sorry, but it seems the same suggestion as in  post 5 and 6. To which I've replied that they are very specialized or  they are accessories for somewhat rare  things so selling those where I'm from won't get me much because there  isn't a demand of such things where I'm from.
I know this because I know a guy who's been trying to sell GoPro accessories and Arduio stuff here.
If I'm missing something here, please tell me.
I don't know, maybe the shipping cost isn't so high for the things you're selling or something else.

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## WiZE3D

Sorry if you don't find my site useful cipher, it's only getting better. However I didn't put my site on here to advertise, sure I'm promoting it, but I'm promoting it to show people what they can do to start making an income with 3D printers. Like this topic asks. And that's only 1 of infinite ways to do it. There's one thing for sure if you plan on making an extra income with 3D printers, and that's that you have to be creative.
 I think it would be fun to design a simplistic 3D printer, print it, purchase the reprap kit or something similar, combine the two and put it online somewhere to see if it gets any hits. The only way you'll know if your idea is worth expanding is to start expanding. Just jump in. The only time better than today to start a 3D printer company was yesterday.

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## squadus

> ...they are very specialized or  they are accessories for somewhat rare  things so selling those where I'm from won't get me much because there  isn't a demand of such things where I'm from.


At this point it sounds like you're just making excuses. No one is going to lay out a plan for you to generate money. There is literally an infinite amount of things you can make with an ever expanding amount of materials. Don't have a printer? Use 3DHubs or shapeways. Don't know how to 3D model? Use Youtube (or learn). Geoff sold his trinkets on eBay which is a *global marketplace*. No matter where you are in the world, the product will have the same demand because of this thing called the internet. You don't need to worry about where you're from. 

The Long Tail of Things.... every item has a demand - whether it is niche or not. The introduction of 3D Printers allows these niche products to actually be made... Because they won't make companies profits companies don't make them. 
The Long Tail of The Internet.... well now you know everyone's niche and the most popular niche's

So my advice is to find these niche markets and conquer it with 3D printing.

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## cipher0

> At this point it sounds like you're just making excuses. No one is going to lay out a plan for you to generate money.


No one is asking for one.




> There is literally an infinite amount of things you can make with an ever expanding amount of materials.


And you mentioned none.
This thread is me basically asking what can be printed where quality doesn't matter and you're replying "literally an infinite amount of things"...




> Geoff sold his trinkets on eBay which is a *global marketplace*. No matter where you are in the world, the product will have the same demand because of this thing called the internet. You don't need to worry about where you're from.


Actually just because something is sold on ebay doesn't mean it can be shipped globally. If you're from the US you maybe haven't noticed this but the rest of us get "Does not ship to your country" or "May not ship to your country" on many items. Shipping costs money too, for some more than the product itself.

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## Geoff

> No one is asking for one.
> 
> 
> And you mentioned none.
> This thread is me basically asking what can be printed where quality doesn't matter and you're replying "literally an infinite amount of things"...
> 
> 
> Actually just because something is sold on ebay doesn't mean it can be shipped globally. If you're from the US you maybe haven't noticed this but the rest of us get "Does not ship to your country" or "May not ship to your country" on many items. Shipping costs money too, for some more than the product itself.


There are options to sell worldwide, but it can be costly (often more than your item is worth as you said) and personally I don't think I could keep up with the demand right now, I picked Australia obviously because it's local for me, and not one of my items costs more than a couple of dollars to send anywhere in the country in a padded envelope. If I had even double the orders I have now I'd be in trouble and could not make delivery promises - that's why I don't advertise.

I've sold completely on just listing it on ebay and never posting one link to the page and being clever with keywords in the title, it's there for anyone to do.

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## cipher0

> There are options to sell worldwide, but it can be costly (often more than your item is worth as you said)


Thanks for the info Geoff.

Yeah, Australia is a large country/continent and it's developed, so I'm not surprised there's enough demand.

 I'm from Armenia and there are only around 2.7 million people here, half from villages, don't even have internet connection. We have closed borders from east and west. From north there's Georgia and from  south there's Iran, so you get the idea. Shipping from/to Europe or USA is costy and slow.

