Despite constantly wishing for it (and even naming my blog after it), printing objects in metal is not possible on the sort of 3D printer I’ve built. But i.materialise.com has much more money than me, a much bigger R & D budget, and much more expensive printers. They can print stuff for us in BRONZE!
I can design something in free software (Blender, OpenSCAD, FreeCAD, or TinkerCAD, for example), iteratively print prototypes in plastic on my printer, and then send the perfected digital model to i.materialise for them to print for me in bronze! This is just awesome.
Check out the announcement on i.materialise’s blog, and especially look at the print of Whystler’s ‘Tiki Chess Queen’. Magic. I wonder what their prints look like in the unpolished state?
It is really awesome! Check out the fill line-up from ideation to printout: https://tinkercad.com/users/8myrWtpgXvG.