3D Printing Daily — Sunday, 22 February 2026

🔧 Firmware & Software

Quiet weekend on the firmware front. The OrcaSlicer 2.3.2 Beta released earlier this week continues to gain traction with its per-feature flow control and ironing fixes — if you have not tried it yet, the ability to tune flow rates independently for outer walls, infill, and supports is genuinely useful for eliminating that wrinkled look on thin-layer prints.

Bambu Lab also pushed a minor Bambu Studio update addressing some AMS reliability issues reported after the recent authentication changes. If you are running LAN-only mode, this one is worth grabbing.

🖨️ New Hardware & Tech

Proximal Sound Printing (PSP) — Researchers at Concordia University have developed a new 3D printing technique that uses focused ultrasound waves to directly print microstructures onto soft polymers like silicone (PDMS). The technique achieves 10x better resolution than previous sound-based methods and uses 4x less power. This opens new possibilities for microfluidic devices, lab-on-a-chip systems, and soft electronics — materials that are notoriously difficult to print with heat or light-based methods.

Venom: 71-Day Drone — Divergent Technologies and Mach Industries have demonstrated an autonomous strike aircraft called Venom that went from concept to flight-ready prototype in just 71 days. The airframe — wings, fuselage, skins, and control surfaces — was 3D printed as monolithic assemblies using Divergent Adaptive Production System (DAPS). This is not just a speed record; it is a demonstration of how AM can collapse traditional multi-hundred-part assemblies into unified structures, enabling what the US Department of War calls affordable mass.

🌟 Print of the Day

Uncle Jessy printed a Simpsons mashup model on the new Bambu Lab H2C — the high-speed printer Bambu quietly released. The model, from Nostalgic 3D Models, showcases the H2C's ability to handle detailed, multi-part prints at speed. Always fun to see pop-culture prints making their way through the latest hardware.

🤖 AI & Generative Design

Divergent's work on Venom demonstrates how AI-driven design + AM can accelerate hardware development to software speed. The company's DAPS platform uses generative design to optimize structures for additive manufacturing, then prints them directly — no tooling, no multi-part assemblies. This is the same tech behind the Czinger 21C hypercar, now applied to defense drones.

🔥 Community Buzz

Electromagnetic Absorber Filament — Telemeter Electronic has launched a new 3D printable filament called MW-PLA that absorbs radar frequencies in the 76–81 GHz automotive radar band (also covering 50–100 GHz millimeter wave). This is not just a material — it is design freedom. You can print radar-absorbing components with variable wall thicknesses and infill densities to tune electromagnetic attenuation. Prints on standard FDM machines at 230°C nozzle, 60°C bed. Useful for anyone working on autonomous vehicle sensor testing or RF engineering.

Ender 3 Still Kicking — Filament Friday revisited fixing common Ender 3 issues this week. With so many people picking up old Enders for free or cheap, the classic budget printer refuses to die. CHEP's guide covers bed leveling fixes, extruder upgrades, and firmware tweaks to bring an 8-year-old design back to life.

📌 Quick Fixes

• Stringing on Bambu printers — If you are seeing stringing after the recent firmware updates, try increasing retraction distance by 0.2–0.4mm in OrcaSlicer and enabling wipe on retraction. The new flow control features in OrcaSlicer 2.3.2 can also help tune per-feature flow rates.
• First layer adhesion issues — Clean your PEI sheet with isopropyl alcohol. If that fails, a light scuff with 600-grit sandpaper followed by a thorough clean often restores grip.
• AMS not detecting filament — The recent Bambu Studio update includes fixes. Also check that RFID tags are not damaged and that the spool is seated correctly in the bay.
• Layer shifts on high-speed prints — Check belt tension and reduce max acceleration by 10–20% in your printer's motion settings. Speed is great, but missed steps ruin prints.

That's your Sunday roundup. Tomorrow we will be watching for any news from Formlabs and Prusa, both of whom have been quiet this week. If you spot something we missed, drop it in the comments or reach out on Discord.