In primitive forms, 3D printing has actually been around since the early 1980s, but has only recently been a viable option for the average consumer. 3D printing works by extruding a small amount of melted plastic material from a printing head, effectively “drawing” a layer of material in the shape of a part. The printing head will sketch out multiple thin layers of plastic, moving up one vertical step after each layer is printed. This can be used to create complex geometry that is not possible to make using milling, casting, and other traditional manufacturing processes.
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