How to find something to 3D print when you don’t know what you want
A search box is great when you know what you want. But a lot of the time you have a printer, a spool of filament and no idea what to make. Here are seven ways to find something worth printing, starting from nothing.
1. Browse by topic instead of searching
Browsing works better than searching when you’re looking for ideas. Scroll down Yigo’s home page and you’ll find a gallery of popular models, with tabs for Toys & games, Animals, Home, Tools, Gadgets, Art & decor, Cosplay, Miniatures and Printer parts. Pick a tab, then switch between Popular and Newest. Popular shows designs lots of people have liked, which usually means they print well. Newest shows what people are making right now.
2. Scroll the feed
The feed shows one model per screen, and you scroll through them like short videos. It’s the fastest way to see a lot of models in a few minutes. Tap Favorite on anything that catches your eye, and come back to your shortlist later. As you go, the feed learns what kinds of models you stop to look at and shows you more like them. That happens in your own browser, and you can turn it off.
3. Walk around your home and fix something
The most satisfying prints often solve a small, annoying problem. A few ideas to look for:
- Cables everywhere: cable clips and cable organizers.
- A messy desk: desk organizers or a headphone stand.
- Nowhere to hang things: wall hooks.
- A drawer full of small parts: Gridfinity bins.
- Open snack bags: bag clips.
If something broke, like a knob, a clip or a battery cover, search for the object’s name plus the part. Plenty of people have printed the same replacement before you.
4. Print a gift
Think about the people you know and what they’re into: a planter for someone with plants, a keychain with a favorite animal, a phone stand for the person who always props their phone against a mug. Small gifts print in an hour or two, and people love something made just for them.
5. Show off what your printer can do
Some models are fun because of how they’re printed. Print-in-place models come off the bed already moving: articulated dragons that wiggle, boxes with working hinges and fidget toys. They’re great to hand to someone who has never seen a 3D printer.
6. Follow the calendar
Holidays, birthdays, the start of school and the seasons all come with ideas: decorations, costume props, pencil holders, bird feeders in spring. Searching for the occasion plus “decoration” or “gift” is a good start.
7. Keep a list for later
When you see something you might print one day, save it. On Yigo, the star on any model adds it to your favorites, kept in your browser with no account needed. Next time you’re out of ideas, your list is waiting.
One last tip
Before you print, open the model on its own site and look at other people’s photos of it (often called “makes”). If lots of people have printed it and it looks good in their photos, it will probably work for you too.