People here say I'm making excuses, but there you go.

And before you say my situation is rare, it really isn't. The world isn't just USA, Europe and Australia and few more countries.

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## squadus

> No one is asking for one....





> ....And you mentioned none.


Okay....? Why does it matter that I mentioned none if no one is asking... even though you're obviously still searching for one. smh

cipher0, if Armenia is as bad as you make it sound like it is then I think you may actually have ample opportunities! In an underdeveloped country not all manufactured goods are readily available. In your situation the best bet may be to produce common goods and bring things to the anguished people of Armenia that may only be available elsewhere. 

If people are impoverished and suffering with a choice between drinking water with your bare hands or using a 3D printed cup with jagged edges, I hardly think people in an underdeveloped country are truly concerned about quality over function. Might want to "get over" your quality issue and just start designing and making..

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## cipher0

> Okay....? Why does it matter that I mentioned none  if no one is asking... even though you're obviously still searching for  one. smh


Seriously?

"No one is asking for one" -   reply to your "no one is going to lay out a plan for you to generate  money.". No one is asking for a plan.
"And you mentioned none." -  reply to your "There is literally an infinite amount of things you can  make". You mentioned not a single thing from the "literally infinite  things" that can be printed and sold.




> cipher0, if Armenia is as bad as you make it sound like it is  then I think you may actually have ample opportunities! In an  underdeveloped country not all manufactured goods are readily available.  In your situation the best bet may be to produce common goods and bring  things to the anguished people of Armenia that may only be available  elsewhere.
> 
> If people are impoverished and suffering with a choice between drinking  water with your bare hands or using a 3D printed cup with jagged edges, I  hardly think people in an underdeveloped country are truly concerned  about quality over function. Might want to "get over" your quality issue  and just start designing and making..


I mention that we have a small population and half of it almost doesn't  use internet and also the country is geographically far from Europe,  USA, China, Australia, etc. to even conisder the option of eBay because  of shipping cost and you conclude that the country is "bad" and the  people here are "anguished" and "suffering with a choice between  drinking water with your bare hands or using a 3D printed cup with  jagged edges"? WTF.

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## RAMTechRob

Maybe make some household goods people need.  I'm not sure what you are looking for, but you certainly have enough people to sell things to.

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## cipher0

What kind of household goods, *RAMTechRob* 	 ? Leaving things that need to be made in iron, glass or wood aside, things that have electronics in them aside I don't see anything left but toys and plastic dishes and cups...

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## RAMTechRob

You need to take a small notebook where ever you go and start writing things down that can be made of plastic.  When you are in a local store, ask them what is selling and if they would be able to sell a 3D version of it.  There are thousands of products on Thingiverse already that people just have to have.  I have 25 home projects already for my printer, and it hasn;t even shipped yet.  Things from iPhone charging racks, to coat hangers, to wire bundle holders, a grocery bag hook for my wife's Challenger, bicycle flashlight holder.

Just think to yourself -- "what is a pain in the azz, that can be fixed with a simple plastic part?"

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## LambdaFF

I'd like to emphasize what other people wrote before : nothing is easy and you'll need to develop several different skillsets.

1/ You probably saw it before, but I find it really interesting and detailed : Mr Choo's blog.
http://www.dannychoo.com/en/post/269...+Products.html

As you can see, in that case 3D printing is just a means to an end. But you can also consider that not all parts need smooth to the touch finish : structure parts don't need to be.

2/ 3D printing used to be called fast manufacturing and prototyping. Fast ? why yes it's fast ! Have you ever tried to create the whole industrialization for a part ? CNC programing, blank part supports, ... You should look where it all started : look for people with big iteration loops in need of prototype milestones. The R&D dpt of my company owns a printer for just such a reason.

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## broudie

Had to post on this thread. I am a 3D printing N00B and I can already see a ton of stuff that I can make and sell for a profit.

To OP: asking someone for "what can I sell" just using a 3D printer in a world where you can easily make anything plastic at low volumes will not give you a satisfactory  answer. If someones suggests it, chances are someone has already made it and are selling it (because of the low barriers to entry). Chances are someone has already copied it and created competition which will lower margins to the point that you don't want to do it anymore. Case in point - iPhone cases? Come on! Everyone and their grandmother's dead neighbor is making iPhone cases.

