Best 3D Printer for Drones: How To Choose the Right Technology for UAV Manufacturing

Drones, also known as unmanned or uncrewed aerial systems (UASs), unmanned/uncrewed aerial systems (UAVs), or unmanned/uncrewed underwater systems or vehicles (UUSs or UUVs), were first introduced decades ago for defense applications, and were, at first, slightly scaled-down, fixed-wing planes that flew with a remote operator. But in the past three decades, new technological advances have led to an explosion in growth for the drone industry, and now, drones can be found in all different shapes, sizes, and capacities. 

New radio and communication technologies have led to drones with longer ranges and better real-time data. Material science innovation has created new ways of fabricating strong, lightweight drone frames. Battery technology and chip computing technologies have improved exponentially, and advances in camera lenses and transmission components mean drone operators can see the effects of all of these advances from farther away. Not to mention, the artificial intelligence boom is giving new meaning to the term ‘unmanned mission.’

These advances have created sub-industries within the drone design, manufacturing, and operation umbrella. Drones as a service (DaaS), drone racing, drone photography, drone delivery and logistics, and remote monitoring applications are all thriving industries built on the proliferation of new types of affordable, accessible drones.   

Each of these sub-applications have their own requirements. Professional drone racers require speed and frame flexibility, but don’t typically require long battery life. Drones built for agricultural surveying can be slow flying and relatively inflexible, but must be able to complete long flights and resist a range of weather conditions. 

Any drone, whether it’s used for tactical surveillance missions or Hollywood photography, requires a range of lightweight, strong, and reliable components, most likely made from several different materials. Choosing the right drone prototyping and manufacturing technology is critical. Many hobbyist drone components are mass-produced with injection molded or carbon-fiber cut components, which the pilots then customize with 3D printed additions or accessories they print or purchase inexpensively.  Large manufacturers will nearly always use 3D printing for much of their R&D work before moving to more traditional methods, though some drone manufacturers are now 3D printing end-use drone components.

This guide presents the best 3D printers for drones, comparing fused deposition modeling (FDM), stereolithography (SLA), and selective laser sintering (SLS) 3D printing technologies to find the right manufacturing solution for engineering functional, flight-ready UAV components.

For manufacturers like DJI or Skydio — those producing hundreds of thousands of the same drone models for a primarily hobbyist/consumer audience — injection molding and CNC machining carbon fiber sheets make sense as primary manufacturing methods. However, even with a drone mass-produced by injection molding, end-users like drone pilots are very often making their own small tweaks to accommodate their personal preferences for cameras, motors, mounts, and other components. 

For mid-volume manufacturers like Vector, ORQA, or Nextech, 3D printing is an integral part of the initial design process as well as the end-use manufacturing process for certain components.

At ORQA, one vibration-dampening component needed to be changed close to final production deadlines. The change would have delayed the delivery timelines and cost a significant amount to change the injection molded tooling. 

Instead, the ORQA team decided to go with SLS 3D printed TPU for end-use production. They needed several hundred TPU parts, and printed them on the Formlabs Fuse 1+ 30W SLS 3D printer in just a few days in TPU 90A powder. “With the Fuse 1+, we can get prints the same day. We don’t need to wait for changes in tooling,” says Antonio Kovac, ORQA’s Mechanical Designer. 

3D printing offers three distinct advantages for UAV manufacturing:

• Rapid customization: Engineers can rapidly iterate on frames, camera mounts, and protective guards, testing multiple designs in a single day.

• End-use quality materials: From carbon fiber reinforced nylon powders to variable durometer TPU and a range of unique, durable plastics, the range of 3D printing materials helps enable end-use drone manufacturing.

• Manufacturing agility: The high cost and lead times of tooling make any design change prohibitively expensive and time-consuming. 3D printing enables manufacturing resilience, responsiveness, and agility for a better market fit. 

• Weight optimization: Additive manufacturing enables topology optimization and complex geometries, such as internal lattice structures, which reduce weight without sacrificing strength.

• Aftermarket changes and customization: Drone pilots and operators (both hobbyist and professional) frequently need to make changes to their models — 3D printing makes it possible for anyone to customize their kit. 

When looking for the best 3D printer for drone parts, the answer depends entirely on the mechanical requirements. This section compares the best 3D printing technology options to find the right fit for your drone application.

Selecting the right 3D printing material is as important as the printer itself. Drone parts must withstand specific environmental and mechanical stressors. Some important elements to consider include:

• Impact Resistance: Drones can crash. Materials like Nylon 12 Tough Powder (SLS) or Tough 2000 Resin (SLA) can absorb energy without shattering, unlike standard brittle plastics.

• Stiffness-to-Weight Ratio: Weight is a relevant metric in flight. Nylon 11 CF Powder (SLS) offers stiffness comparable to traditional carbon fiber molding but allows for complex, optimized shapes that shave off unnecessary weight, while Rigid 10K Resin (SLA) can provide extremely smooth surface finishes for gliders and fixed-wing drones flying long-range.

• Heat Resistance: Motor mounts and battery housings generate significant heat. Standard PLA (FDM) often warps or melts under these conditions. Temperature-resistant SLA resins such as Rigid 10K Resin or High Temp Resin, or SLS Nylon powders, maintain dimensional accuracy even under heavy thermal load.

See below how industry leaders use Formlabs printers to solve drone engineering challenges.

For professional manufacturing and high-performance parts, the Fuse 1+ 30W SLS 3D printer is the top choice due to its ability to print durable, lightweight nylon, carbon-fiber reinforced nylon, and TPU parts. For smooth fuselage parts and glider or fixed-wing drones, an SLA printer like Form 4 with Rigid 10K Resin is relied upon by some of the industry’s leading manufacturers. 

• Best for low to mid-volume end-use manufacturing of strong, durable components: Fuse 1+ 30W and Nylon 12 Tough Powder

• Best for soft mounts, spacers, and vibration-dampening components: Fuse 1+ 30W and TPU 90A Powder

• Best for fuselage components and smooth surfaces: Form 4 and Rigid 10K Resin

• Best for larger housings and big parts: Form 4L

You can, but for long-term performance and durability, you should probably 3D print a propeller mold instead. Propellers have extremely thin and precisely calibrated geometries. Even highly accurate printers like the Form Series or the Fuse Series can struggle to produce parts that thin without any warp or creep over time — especially under the extreme forces generated during flight. Prototyping propeller designs will definitely work, but end-use propellers are still best made by injection molding.

Companies like ORQA are designing new drone propellers and using Form 4 and Rigid 10K Resin to create end-use injection molding tooling for the final propeller. 
 

This video from ORQA shows their injection molding process using 3D printed injection molds for drone antennae, but the same process can be used to 3D print injection molds for propellers as well. 

SLS printers, such as Fuse 1+ 30W, particularly using Nylon 12 Tough Powder, offer the best strength-to-weight ratio. FDM printers using reinforced filaments are a secondary option for hobbyists, though they lack the geometric freedom of SLS.

The benefits of 3D printing for UAV manufacturing are faster design iteration, customization for mission requirements, and cost efficiency for lower-volume production.