Posted: 5/27/2026 1:48:01 PM EDT
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My friend started printing stuff at random and has turned it into a profitable thing. He bought 4 u1's and 3-5 other single color printers. Im not looking to copy/paste his portfolio but I was wondering if there was good advice on finding niches that you could make a few bucks at. All my friends stuff fell in his lap. Lots of "can you print this? Can you do that?" Now he cant keep up and runs all his machines all day just doing it for fun he says. Lol Id like to find something beyond flexible toys and junk. |
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I found a few things on thingiverse that people wanted (gun related). Printed them and put them on etsy. Not even trying hard, my etsy store kicked my wife's store's ass. And she's actually caring about product descriptions and listing and crap. One of her friends' husbands started up a printing farm at his house like what you're describing. I think he had 6 or 8 printers that he tries to keep busy. There's really not that many things besides stupid toys that people are OK with being made out of 3D printing and are willing to pay. Jokes, memes, dicks, boobs. Get a model of a pair of boobs and merge it with a model of a phone case. Or print the next rubio as ____ meme. Past that, people aren't generally gonna pony up enough to make it worth your time even warming your printer up. For mine, I want running multiple printers, but I did arrange multiple items on the print bed. That way I load the file and 90 minutes later, I had $55 worth of product to sell. |
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I used to have a 3D printing business. I sold it because it became too successful to be a side gig. When i was regularly getting 6-10 orders a day it became too much to keep up with. Average order was roughly $30. Honestly it did well but wasnt worth the headache. And eBay fucks you over so incredibly hard. $30 item, final value fee is $7, promo fee is $6, shipping is $8, packing materials is $1, and was $4 in filament. I was averaging $4 profit per unit and thats before wear and tear on the printer. Etsy was slightly better. I averaged about $6 profit per order on there. Printing 200 items a month for $1k a month in profit wasnt worth it to me. At the peak I was doing closer to $2k in profit but I kept having people buying my items, reverse engineering them, and selling their own for less using cheap ass filament, one wall, and 10% infill. I on two occasions even called them out that they stole the listing description word for word. And eBay and Etsy both dont give a shit. So you need to keep designing new things or juat accept cannibalization. I never did it for a side gig. I did it because a lot od people on online forums wanted one so thought it would be an easy way to fund the hobby but it took off. Sold all the IP two years ago and have zero regrets walking away. I wish I had retained one of the designs because I was particularly proud of it but I didnt. No big deal. I sleep fine either way.  I also have a cousin who does it Full Time. They run a farm of 26 A1s. They print cookie cutters. Not kidding. Started out as a custom cookie operation and theyd print the cookie cutters to match the cookie and the customers asked if they could pay extra to keep the cutters. Then they realized there is way less effort and way more market for just the cutters. So they listed all the designs they have ever done, and take requests too. Theyve grown enough that they have their own Shopify site and show in Google ads apparently. They keep 26 printers going 24/7 to keep up with demand. They live in a 600k house and drive new Broncos. |
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I have a side gig that also just fell into my lap. Made close to $20k last year, this year it's much slower. You're not going to be successful just printing knick knacks and flexys that you download off makerworld. The market is way too saturated already since everyone with a $150 ender thinks they can do it. I worked with a guy who sets up at the craft fairs and comic cons almost every weekend selling the junky toys and he barely makes enough to make it worthwhile. Not to mention the fact that nearly everyone is almost certainly selling models and violating the licensing agreements. Part of my business is doing 3D CAD and 2D manufacturing drawings. I take a napkin sketch and turn it into a 3D model, print the prototypes to verify function, then send the drawings off to be manufactured with other methods. Some parts are designed to be printed and I do print those as well. My services are more valuable because I am able to apply my professional manufacturing experience to offer DFM advice so the customer gets parts faster and cheaper while still retaining the desired functionality. That side of the business is profitable and actually enjoyable since I'm not just pumping out junk that will end up in a landfill in a week. You need to be able to offer a skill that's more than just "I have a printer". The best thing you could do is invent a unique product to solve a problem that a niche group of enthusiasts has, then sell the part. Never sell the 3D model. ETA: my products differ from onsessed's. I have under a dollar in filament and sell them to my customer in bulk for $13/ea who then resells them on his webstore for an even bigger markup. So one small shipping fee for a batch of a hundred parts and the rest is nearly all profit. I've made over a thousand of my best selling parts. It's literally printing money. |