What you need to look for is specialized, niche stuff that no manufacaturer is looking at, where there is very little competition. If you're the only one in the space you can charge an arm and a leg for something and still they will come and pay.

Being able to charge an arm and a leg for stuff will overcome any issues around shipping costs. Because if you can sell your widget for $100, the $10 shipping will be trivial.

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## MysteryAlabaster

Well... I would say that this escalated quickly, but it started off really bad.


Listen, cipher0, we're trying to help you. Honestly.

But if you don't think that any of the things people have said will work for you, then my advice would be to just not get a printer.
If you aren't willing to take the chance, or work with your builds after printing, then there's nobody here who can help you.

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## Haswell

Hi guys, I want to buy a 3d printer. I can get a commercial quality FDM printer with lead screws and a cnc attachment for ~1500 dollars. I want to buy it and I have the cash too but I also want to make money off it. To those of you that sell printed parts how many do you usually sell and how long has it taken you pay for the printer? I only ask this because I don't want to be out 1500 dollars. Also, what types of printers do you use? Are you using an FDM printer or an SLS printer? I'm really ambitious about 3D printing and want to get into it but I don't want to throw my money away.

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## richardphat

Making money off FDM technology is really bad. The end product is total "crap" as fast prototyping. Unless it's really specific. But then I would suggest you to go for SLA,SLS,DLP technology. 

Pricing isn't honest either. It's either the client or the owner that will get screwed. The client doesn't want to be charged for a high ammount of $, when material and electric cost is low. And you can't just charge low price, because you're spending several hours to print his model...




> Hi guys, I want to buy a 3d printer. I can get a  commercial quality FDM printer with lead screws and a cnc attachment for  ~1500 dollars. I want to buy it and I have the cash too but I also want  to make money off it. To those of you that sell printed parts how many  do you usually sell and how long has it taken you pay for the printer? I  only ask this because I don't want to be out 1500 dollars. Also, what  types of printers do you use? Are you using an FDM printer or an SLS  printer? I'm really ambitious about 3D printing and want to get into it  but I don't want to throw my money away.


Have a look at DWS system, FSL3D and FormLab. They do cost A LOT, but they are worth it since you can justify with the high cost material, laser class safety and all other excuses. You may advertise yourself around engineer school, because there has to be few people that is willing to pay you the money for printing service.

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## Haswell

> Making money off FDM technology is really bad. The end product is total "crap" as fast prototyping. Unless it's really specific. But then I would suggest you to go for SLA,SLS,DLP technology. 
> 
> Pricing isn't honest either. It's either the client or the owner that will get screwed. The client doesn't want to be charged for a high ammount of $, when material and electric cost is low. And you can't just charge low price, because you're spending several hours to print his model...
> 
> 
> 
> Have a look at DWS system, FSL3D and FormLab. They do cost A LOT, but they are worth it since you can justify with the high cost material, laser class safety and all other excuses. You may advertise yourself around engineer school, because there has to be few people that is willing to pay you the money for printing service.


That's the thing, we have a print shop where we can print for free. The printer we build is a gbotz printer and it is using the rambo board. IDK how fine the resolution can get. I would like <100 microns. The main reason I am interested in this one is because I get a CNC with it and the school can help me program it. You don't think it's worth the time to try to make money with an FDM printer?

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## richardphat

Students and teachers have been asking me  quotation, and to be honest, I've seen it all.

Good are the times when someone has designed with the technology in mind. Those are just quick and fast deal. Then you get those
Unprintable shape, annoying specific request, parts that are not worth to print and stubborn request..... 

Here's a story I have to share with you

 I got my teacher requesting me once and he told me " Print this rotor from a compressor, and a stator make sure you print at the slowliest speed, and at the highest resolution. I want the rotor to be beautiful without flaw. Oh btw, that thing has 7 to 9 inch diameter by 2-3 inch in height" 
I mean seriously, with all the overhang blade, you can't just expect a decent print. There will be residus from the support. Not to mention his request always cost me 15 to 39 hours of printing  at 35% infill.Yet ,he insisted to have 100% infill, till I said no. 

