About us
One shop. Two printers. One goblin.
The Vat & Nozzle is a small 3D print shop in Anniston, Alabama, built on a simple idea: every project deserves the printer that suits it best, not just the one that happens to be on the bench.
What's in a name
Why "The Vat & Nozzle"?
It's the two halves of the shop. Each one is a different way of turning a digital file into something you can hold.
The Vat
The resin printers. A vat of liquid resin is cured by UV light, one hair-thin layer at a time. This is where the detail lives: miniatures, sculpts, jewelry and anything that needs to look sharp up close.
The Nozzle
The FDM printers. A heated nozzle lays down real thermoplastic, line by line. This is where the muscle lives: functional parts, big builds, outdoor pieces and things that need to take a beating.
Meet the mascot
This is Spool.
Look closely at our logo and you'll spot him: that's the head and ears of Spool, the resident goblin of The Vat & Nozzle.
Spool lives at headquarters among the printers. He's friendly, endlessly curious and never happier than when he's tinkering, whether that's tweaking print settings, testing a new filament or watching a print rise out of the vat at two in the morning.
He is also, it must be said, a bit of a prankster. Tools wander off. Filament colors get mysteriously swapped. Tiny goblin heads have been known to turn up in unexpected places. If you find one in your order, consider yourself officially goblin-approved.
Go ahead and click on Spool wherever he's peeking on this site. He has opinions.
Goblin file: Spool
- Species
- Goblin (the friendly kind)
- Title
- Chief Tinkering Officer
- Based
- The print bench, HQ, Anniston, Alabama
- Loves
- Tinkering, perfect first layers and the hum of printers late at night
- Hates
- Spaghetti prints, clogged nozzles and empty spools (the irony is not lost on him)
- Known pranks
- Swapping filament colors, "borrowing" the flush cutters and hiding tiny goblins in prints
- Motto
- "Vat for detail, nozzle for muscle."
What we stand for
How we work
Honest advice
We'll recommend the process and material that's right for your project, even if it's the cheaper one.
Every print checked
Nothing ships until it's been cleaned up and inspected by hand. If it's not right, it gets reprinted.
Real communication
You talk directly with the people printing your project, with no ticket queues and no runaround.
Made in Alabama
Designed, printed and packed right here at home, then shipped to makers, gamers and builders across the country.
Inside HQ
The workshop
A peek at what's humming away on the bench (and what Spool keeps fiddling with).
- The Vat
Resin printers
MSLA resin printers for ultra-fine detail, backed by a wash-and-cure station so every resin part is cleaned and fully cured.
- The Nozzle
FDM printers
FDM printers set up for everything from everyday PLA to engineering filaments like ASA, nylon and carbon-fiber blends.
- The Bench
Finishing station
Where supports come off, edges get cleaned up and every piece gets its final inspection before packing.
Let's make something
Got a project in mind?
Send it our way. Spool promises to keep his hands off it. Mostly.