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Originally Posted By Blob: I have a side gig that also just fell into my lap. Made close to $20k last year, this year it's much slower. You're not going to be successful just printing knick knacks and flexys that you download off makerworld. The market is way too saturated already since everyone with a $150 ender thinks they can do it. I worked with a guy who sets up at the craft fairs and comic cons almost every weekend selling the junky toys and he barely makes enough to make it worthwhile. Not to mention the fact that nearly everyone is almost certainly selling models and violating the licensing agreements. Part of my business is doing 3D CAD and 2D manufacturing drawings. I take a napkin sketch and turn it into a 3D model, print the prototypes to verify function, then send the drawings off to be manufactured with other methods. Some parts are designed to be printed and I do print those as well. My services are more valuable because I am able to apply my professional manufacturing experience to offer DFM advice so the customer gets parts faster and cheaper while still retaining the desired functionality. That side of the business is profitable and actually enjoyable since I'm not just pumping out junk that will end up in a landfill in a week. You need to be able to offer a skill that's more than just "I have a printer". The best thing you could do is invent a unique product to solve a problem that a niche group of enthusiasts has, then sell the part. Never sell the 3D model. ETA: my products differ from onsessed's. I have under a dollar in filament and sell them to my customer in bulk for $13/ea who then resells them on his webstore for an even bigger markup. So one small shipping fee for a batch of a hundred parts and the rest is nearly all profit. I've made over a thousand of my best selling parts. It's literally printing money. Yes! I love CAD and could use some refreshing in autodesk. |
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My advice is if you think you have a good idea, make sure some other asshole hasn’t already patented it  Blob’s wholesale manufacturing thing seems like a much less stressful way to make money. Finding that golden goose product is the hard part. |
The hardest part about a zombie apocalypse will be pretending I'm not excited.
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I made a "comb holster" for my granddaughter for her grooming comb. The owner of a livestock supply store saw it and told my daughter he would sell them in his store. I haven't gone to talk to him yet. I'm designing a few to take to show him. I wouldn't mind making enough to support my printing but I don't want another job. |
To say that you are on thin ice would be a vastly optimistic view of your current situation. The ice has melted. You are being supported by the surface tension of water.
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I've been thinking about making a packable VHF yagi kits (muuuuch lighter than an Arrow 2) and a set of POTA/SOTA multi-tap EFHW wire antennas, along with some whip and mast guy rings. Dunno if it would be remotely profitable though. Still need to figure out FreeCad yet. |
We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission...- Ayn Rand
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Originally Posted By MoparMike: I've been thinking about making a packable VHF yagi kits (muuuuch lighter than an Arrow 2) and a set of POTA/SOTA multi-tap EFHW wire antennas, along with some whip and mast guy rings. Dunno if it would be remotely profitable though. Still need to figure out FreeCad yet. Skip freecad and use a proper program from the start. You'll be doing yourself a huge favor. |
| I can't afford SoftImage, AutoCad, or Solid Edge. I'm not paying hundreds of dollars to be a hobbyist |
We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases, while the citizens may act only by permission...- Ayn Rand
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Originally Posted By MoparMike: I can't afford SoftImage, AutoCad, or Solid Edge. I'm not paying hundreds of dollars to be a hobbyist Fusion360 is free. OnShape is free. SolidWorks is $24/yr. All are professional level CAD programs that are nearly identical or are identical to the multi thousand dollar seats, with limitations that aren't a huge deal typically. |
Land of the once free & the home of the narrative.
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Originally Posted By -Obsessed-: Fusion360 is free. OnShape is free. SolidWorks is $24/yr. All are professional level CAD programs that are nearly identical or are identical to the multi thousand dollar seats, with limitations that aren't a huge deal typically. |
If some of you put this much fervor into your community or church, instead of arguing with people voting for the same politician, the world would be a much better place. -Skg_Mre_Lght
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Originally Posted By MoparMike: I can't afford SoftImage, AutoCad, or Solid Edge. I'm not paying hundreds of dollars to be a hobbyist He works for auto desk and he explains things at a beginners level. |
To say that you are on thin ice would be a vastly optimistic view of your current situation. The ice has melted. You are being supported by the surface tension of water.
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My wife told a friend I could beat Etsy's price on a massive flexible dragon. I could, only if i charged $0.65/hr for machine time (vs $1/hr recommended cost per reddit), cost for filament on deepest possible discount, and ate the stl/commercial license cost. My wife said her friend agreed to color swatch and the deal was a go. But she didn't tell her friend the number I gave her, so I got a thank you card with half the price I quoted.  I'm not printing stuff for her friends ever again.