You will get far better chance with SLA. At least, the printing is much more reliable and has less fail rate. It's less forgiving with complexe geometry.You can then charge from cubic inch + support.

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## Roxy

Well...  There is the full spectrum....  If I can print a 3D-Prostetic for somebody....  I'll spend a lot of time to make it right.   But it will be what it is and it won't cost them a penny.

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## Haswell

> Well...  There is the full spectrum....  If I can print a 3D-Prostetic for somebody....  I'll spend a lot of time to make it right.   But it will be what it is and it won't cost them a penny.


Have you tried selling anything made by FDM. I really don't have the money to spend 3k on an SLA printer. Do you know what the best resolution I con get with FDM is?

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## LambdaFF

If you don't know what to expect, design a small thing and have it printed in both technologies either on shapeways or 3Dhubs and you'll see. Will cost you a few bucks but at least you'll be able to take the decision on facts.

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## jimc

I have used my fdm printer to make parts that in the past year was enough to pay for my printer 6-7 times over. It wasnt a cheap printer either. There are many other people in the same boat. As just a printing service where you are printing a part for someone then i have to agree with everyone else. Its a pia and no money to be made irregardless of the printing technology. If you have a low production run of a product and need plastic parts then thats a different story.

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## curious aardvark

look at 3dhubs. 

basically a3d printing service that matches people who want stuff printed with people who print stuff. 

I'll be signing up soon :-) 

And for the record - at the moment fdm produces stronger and more durable models than 'cheap' (under $10000) sla machines. Also faster and with a lot more available materials. 

Okay you probably an't do 0.02mm layer resolution. But then who wants to spend all day printing something 1 cm high ? 
This obsession with detail is somewhat pointless. The vast majority of things people want made can be readily printed at .2mm. 

I would personally charge more for anything printed at 0.1mm.

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## Haswell

> I have used my fdm printer to make parts that in the past year was enough to pay for my printer 6-7 times over. It wasnt a cheap printer either. There are many other people in the same boat. As just a printing service where you are printing a part for someone then i have to agree with everyone else. Its a pia and no money to be made irregardless of the printing technology. If you have a low production run of a product and need plastic parts then thats a different story.


I was planning on printing my own design/inventions and selling those. I wasn't planning on offering a service. From what I've heard it seems like a nightmare.

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## curious aardvark

good luck with the inventions :-) 

How is printing files for people and not doing any admin a nightmare ?

You can sell things you make - but you'll need to find something people want that isn't easy to get. 

And that's harder than it sounds.

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## Haswell

> good luck with the inventions :-) 
> 
> How is printing files for people and not doing any admin a nightmare ?
> 
> You can sell things you make - but you'll need to find something people want that isn't easy to get. 
> 
> And that's harder than it sounds.



It just sounded like offering a printing service was a ton of work from what the other posters here said. I thought one person said they made close to 7 times the amount of their printer with the products they sold. I just thought selling useful stuff would be easier than offering a service.

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## richardphat

> look at 3dhubs. 
> 
> basically a3d printing service that matches people who want stuff printed with people who print stuff. 
> 
> I'll be signing up soon :-) 
> 
> And for the record - at the moment fdm produces stronger and more durable models than 'cheap' (under $10000) sla machines. Also faster and with a lot more available materials. 
> 
> Okay you probably an't do 0.02mm layer resolution. But then who wants to spend all day printing something 1 cm high ? 
> ...


My boss does. He's obssessive with every details and working with him is a nightmare. He even dared and ask me to print at 20microns!

