I was thinking about this question today as someone used our work printer for some personal stuff.
As for me, I am printing little things that I would say make it worth it. I’ve printed lens adapters for my camera for example. That’s worth a good 14 to 30 bucks per print. My most favorite photo was with an adapted lens that came from a projector. I also printed IEMs and those things are worth it. Listening to music is second to none on those things. Plus I printed the same shell but for ear protection and again the fit is perfect and sure there’s post processing to get smooth surfaces but in the end it looks like a professional made it. So I think 3d printers are worth it.
financially worth it?
Probably not.
Did it give me brief respites of light against the clawing, ever encroaching abyssal darkness of life and misery?
Yes.
Define “worth it”??
For many, it’s a hobby. For many more, it’s an adjunct to whatever hobby they do have. Hobby’s don’t have to save you money; and I’m militantly opposed to monetizing hobbies as a way to “justify” them.
Personally, I’m mostly 3d printing custom components (that I’ve designed), for R/C aircraft of various sorts. (Like, my cyclogyros, or the flying saucer powered by a 3d printed ducted fan; which is, more or less, a scaled model of the saucer from the OG Day The Earth Stood Still. or the thermal airship using toaster wire that has taken on a lot of different forms, ranging from 20’ star destroyers to whale sharks to a robot named Buoyant Bob that hands out candy on Halloween.)
I also enjoy 3d printing as a hobby, in of itself, too. (and spend waaayyyyy too much tinkering on the printer. its fun.) But it doesn’t have to save me money, and I feel no need to compare it to other forms of hobbies. It’s what I enjoy.
edit: lets put this in perspective. This would be like asking a golfer if they found golf worth it. the only real questions are “Do I enjoy it” and “can I afford it”. not “can it save me a buck”.
Buying a 3d printer and learning CAD is unlocking a super power. You can put something from your brain into the real world. It’s great for hyper specific parts.
That was blowing my mind the first time I printed a prototype. Still kinda does.
That and sharing models is great. Like I can literally download a physical object. Sure the printing is an extra step, but that’s still amazing to me 10 years after firing up my first printer.
Depends on how you define “worth it.” Have I spent less money on the printer than I would have buying things I printed? Probably not. However, it has been a blast and great learning experience. Most recently printed landing skids and a camera shroud for a friend’s dji drone which is pretty cool.
100%. I’ve printed some cool stuff and some stupid stuff, as well as a bunch of functional parts that have improved my life around my house. More importantly it’s given me a huge creative outlet to get more and more outlandish with my CAD designs and push my experience limits, which is great because that helps me be a lot more efficient at work.
Financially it was a total waste of money but that doesn’t matter when it’s a hobby. A hobby with practical marketable skills, and also the ability to let me prototype some independent ideas I’ve been brewing for a while to maybe sell for some side cash…
