BMore 3D

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I don’t even recall where I heard about it.  But, there was a new pop-up shop.  One devoted to 3D printing.  In Baltimore- just about 70 minutes away.  I searched the web for more information and finally found the place.  It was open from 1 pm to 9 pm seven days a week.

I drove up to Baltimore, to the section I call Fells Point.   (The proprietor felt it was Canton; the shop  is on the dividing line.   Now, if you want to visit, this information will make finding it easier.)   And, I was a little disappointed.  In my mind, this was going to be a big open space.  Open- yes.  Big, no.  Lots of printers- no, just one.  And, what he (the proprietor) claimed was the only automated scanning device in the world.

Bmore3d is a venture with three different backers (owners?).  Todd Blatt, who has been a 3D model maker for more than a decade (and is also a mechanical engineer and artist in Baltimore).  Michael Raphael is the president and founder of Direct Dimensions, a rapid prototyping facility that has been around for almost two decades.  And, Graham Stewart, who is the businessperson running the shop.  It’s also possible that Tinkerine, the 3D printing company from Vancouver (BC), could be the the fourth part of this venture; it certainly has a product presence.

BMore3D
Storefront on top.
3D printed bride/groom ornament below

Was it worth visiting? In a word, yes.  If you are a novice interested in 3D printing, you will learn plenty.  If you have a reasonable background in the technology, you will probably also enjoy yourself.  If you are an expert, then you can save your trip.

Let’s start with the coolest thing I saw at the shop.  Holograms.  You can make a hologram of your own visage or almost any object.  And, for about $ 200, you can have a 5 X 7 hologram prepared.  But, if you expect to see that 3D process occur in front of your eyes- forget about it.  The scan is sent (somewhere) and the hologram is delivered in about two to four weeks.  So, there is no instant gratification.

Hologram via 3D
This hologram is one of the larger ones Bmore3D has on display

Which brings up the other fact about the shop.  You won’t see a single 3D object printed during your visit.  (Let me correct that- I am sure you will see an object or two printed sometime during the weeks the shop is opened, but things are not printed routinely).  The printer (the one from Tinkerine Studio) is pretty much there to entice you buy it.  (Graham  promised that a larger printer was on its way to the shop and that may change this statement about on-site printing.)  They also have a scanner, the Sense,  (a device you hold in your hand to scan objects) for you to examine.  (But, based upon the quality of a lot of the objects I saw in the shop, the Microsoft Kinect may be the better choice.)

Tinkerine
Tinkerine Printer

Their full size scanner used up about 25% of the shop’s floor space.  ShapeShot is the name that Direct Dimensions gave this system.  It’s a pretty ‘coooool’  device.

ShapeShot

You will also see lots of 3D printed objects.  Tons (ok, a few stone) of earrings.  Specialized designs created by various designers.  Objects to be used with Google Glass.  (What?  You don’t have your own pair?)  A bust.  (Honestly- that’s a literal statement.  It seems that some Amelia [a DJ from 98 Rocks, a local Baltimore station] lost a bet and had the life-sized image produced.)

98 Rocks Amelia
Bust of ’98Rocks’ Amelia

Another class of items that intrigued me- bobble heads.  You can produce a scan of your head (or your child’s or another loved one) and have a bobble head made- for $ 60.  (No, you can’t make one of a politician, so you could “slap them upside the head” to make them tell the truth for a change.)   Obviously, you can make other little busts from these, as well. But, like the holograms, these multi-colored bobble heads will need to be produced off-site and then delivered to you.   (I think I convinced Graham that he could make single color 3D prints of scans into bobble heads in the shop for a lesser price- and provide some instant gratification.)

As you can see, I think the shop needs more instant gratification.  Because that is what 3D printing is all about.  After all, I have designed many an object and had it constructed or molded for me over the past four decades.  One of the prime reasons for 3D printing is to try something out NOW, test it, adjust it, print another- and another (hopefully not a whole bunch of “anothers”) until it’s perfect.  And, then, either keep replicating it- or have it produced in a larger quantity in a conventional manufacturing environment.

But, maybe Graham is right.  That it’s a novelty that folks don’t want to try- but want to own trinkets that were so produced.  I hope he’s wrong.  I hope folks want to start making their own “stuff”, to be creative, and to help 3D printing bring the revolution I think it will to the world.

(I have a new five part series starting next week on 3D printing.  But, if you want to learn more about the process now- you can check ‘3D’ in the index.  There are a slew of articles that I’ve already published here.)

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