TBH, I like the SLA much better at least when its unique purpose is for demonstration. Looks much more professional. When it comes to CEO visiting, you got to do everything to impress him  :Wink:

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## FoyJustie

Im printing at a .1 mm layer height. You do get lines yes. But as an artist and a sculptor, smoothing the lines out is just part of the job. Add in a vapor smoothing techniques and the lines literally blur away. I too have made every cent back off my printer purchase. I encourage any one who is creative with the patients for learning to get into 3d printing. Its not for every one and at the same time is. It so funny to here and see others reactions to the idea you can print all most anything. Happy printing every one :Smile:  FJ

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## richardphat

> Im printing at a .1 mm layer height. You do get lines yes. But as an artist and a sculptor, smoothing the lines out is just part of the job. Add in a vapor smoothing techniques and the lines literally blur away. I too have made every cent back off my printer purchase. I encourage any one who is creative with the patients for learning to get into 3d printing. Its not for every one and at the same time is. It so funny to here and see others reactions to the idea you can print all most anything. Happy printing every one FJ


Well, you can get away with .2 or even .3mm. If you don't mind doing fine extra work such as sanding or painting. It is also a good alternative if you want to stay away from acetone vapor bath. 
I myself avoid acetone as much as I can when I got intoxicated.

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## kathmorgan12

I use my 3d printer mostly for my personal hobby. When I get to improve on my craft, I might one day make it into a business. This is something I really look forward to as I really enjoy printing things that I designed myself.

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## Haswell

> Well, you can get away with .2 or even .3mm. If you don't mind doing fine extra work such as sanding or painting. It is also a good alternative if you want to stay away from acetone vapor bath. 
> I myself avoid acetone as much as I can when I got intoxicated.


I'm not opposed to post processing at all. If I get enough interest in my initial products I am definitely going to buy one. I can sell art and functional products as well. I don't really even want to make a business out of it I am just looking to recover the cost of my printer.

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## Boombaplatz

Would anybody be interested in selling their 3d models online for others to download? Sort of like a marketplace where you can buy and sell 3d blueprints.

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## Daniel9292

you can start making copies of celebrities like they did on MVs recently, then maybe promote it on some fanpage of that celeb, worth to try though 
or some common board game for DIY design

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## Haswell

Well I'm buying a printer. I have people lined up who want to buy. Hopefully I can pay this off in 6 months. Should be awesome.

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## Steven

This issue is ironic because it is only a matter of time when something falls into your lap that will change the way you might appreciate your own printer. I was like you, what applications could it serve and I'll take you on a different angle as to it's invaluable possibilities. If you are hung up on it's aesthetic characteristics or visually pleasing aspects then perhaps you could consider a more useful approach. I get the hobbyist likening his/her approach to being along the lines of jewelry, toys, etc. where obviously the cosmetic value plays important roles in a good print, however, in my case and that of jimc above mentioned, they can be practical for parts for a functional purpose. I happened to have a clip that goes on a FORD Truck snap on me. At first I  went to the Forums about these model FORD's to see if it was common. Turns out this little bracket breaks all the time and hundreds of threads about this item and how to replace it filled the forum column after column. The cost of a replacement was only a factory item and was almost thirty dollars! They didn't sell the bracket separate, you had to buy the cable, bracket and adjuster dial altogether in one package. So, it gave me the idea to print just the plastic part and perhaps post my contact info on this forum to sell them as needed individually! I have paid for my printer three times over in a short period of time. I was even able to beef up the area that kept snapping by making it more rigid and beefy! Here is a short video and picture for my example. If you find something that is useful as a mechanical support of some sort you too can find a new applicable appreciation for your printer. Happy Printing! ~ StevenSteve's phone 375.jpg

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## GOC

-    I do quite a bit of freelance work making miscellaneous gizmos people find on thingiverse and a lot of replacement parts for just about anything. At work and amongst my friends I just had to mention that I can print most anything they have on those 3D Printing sites or any small plastic/rubber pieces needed. Then slowly but surly the work will come; so much so I have had to limit the # of requests per week.

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## Des

I did not read every post here but most of them.

TO OP and those wanting to make money printing and like OP think the quality of the 3D items may not be good enough to sell, Think Creatively!
 Look at all the other products that are not so great but people buy anyway and make them as they want them!

 People buy plain old plaster figurines, sand them and paint them to make them what they want!
 People buy model kits, planes, cars, boats, ships, etc... and they often have to clean up the parts of molding or stamping trash and paint stuff to get the model built!
 Working model steam engine kits are often nothing more than a box of metal! Rough casted parts and bar stock with a few screws! All the parts have to be machined allot just to make the parts needed before building the steam engine!

