I'm Janne, prop builder from Finland! I have been 3D printing for couple of years, but I have a past in digital large format inkjet printing and when I started my own business in 2016, I made props, toys & collectibles mostly out of metal, with lathes and mills. Then, COVID crisis shut my business pretty much to zero.
After that, I tried to develop my business into various new directions, none of them worked but then I found 3D printing in 2022. And after two years of trying everything, I was SO pleased to notice that 3D printing was FINALLY the way to go!Interestingly, I hated 3D printing for a long time, before taking the dive. I hated the grainy finish, slow printing times and the fact the printed items still few years ago barely resembled the item you had on the screen.
Even the very first weeks with my first printer, Ender-3 Pro were disappointing, as it broke several times over the upcoming 2 or 3 months. But at least I learned a lot about 3D printing!And ironically, you could say the 3D printing I hated for so long time, eventually saved my business. Being self-employed and running business at home is a concept not many people comprehend. For my friends, relatives and even immediate family this normally means that I'm 'free' all day long to run errands and do favours for them. On top of that my son has a bit of challenges which consume even more of my time, so compared to lathe & mill work, 3D printing is pleasantly more independent. Just slice the file and put the printer into work in the background. I don't necessarily even have to be in my 'shop!
Hence, it's probably not a surprise I'm more interested in WHAT the machines print, rather than HOW they print. I do like tweaking the printers up to certain point, but productivity will eventually always take top priority.
