3D Printing — Materials, Calibration & Functional Parts
Curated (intermediate): go past 'it printed' to 'it holds'. Learn to pick the right filament (PLA / PETG / ABS / TPU), calibrate your machine (flow, temperature, retraction), and orient and fill a part so it survives real load — then prove it in Forge.
3D Printer Calibration Revolutionised — Step by Step to Better Print Quality
Teaching Tech · video · ~1h · Free · English
Why we picked it: The single most-referenced free calibration guide in the hobby (280k+ views, ~16k likes) and consistently top-rated on Class Central. Its companion g-code generator builds temperature, flow, and retraction test towers for your exact machine and filament in seconds — so you don't just watch, you calibrate. We pair the video with the study guide below, which extends it into material selection (PLA / PETG / ABS / TPU) and designing parts that survive real load.
- frame / mechanical checks before you calibrate
- PID autotune for a stable hotend temperature
- extruder E-steps (extrusion accuracy)
- slicer flow / extrusion multiplier
- temperature towers per filament
- retraction tuning to kill stringing
- first-layer squish
- why per-material calibration matters
Study guide
Open the study guide →1 study section · what to focus on + prove it in Forge, then take the check.
Forge practical
Build it in Forge Design · 3 checks · auto-verified from your design
Start the practical →