Point being, if you make something people will want, people will buy it and clean it up themselves if needed and make what they want.

I've seen some fancy chess sets cast from pewter, the pieces are nice but rough! Flash is the little thin metal trash around an items seam where the 2 1/2's of a mold meet. Those chess sets figures had lots of that flash on many pieces. People have to clean that stuff off, sand and file the pieces smooth, sometimes even solder parts together like a warrior holding a sword or the night onto the horse etc... Then people spend a great deal of time painting all the pieces just the way they want them painted.
  Again, point being if the people want it they will take less than perfect parts and make what they want!
 Often that is 1/2 the fun anyway for many things that people do want. People do pay good money for such things also if it's something that is actually worth the money to them!  Some of those chest sets that needed lots of work sold for $100's just for the pieces, then you still had to buy the wood board to play on separately, and some sets each figure was supposed to be mounted on fancy wood bases and you had to buy all those extra also if you wanted them! For everything and the paints etc.. might cost around $500 when done! 

Now your probably not going to make plastic 3d printed rough figures and a plastic board to play on and get $500 for it. LOL
 But the right theme for a game set of good quality pieces for the buyer to clean up a bit and paint might bring some decent money and sell decent if a popular theme.
 What is popular? You have to figure that out.

 I did have a friend that had really fond memories of playing games with his brother and after his brothers death made his own chess set! They had played cowboys and Indians all the time as kids with the cheap plastic sets in a bag and when older played chess all the time.
 So my friend went out and found a plastic set of the cowboys and Indians they had played with as kids, then spent about $50 on paints, painted a great set of figures and mounted them on little wood blocks and made a wood chess board. He spent months making it just as he wanted it.
 His friend seen the set later and made a comment he wished he had a civil war set made the same way but was no good at painting. My friend said he'd make him one for $100 jokingly, his friend said OK!  I figured it was all just joking around while we were having a few beers but about a month later my friend showed me the civil war set he made and then his friend bought it for the $100!
 It was just cheap $1 a bag plastic figures mounted on some nice scrap wood and a wood playing board!
 $1 for the figures, friend already had the paint from doing his own set, and it was scrap wood used, he just painted up the set while watching TV for the month when he would not have been doing anything else anyway! Back then $100 was allot more money than it is now, figuring inflation etc.. over the years that $100 then would be more like $300 now! But I doubt anyone would pay $300 but who knows. 

Back in the late 90's or so we used to do allot of LAN parties, a big group of us friends would gather and network and play computer games all weekend once or twice a month, a camp out on a farm in a large clean barn and we just sleep where ever or set up tents and camp out etc..
 One of the guys was into ceramics making and he showed up at a LAN party one time showing off his cool figures he made for himself of some computer game figures from a game we all played allot back then. 1 person popped up and said I want one how much! He said $10 each not painted, before the weekend was over he had like 150 orders for various game figures!
 Now think about that! He made himself some cool figures just for him, went to a weekend party and showed them off and he took in $1500 in orders! He was not even trying to sell them! I think he said they cost him about $1 each to make and he could fire a large batch in his kiln at a time so not much cost there, then done! Since he and his wife owned the ceramics store and made all that kinda of stuff going to the party and getting $1500 in sales which I think took him 2-3 days to make the figures sold that was a tidy profit, especially as I recall I think they normally did around $500-$600 a week in store sales!
 No reason can't do the same thing with 3d printed items really, just have to find something that sells that people want. Folks had to paint their own porcelain figures, they can paint their own 3D plastic figures!
 If that layering/banding lines OP mentions is not seriously bad then a bit of paint should cover most of it nicely and make a decent figure.
 Getting rid of the banding lines and such would be the best thing to do of course though.

No-one can really just say hey make this and it will sell and pay for your printer and you'll make lots of money, but the market is out there and finding it is the key! 
 I have several things I am certain will make a 3d printer pay for itself for me. Of course though I'm not going to post what those ideas are because someone would likely jump into the market ahead of me.

