Sizing for the printer

Regardless of the type of printer being used, it will have some size limitations. With the home FFF/FDM or SLA printers, you may be mainly concerned about the size of your print bed. With the 3D Printing Service Bureaus, economic forces may have you more concerned by cost. Some 3D Printing Service Bureaus will also have a minimum size requirement as well. If you do wish to push the limits in either direction, the technical specifications of the printer or the Material Design Requirements will guide you accordingly.

Design too big? If your design is too big, don’t abandon it just yet. First off, if it is slightly too big for your print bed, remember that the hypotenuse of a triangle is longer than the other sides. See if placing your object at a diagonal will give you the room you need. Your print bed may only be 200mm x 200mm, but the diagonal could accommodate almost 283mm. If all else fails, you can split your model into parts to be printed separately.