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Originally Posted By Kharn: My wife told a friend I could beat Etsy's price on a massive flexible dragon. I could, only if i charged $0.65/hr for machine time (vs $1/hr recommended cost per reddit), cost for filament on deepest possible discount, and ate the stl/commercial license cost. My wife said her friend agreed to color swatch and the deal was a go. But she didn't tell her friend the number I gave her, so I got a thank you card with half the price I quoted. I'm not printing stuff for her friends ever again. I'm on vacation and the souvenir shop has 3D printed flexy things for 2.99 each, and they are actually presented fairly well. They are branded and everything. All PLA sadly, but they are multi color, best I can tell a max of 3 colors. Whoever got that contract is printing money. A bed could hold 100 of them easy. That's the play, is finding a shop willing to sell them and you just wholesale them to them. |
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Originally Posted By -Obsessed-: I'm on vacation and the souvenir shop has 3D printed flexy things for 2.99 each, and they are actually presented fairly well. They are branded and everything. All PLA sadly, but they are multi color, best I can tell a max of 3 colors. Whoever got that contract is printing money. A bed could hold 100 of them easy. That's the play, is finding a shop willing to sell them and you just wholesale them to them. Originally Posted By -Obsessed-: Originally Posted By Kharn: My wife told a friend I could beat Etsy's price on a massive flexible dragon. I could, only if i charged $0.65/hr for machine time (vs $1/hr recommended cost per reddit), cost for filament on deepest possible discount, and ate the stl/commercial license cost. My wife said her friend agreed to color swatch and the deal was a go. But she didn't tell her friend the number I gave her, so I got a thank you card with half the price I quoted. I'm not printing stuff for her friends ever again. I'm on vacation and the souvenir shop has 3D printed flexy things for 2.99 each, and they are actually presented fairly well. They are branded and everything. All PLA sadly, but they are multi color, best I can tell a max of 3 colors. Whoever got that contract is printing money. A bed could hold 100 of them easy. That's the play, is finding a shop willing to sell them and you just wholesale them to them. The local game store is selling 3d printed fidgets that use a keyboard switch for the mechanism, like 5" diameter 20 sided and 6 sided dice, etc where each face clicks. The store owner's neighbor is the one with the print farm and will take custom orders, paying him a percentage of sales. |
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Originally Posted By -Obsessed-: I'm on vacation and the souvenir shop has 3D printed flexy things for 2.99 each, and they are actually presented fairly well. They are branded and everything. All PLA sadly, but they are multi color, best I can tell a max of 3 colors. Whoever got that contract is printing money. A bed could hold 100 of them easy. That's the play, is finding a shop willing to sell them and you just wholesale them to them. A cousin of mine had to take a part time job at a Tractor Supply Co, and says they sell a shit ton of things like that. Just a couple bucks each, and the kids love ‘em. I need to find some models to print so the wifey can sell them at markets. She makes baby hair bows, bibs, blankets, burp cloths and also builds gift baskets using her products and others. She had an idea to make some educational items using some 3D printed things, like little animals, and letters to teach the alphabet. I need to find some things I can openly print, or license, or design my own. I designed a few things for her market booth using TinkerCad, and I’m pretty proud of that since I have no CAD experience at all! I wouldn’t mind even doing some subcontracting to print things for someone else’s business if I knew anyone locally. I don’t need to make a huge profit, but a few bucks every month would be pretty nice. We’ll see how the wifey’s ideas go. She needs to get her Shopify website set up first, though. She didn’t want to deal with Etsy, and eBay is too damn expensive to use these days. Most of her items are pretty low-dollar prices with relatively small margins. The gift baskets are where it’s at. I think selling some sets of printed (paper things) with things like little animals or letters could be a good deal, too. |
Now she's making $15 an hour as a 'tard wrangler with a degree in women's studies... - tommytrauma
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Originally Posted By giantpune: There's really not that many things besides stupid toys that people are OK with being made out of 3D printing and are willing to pay. I only print gun parts. There's some pushback from fudds and luddite boomers, but I just ignore them. Well, I lied. I take their criticism onboard to an extent. I've completely migrated to Nylons of various kinds. It is actually an overkill for many uses, but it gives a good buffer. It also masks layers for better cosmetics. |