Mastering 3D Printing shows you how to get the most out of your printer, including how to design models, choose materials, work with different printers, and integrate 3D printing with traditional prototyping to make techniques like sand casting more efficient.

You've printed key chains. You've printed simple toys. Now you're ready to innovate with your 3D printer to start a business or teach and inspire others.

Joan Horvath has been an educator, engineer, author, and startup 3D printing company team member. She shows you all of the technical details you need to know to go beyond simple model printing to make your 3D printer work for you as a prototyping device, a teaching tool, or a business machine.

As an engineer and management consultant, Joan Horvath has coordinated first-of-a-kind interdisciplinary technical and business projects, helping people with no common vocabulary (startups, universities, small towns, etc). work together. Her experience as a systems engineer has spanned software development, spacecraft flight operations, risk management, and spacecraft/ground system test and contingency planning.As an educator, Joan’s passion is bringing science and technology to the non-specialist in a comprehensible and entertaining way that will stay with the learner for a lifetime.

Part 1. Open-Source 3D Printers

Chapter 1. A Brief History of 3D Printing

Chapter 2. The Desktop 3D Printer

Chapter 3. Open Source

Part 2. The 3D Printing Process

Chapter 4. Making a 3D Model

Chapter 5. Slicing a 3D Model

Chapter 6. Driving Your Printer: G-code

Chapter 7. Material Considerations

Chapter 8. Case Studies

Part 3. 3D Printing Meets Traditional Prototyping

Chapter 9. Moving to Metal

Chapter 10. Large Prints and Post-Processing

Chapter 11. Troubleshooting

Part 4. Using Your Printer

Chapter 12. Printers in the Classroom

Chapter 13. Scientific Visualization

Chapter 14: Futures

Appendix A: Typical Printer Settings

Appendix B: Links and Resources