Make a mug you can actually print

Level

Beginner

Time

25 min

Version

Shapeaway 4.0

You need

Any 3D printer

You’ll make

A printable mug with a handle, as an STL

Files

None, you start from a new sculpt

Throw the body on the wheel

1. Ctrl N: start from a Cylinder at Standard detail, about 90 mm tall.
2. Press W to start the pottery wheel. The clay spins.
3. Hold Smooth (3) against the side and move it slowly up and down to even the wall.
4. Hold Add near the top to raise a slight lip. Press W again to stop the wheel.

Hollow it

1. Open the Print tab. Under Fix, choose Hollow with a wall of 3 mm, and no drain hole.
2. Use the wire cutter (C): drag a horizontal line just below the top, and click the lower part to keep. The mug is now open at the top.
3. Choose Flat base so it sits flat on the bed.

Add a handle

1. Objects › New to add a separate object for the handle. Start it as a coil.
2. Press O and move, turn and scale the coil so half of it sits against the side of the mug.
3. Select the mug, then Merge the handle into it.
4. Smooth where the handle meets the body.

Check and export

1. Print › Print report: check the size, and that the thinnest wall is above your printer’s minimum (about 1 mm for a 0.4 mm nozzle).
2. Turn on Show wall thickness: there should be no red.
3. Press Ctrl E to export STL. It’s in millimetres, Z up, watertight.

Caution

A printed mug isn’t food-safe without a food-safe coating, whatever the filament.

Next: A toadstool, painted and turned.