Whiskers, brims and a heat gun: finishing a printed piece

Hi, it's Ash!

I wanted to write a little about what happens after a charger stand comes off our printers. You might think it's ready to go straight into a box, but that's where a lot of my work begins. There are edges to clean up, parts to fit together and a final look over before we send it to you.

I like to plan what we're printing so we make good use of the material we have. Even when there's only a little left on a roll, it can often become one of the smaller parts. It's something I think about before I start, rather than figuring it out when the roll runs out.

The little whiskers

Once a piece comes off the printer, I pluck off the little strings it leaves behind. I call them whiskers. Then I trim the brim around the edge and look the piece over to see how it came out. Some have small surface marks that don't meet our usual finish standard, so we set those aside for Imperfectly Perfect instead.

The pieces we're assembling get their weight, magnets and bottom cap fitted next. The metal inside is what makes the stand feel heavier than it looks. Once they're assembled and have had time to dry, I can finish cleaning them up.

Different colors need a slightly different approach, which is something I've learned from working on them. I sometimes sand the lighter ones to remove a scuff, but sanding a dark color can leave a visible mark of its own. For those, I use a heat gun to clean up the pale marks left from trimming the brim. Each one gets wiped down with a microfiber cloth, too.

Ready for its box

My dad usually makes the boxes. We put in the insert, the pop-out tool and our card, then write the color on the side so we know which stand is inside. By the time it reaches the shelf, quite a few of us have worked on it.

Tristan has also been teaching me how to look after the printers. I've been learning to clear a clogged nozzle, untangle filament and change the rolls. I'm still learning, but being able to sort out more of those things myself is becoming part of my work here.

I'd love to have more finished pieces waiting on our shelf, ready when you order them. For now, I wanted to show you this part of making your stand, because you don't really see it in the finished piece. You just get to pick it up and use it, which is how it should be.

Thanks for reading and for giving something we made a place on your desk.

Ash

From our family, to yours.