Multicolour 3D printing may be a concept that is foreign to newbie 3D printers. But we’re here to tell you that it is possible without going through post-processing. If you want to start seeing colour after months or years of monochromatic prints, here are 3 ways you can print multicolour 3D prints.
1. Print each part with a different colour separately
If you have a dual extruder 3D printer, this is an efficient way to 3D print in colour. The complexity of this process depends on your design. You can find designs on Thingiverse or Cults3D that are designed for the parts to be printed separately so you can go crazy with the colours and pick a different colour for each part. Such examples are:
simple padlock (100% printed) by 3DSam3D
For designs that are meant to be printed as a whole such as busts, action figures, you would need to be skilled in tweaking the model in a design program. You can then glue them together after printing.
2. Swapping filaments
If you have an entry-level FDM 3D printer that only has one extruder, this is the best way to do multicolour 3D printing. This is a fast and easy way to do it as you only have to pause printing to swap the filaments. You only have to wait for the printing to reach a certain layer to pause the printer and change filaments. It is as simple as it sounds!
If you are a more skilled printerer, you can set the printer to pause at a certain height or layer through your slicer program. Here are some ideas that you could print using this method:
Original Apple logo in 3D by acen
Vision - Marvel Coasters by SJThreeD
Multicolour Applin by 3DPrintDogs
3. Using a rainbow filament
3D printing with a rainbow filament is the easiest way to create multicolour 3D prints. You can print a model just like you usually do with monochromatic prints but you get a multicoloured print at the end. The only caveat is you can’t control how the colour appears. It is recommended for medium to large models.
You can find out more about rainbow filaments in our 2022 Guide to Colour-Shifting Filaments.
Experiment with colour with these 3 tips to multicolour 3D printing!
Challenge yourself and start multicolour 3D printing with these 3 tips. For inquiries, you can contact us here.