Where Do You Find 3D Models, What Software Prints Them, and Can You Sell Prints of Free Downloads?

Published September 23, 2026 · By the Laser Lineup editors

Summary

You find models on sharing sites such as MakerWorld and Printables, then run them through a slicer like OrcaSlicer to turn them into print instructions for your printer and filament. A free download doesn't automatically let you sell what you print. That depends on the license the creator chose for that model, and MakerWorld also runs a paid program where creators sell commercial licenses that let buyers sell physical prints.

Model sites and slicers

MakerWorld and Printables are where creators upload models and you download them. Printables hosts print files (.gcode) and 3D model files (.stl, .3mf, .obj, and .amf).

A slicer cuts the model into layers and works out the toolpaths, temperatures, and speeds your printer needs. OrcaSlicer is a free, open-source slicer for FDM printers that runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux. It imports STL, 3MF, STEP, OBJ, AMF, SVG, and other formats, and exports G-code or a 3MF that carries the print settings. It grew out of Bambu Studio and PrusaSlicer.

Selling prints

Printables' terms say creators publish models under a Creative Commons, GNU, or BSD license, and that Prusa Research, which runs the site, doesn't grant users any license itself. Anyone who downloads a model can use it within the terms of the license the creator picked, and a creator can't revoke that license after publishing.

MakerWorld also has creators pick a license, including Creative Commons options, when they upload. Separately, its Commercial License Membership lets creators sell monthly subscriptions (priced by the creator, from $3 to $300 a month) that give buyers a commercial license and the right to sell physical prints. MakerWorld says it doesn't grant any license itself; the license comes straight from the creator. Check the license on each model you download before selling prints of it; none of this is legal advice.

How metal 3D printing works

One common way to 3D print metal is powder bed fusion. As the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) describes it, a high-power laser or electron beam melts and fuses layers of powdered material such as metal, repeating the process hundreds or thousands of times, and the leftover powder is removed at the end. NIST's own research machine is a 400-watt laser system that can build parts from stainless steel, aluminum, titanium alloy, nickel alloy, and cobalt-chrome powders.

Search results for "metal 3D printer" or "3D laser printer" include machines of this kind. A desktop FDM printer melts plastic filament through a nozzle, so the material and the heat source are both different.

Sources

Specs and prices are as published on these pages on the date above and can change; check the manufacturer or retailer before you buy.