What Do You Do?

Have you ever had trouble explaining to a friend or family member what you do for a living? Maybe your career is so specialized that nobody has heard of it. A friend asked me the other day what exactly I print on my 3D Printer. I told her that I print plastic parts on my MakerBot, and sell them to people wanting to build their own printers (e.g., Prusa Mendel). A printer that prints itself is a pretty cool concept when you think about it. Of course this might be hard to visualize, unless you have actually seen the plastic parts, or a photograph of a Prusa.

Furthermore, I explained that my printer was not limited to printing other printers. I have had fun making boxes, blocks, cookie cutters, whistles and other neat things designed by the Thingiverse community. And the creativity does not end there. If you can't find what you want on Thingiverse you can design it yourself! 3D rendering software such as Rhino and Google Sketchup are a good place to test your modeling skills. I know Rhino is pricey, but you can download a free trial (which lasts a long time).

I'm anxious to know what you've told your friends and family about 3D printing. Also, feel free to share some cool tips and advice on things that you've designed and printed yourself.