One idea though is make motorcycles! Of course you cannot directly make something and call it by a Brand Name! NO NO that could get you in trouble fast with a certain company! What you can do legally though is make a generic V Twin engine motorcycle and DO NOT name it! There are enough Brands of V twin motorcycles out there that the bikers could buy your model and paint it to be any V Twin they want it to be! In that way you are not violating any companies rights! 
 If no NAME on the model it's an Oompey Loompey 2016 1900 V twin LOL
 You could also cut the model in half down the middle so it could be mounted to a flat surface like a mirror or picture frame, the buyer paints it as they want it.

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## squadus

If you or anyone you know is interested in 3D printing I've written a book to learn how to utilize this emerging and disruptive technology. As an industrial engineer, I've put hundreds of hours into researching and writing this book. The 3DPrintBoard community especially has helped tremendously with learning and in many ways is a contributor to this book. Hopefully I am able to help spark new ideas on ways people can make money with 3D printing.

http://www.amazon.com/How-Make-Money...ds=jeffrey+ito

Feedback is always welcome.

Thanks guys!

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## Geoff

> Well I'm buying a printer. I have people lined up who want to buy. Hopefully I can pay this off in 6 months. Should be awesome.


I have had a bit to drink being new years eve, so have not read all the posts.. (des's wall of text just scared me lol..) 

personally, I bought my printer for $1100. 

It took me a few months of tinkering and figuring out how to get the best quality out of it, once I was happy with that (and it could take much less time, I was just not in any hurry) I started selling things on Ebay.
It took some time to find a good market, for me that was R/C hobby parts (i.e modelling things that don't exist already) and being the only person selling that particular item on ebay - sales are not hard to accumulate when there is little to no competition.

Selling printer parts is very competitive, often you will break even just to beat your competitor, so stick to small things you can print fast and know you can print well. I don't know exactly when I made my money back, but from my $1100 investment, without really trying too hard it's made me back well over $5000, enough to buy/build some more printers to keep up with demand and still not get into the negative. 

At the end of the day, I never set out to make a fortune with my 3D printer,_ I just wanted to make the money back I spent on it so my wife got off my back!!!_  :Smile:   But, a couple years of selling things on the side has worked out nicely and now allows me to attempt bigger projects as I have a few machines that can be running at the same time. That's my 2cents anyway  :Smile:

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## -willy-

Forgive me for not reading this entire thread.  Yet as a business owner myself here are some things you need to ask yourself.

1) Competition :  This is the most important question.  You need to ask around and see whom out there is doing the same thing or offering something close to the same idea of yours.  If you are in a city, competition may be stiff.  Fortunately for me, the nearest competitor is a good two hour drive.

2) Cost :  How much are you into the printer and all its materials to get going?  If you do this you should not plan to finance it and have a income solely based on the ability of others to make money.  You will need to save up, make a plan for how it is going to be run.

3) Location :  These produce odors.  Some good some bad.  You will need to think of where it can be located that you can get to to do the job.  Also some printers are noisy, so can you endure the noise if it is in your bedroom?  Also be aware some users have had these printers go up in flames.  So plan on it having flame proof location and a means to encapsulate it so it doesnt burn your house down.

4) Plan :  What is your long term objective?  Where do you see this company being in 2 years with zero customers?  Lets face it, just because you have an idea doesnt mean it will work.  Can this venture of yours collect dust if it doesnt get regular customers?

5) have a backup :  This is alot of the above stuff.  Dont plan on this being the sole industry to pay the bills.  Do this on the side.  If it takes off then you can decide if this is the job for you.  I myself have other things I do.  I mow lawns in the summer, I plow driveways in the winter.  I have a arc welder and do some fabrication.  There is a metal lathe downstairs that can turn out parts if I need.  Everything I have makes some money, but it doesnt make me rich.  So dont have rosey glasses because some one is posting "you too can make money".

