WORKSHOP GUIDE
Keep this guide beside the studio. Start with one small assembly, then increase complexity.
In Find the right fit · guided test, generate sample clearances when available, print them, and apply the allowance that fits your printer and material.
Blue: body. Green: face. Amber: removable cap or back. These schematics explain assembly; the live cross-section uses your dimensions.
Smaller letter faces fit inside a wider body with shared space for LEDs and wires.
Smaller letter-shaped faces fit into a wider body. Printed inserts have hollow skirts; print face-down. There is no continuous diffuser or mask. Face height can be recessed or raised. The skirt locates the insert; it is not a click lock.
Printed face and inner collar slide into the body. Test fit before use.
Body back-down; front face-down with its collar growing upwards. Calibrate the collar gap. Friction fit only; no snap latch. Contour lightboxes also have a separate bonded mask.
Insert the face, then secure it. No removable rear cover.
Body back-down; face flat. The face rests on an internal ledge. A sliding fit alone does not lock it in place; plan retention and test your actual assembly.
Frame and bonded face lift off the closed-back body.
Print the frame lip-down. Bond the face to its lip, then fit the frame over the body. The removable skirt relies on friction; calibrate before bonding.
Bond the face to the shell; remove the tray for rear access.
Print the shell front-down and rear tray floor-down. Bond the face into the shell. The rear tray locates inside the shell; test fit and retention.
A printed cap overlaps the cut acrylic face.
Print the body and cap separately. Cut the acrylic from the supplied outline. The cap overlaps the acrylic. Inner openings may create separate cap rings.
Print front-down; attach a separate rear cover.
Print front and walls together, front-down. A separate rear cover closes the body. Choose screw fastening or a calibrated friction collar. Not supported for lightboxes.
Open Wiring & mounting and choose Add wire passages. LED-strip placement, strip profiles and consumption calculations are hidden for the first release.
Blue marks show existing desk-base passages. Leave clearance for the actual cable or connector. Rear entries do not create sidewall tunnels between separate letters. Adding wire passages does not calculate a lighting layout or electrical design.
In Wiring & mounting, choose a desk base and Without screws · tight-fit feet and cover. Adjust the base size or position if needed. Start with the foot/socket and cover samples in the ZIP. Zero allowance is nominal contact; positive is looser and negative is tighter. The base must contain all sockets. Check tipping and retention with the completed sign, and support the base when carrying it.
In Size → Split a large design, select butterfly keys or integral male/female dovetails. Current support is limited to compatible connected bodies with printed Separate front or Inset lettering, split left to right. Desk bases and cut-acrylic split faces are not supported.
| File | Use it for | Remember |
|---|---|---|
| .msletter.json | Reopen and edit your design in the studio | Use Save design and Open design. This is not a printer file. |
| Multi-plate 3MF | All printable production parts arranged in a Bambu Studio project | Open as a project. Select the real printer and filaments. Review every plate. |
| Production ZIP / STLs | Individual parts for your preferred slicer, plus instructions | STL is unitless: import in millimetres. Select the parts needed for your construction. |
| SVG / DXF | Cut acrylic outlines, when a cutting method is selected | These are outlines, not machine toolpaths. Apply measured kerf/tool compensation once in CAM. |
| Fit / joint samples | Small tests before a full print | Use the same material and print settings as the finished assembly. |
The multi-plate file excludes acrylic cutting files, fit tests and assembly documents. Keep the ZIP too when you need those. Downloads do not contain printer-ready G-code or a saved editable design.
Wait for the status beneath the model title. Complex imports take longer. Try a simple bundled letter; if it works, inspect the imported outlines and small details. Enable browser hardware acceleration if WebGL is unavailable. The last valid model may remain while an edit is calculated; it is not the new result.
Use closed, filled outlines. Convert text and strokes to paths in your vector editor. Remove embedded bitmap images, filters and unsupported effects. Read the specific import diagnostics. The current limits include a 1 MB file and a 40,000 sampled-point budget. Reduce genuinely excessive detail without deleting necessary holes.
A locating ledge or skirt is not necessarily a lock. Check the construction description: some faces require adhesive, a retaining cap or another attachment. Do not assume a friction fit remains secure after repeated removal or heating.
The current combination may trap removable parts, lack a supported export, or leave too little space for a joint. Read the explanation beside the control. Splitting currently works only left to right and requires supported printed-face constructions.
Prepare full-detail files first and resolve any highlighted errors. For multi-plate output, arrange the plates. Check the browser’s download list (Ctrl+J on Windows). Changing the design invalidates the previous files; prepare them again. Use Feedback to download a diagnostic report if it still fails.
Open the ZIP and check the parts list. Printed faces are separate unless the construction integrates the face and walls. CNC/laser faces export as cutting outlines. For a lightbox, choose the combined printed face stack or its separate alternatives. Inspect every plate of a multi-plate project.
They are hidden for the first release while the layout planner is improved. Wire-passage placement remains available. Choose and position your lighting separately, then test it with your actual diffuser and materials.
Yes. Use Save design at the top of the studio to download a .msletter.json file, then Open design to reopen it. It includes text or SVG artwork, settings, wire-hole positions, glyph adjustments and any uploaded custom font. Share custom fonts only when their licence permits it. Opening a file can be undone. There is no cloud saving or automatic backup; keep your downloaded file. The browser may warn before leaving with unsaved changes, but this is not recovery from a crash. Fabrication ZIPs and 3MFs cannot be reopened as editable projects.
Use Feedback in the studio. Describe what you expected, what happened, and the steps to reproduce it. For print results, add printer, filament, layer height and whether the fit was tight, loose or correct.
Review and download the report, then attach it when sharing with the beta organiser. Nothing is submitted automatically. Artwork and screenshots are only shared if you add them yourself. Central feedback collection is not connected in this private build.