Glossary of Terminology

3MF: A newer file format designed specifically for 3D printing. It is basically G-code along with other relevant slicing information so that you can open a 3MF file into a slicer.

Aluminum Extrusion Rails: These have your carriages move along aluminum extrusion bars via rollers (as compared to Linear Rails or Linear Rods). Think of the original Ender 3 as an example.

Barrel: A heatsink attached to your hotend which is meant to keep a temperature differential from said hotend. The barrel is cooled by a fan and will make sure your filament is only being heated in the hotend and not creeping upward.

Bowden Extruder: An indirect extruder – where the extruder is not directly attached to the hotend and must feed filament over a distance to reach the hotend.

Brim: Lines of print that are touching the perimeter of your print on the build plate. This helps to anchor your part if you think it may warp or get knocked off.

Cartesian: A printer where each axis is controlled and moved independently by a motor. The X-axis operates autonomously from the Y-axis. The Bambu Lab A1 is an example of a cartesian machine.

Cooling Fan(s): The fans used to cool the printed layers quickly to improve print quality. These fans help surface and overhang quality but can increase your chances of warping and delamination on some higher temperature resistant materials.

CoreXY: A printer that synchronizes the X and Y axes movement via stepper motors. When the hotend moves in the X-direction, both motors rotate, and the same applies to the Y-direction. Bambu Lab P1 and X1 printers are examples of CoreXY machines.

Direct Extruder: This is an extruder that feeds directly into the hotend without any added distance.

Endstop: The part that is triggered when you reach the furthest point of your build volume in any direction. This trigger tells the printer it cannot move any further and is used to “home” your machine.

Extruder: The part of the printer that pushes or feeds filament. It is motorized.

Filament: Strands of material – it can be thought of as another term for the material being used in your 3D printer.

Firmware: The software that is embedded into your printer to tell it how to operate. This can either be open-source (Marlin/Klipper) or closed-source.

G-code: The file format used to tell your printer how to move, how fast to move, and how much material to extrude. Slicers turn 3D models into G-code, but you cannot open G-code in a slicer and edit any settings – that would require a 3MF file format.

Gantry Style Printers: This is a term that is may not be being used correctly, but it is how we refer to any machine that moves the build plate up and down in the Z-direction. Can include CoreXY machines like the Bambu Lab X1C, or a Cartesian one like the Ender 5.

Hotend: The part of your printer that melts the filament. It is powered by a heater and uses a thermistor to tell the temperature.

Hygroscopic: How likely your material is to absorb and be affected by moisture. The more hygroscopic the material, the more susceptible it is – meaning the more likely it will need frequent drying.

Jerk: The instantaneous velocity your printer will start at after a directional change or after reaching a full stop. In engineering this refers to something else, but in 3D printing this is what the word means.

Infill: The internal structure of a printed object, typically designed to add strength while reducing material usage and print time.

Layer Height: The thickness of each individual layer of your print. Lower layer heights normally means greater Z-axis detail - but will also result in a print that takes longer to complete.

Leadscrew: A threaded metal part that turns to move an axis by being attached to a stepper motor. These are normally used for the Z axis on printers rather than a belt.

Linear Rails: These use a stiff, steel rail along which the carriages slide via bearings (as compared to Aluminum Extrusion or Linear Rods).

Linear Rods: These have the carriages attached to a smooth rod via bearings (as compared to Aluminum Extrusion or Linear Rails).

Nozzle: A die that is attached to your hotend that will set the diameter thickness of the individual lines for material you are extruding. Common nozzle diameters are between 0.15mm and 1.2mm – though they can come in nearly any size. The larger the diameter – the better the hotend you will require to print fast to heat the material to the proper viscosity. Generally speaking smaller diameter nozzles can result in more X/Y detail, while larger nozzles can usually result in better layer adhesion.

Raft: An initial few layers of material that will be removed after printing, to help the main part of your print stick properly. These are rarely used but can help in certain situations.

Slicer: The software used to convert a 3D model into G-code or a 3MF file.

Skirt: A small amount of purge material that lays around the perimeter of your print on the build plate, but does not touch the print itself. This is solely to make sure your material is printing properly before starting a print but does not add any extra build plate adhesion.

Stepper Motor: Motors used to move your different axes as well as your extruder.

Supports: Temporary structures generated by the slicer software to support overhanging features of a printed object during printing. These can be thought of as scaffolding for your print.

Thermistor: A thermostat which will tell the temperature of your hotend (or possibly your build plate). It will tell your printer if you are below your set temperature or if you have reached it. A malfunctioning thermistor without proper safety software built in can be very dangerous.

Travel: This refers to when your printer is moving between parts of your print and is not actively extruding/printing.

Volumetric Speed: The maximum volume of material that the printer can extrude per unit of time, considering nozzle diameter and layer height.