6) Practicality :  Are you doing this because of the thread where some one is saying "you can make money from home"?  There are alot of people that are out there that have said that all through history.  I myself am 55 years old.  I remember lots of "stories" of you can be rich if.....  Heck back in the 1990's there were companies that said you could make money with a computer and a printer.  They made more money just selling a cheap PC with a terrible printer to people whom thought they could make money at home.  Your not the first or the last to think this is a way to make ends meet.  I bet you have these items right now and can see how much money you are making with them.  Get the picture yet?  If you have it, doesnt mean money.

7) Goal :  What are you going to do with this?  Can you start as a hobby and work it?  Is your plan to create a print farm?  Have you figured all your costs to operate this?  Can you plunk down $50 immediately because a job wants a specific color tomorrow and the extruder you have wont be able to make what you need now?  Can you do anything immediately on a high demand?  

8) Waste :  How much of this plan will become stuff in the trash can?  Ventures are fun at the beginning.  But alot of things may soon end in the trash can.  What is going to happen in your life when it all goes south?

I myself am only a small business man.  Your welcome to your own views and I respect that.  I am not saying you cant do it.  I am saying dont expect this to make money just because you have it.  Diversity is where it is at.  If you see this as something that helps what you do great.

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## -willy-

To StevenC's post above.  You may want to incorporate some radiuses in your print.  Looks like you have the room for the radi.  Radi make the prints stronger.  If the old part was breaking from stress, then some anology of the stress with radi enforcement will go along way.

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## Des

> I have had a bit to drink being new years eve, so have not read all the posts.. (des's wall of text just scared me lol..)


Yes, at times I can have that effect on people. LOL

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## GOC

-   So for an update to this old thread I've come into some good luck. I now produce prototypes and display models on the side for a manufacturing company I work for full time. I'm getting between $75-$300 an order. A tip for those looking to use your printer to make some loot; find a local manufacturing company looking for prints, they will pay well for prints held at a good tolerance.

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## dysquare

> Thanks for the info Geoff.
> 
> Yeah, Australia is a large country/continent and it's developed, so I'm not surprised there's enough demand.
> 
>  I'm from Armenia and there are only around 2.7 million people here, half from villages, don't even have internet connection. We have closed borders from east and west. From north there's Georgia and from  south there's Iran, so you get the idea. Shipping from/to Europe or USA is costy and slow.
> 
> People here say I'm making excuses, but there you go.
> 
> And before you say my situation is rare, it really isn't. The world isn't just USA, Europe and Australia and few more countries.


Actually this is not the problem of 3d printing but the problem of your region, in which any business will be hard too.

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## MercedesStolp

3D printing is perfect for customization. There are 1000's of companies that sell products out there, but with a 3D printer you have the ability to sell customized products. 95% of all the other companies out there don't have that same ability. I think there is easier money in the design work, but having a 3d printer can really help show off your work.

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## jannw

Of course, there are many ways to make money with 3D printers, but I think that here you need to pay attention to how to get the money earned. When I played in online casinos, I often used a method such as paysafecard*,* here is more about it. I had no problems with it. Of course, there are many other methods that can be used on the Internet when selling 3D printer products.

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## AngelArs

> At this point it sounds like you're just making excuses. No one is going to lay out a plan for you to generate money.


Well said.

I don't think cipher0 is going to find the "answer" they're looking for because they simply don't understand what a 3D printer is in the context of making money. It's just one tool, like any other tool. You wouldn't buy a hammer and then say "How can I make money with this hammer?" Now use that hammer - with other tools - and you'll be able to make lots of money. The same is true with 3D printers.

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## beeshma123

here are a few measures I make for more seasoned military generators. I have an organization make me the guts then I plan and print the plastic parts. laser cut the focal points and print the check faces. I likewise make the 3 dark handles on the control board and some different parts for this thing too. smart gaga

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## ivyst

You can definitely make money with a 3D printer!  :Smile:  If you're creative and have tons of ideas, why not try to sell the print files on eBay, Amazon, Etsy, or Shopify? From what I've seen there is some search there. The opportunities with a 3d printer are as limitless as your imagination.  :Smile:  You can make dnd figures, fan figures, toys, kitchen tools, and more! You can even rent out your printer, or teach classes to beginners. There are so many things you can do despite just selling products!

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