Printing gigantic or life-sized models in one go is almost impossible for most 3D printers. But with these techniques, you can print them no matter how big or small your 3D printer is.

Printing gigantic or life-sized models in one go is almost impossible for most 3D printers. But with these techniques, you can print them no matter how big or small your 3D printer is.

Regardless of whether you want to scale up your model or bring it to 1:1 life-size, you might encounter a hard physical issue: the build volume you have just isn’t big enough.

Don’t be deterred if you’ve maxed out your axes, as even massive projects can be made with a standard desktop printer. Simple techniques, such as splitting your models, cutting them up, or editing them directly in a 3D modeling software, will make them printable on most 3D printers.

Of course, if you really want to nail your project, you can always use a 3D printing service, many of which offer large-format printing and professional operators.

When you’re looking for your favorite scale model online, try to find a readily-split model. Many designers upload these alternate versions if they know that most printers aren’t big enough.

A split model is an uploaded set of STLs ready to be printed part by part instead of all in one go. Most of these models go together perfectly when assembled, and some are even cut into pieces because it helps with printability. These files will save you time since you don’t have to split the files yourself.

Some STLs uploaded online are modeled as multipart STLs. These kind of files are essential in multicolor or multi-material printing, but they’re useful in printing large models, too.