The Ultimaker 2 Goes On Quite the Adventure—Making a Perfect 3D Printed Trumpet in Transit

Musicians are a picky, picky group when it comes to their instruments. And indeed they like to make innumerable changes and customizations to pickups, pegs, bows, strings, valves, mouthpieces, and more. With the advent of 3D printing, you’d think many who play would be jumping on the bandwagon to start making their own ukuleles, violins, guitars, and more—but this is a rather suspicious lot when it comes to changing their melodic formulas for success. What is undeniably enticing is the ability to make all those aforementioned changes, as well as new designs that could offer new acoustics—as well as simply getting a whole lot of attention.

With this, we’ve now seen many variations on fabrication of instruments now, from futuristic violins to electric guitars all the way to the world’s tiniest 3D printed orchestra, but leave it to a master marketing plan to come up with something like the 3D printed trumpet printed in a most unusual way. A trumpet, you say? Whatever is so special about that in today’s world of 3D printed everything? Well, before you turn the page, consider that this one did not exist when it was put into the box.

A recent commercial for PostNL went above and beyond, grabbing the attention of consumers when they brought 3D printing into play. Showing, by the way, just how mainstream 3D printing has become in that they expect everyone to understand what is happening in the short ad, PostNL teamed up with Ultimaker for depicting a box being sent from one destination to another as a 3D printer whirred away inside, making a trumpet from beginning to end. This is not just a great ad for PostNL of course, but also Ultimaker—for everyone who might be thinking of buying a machine. While you should be considering having your mail delivered posthaste, what you might be thinking instead is, “Hey I really want one of those 3D printers—and while we’re at it—one of those cool trumpets you just made, too!”

Joris van Tubergen

PostNL is a Dutch company known for their premier postal services in the Netherlands. To figure out this stunt, they consulted with Joris van Tubergen of the Netherlands—a designer, inventor, and expert in 3D printing.

We’re not exactly sure what power source they used in the making of this commercial, but indeed the Ultimaker 2 is packed carefully into its box as it is putting down the first layers of a trumpet design. The journey is offered for viewers in a commercial presented like a mini-movie and titled, ‘The Sound of Delivery.’ We aren’t sure who is presented in a better light in the ad as the box is trundled about, whizzed around in a massive mail system, and jostled into vans—all without disturbing the print, which went off without a hitch, producing quite a thing of beauty—in aesthetics and sound.

 “The sound is so incredible that many people don’t believe it is the real sound from the 3D printed trumpet,” said Joris van Tubergen.

While the packing job would seem to have a lot to do with the outcome, surely it’s not recommended to be picking up your printer, moving it at a variety of angles, and taking it away from the comfort zone of the desktop in such an extreme adventure.

This is one of the most entertaining commercials you’ll see though—and as the recipient unpacks the printer and plays the trumpet at the end, you can’t help but join in the party with a chuckle and a toetap. This is some great marketing—and a 3D printer with remarkable calibration! What did you think of this commercial? Discuss in the 3D Printed Trumpet During Delivery forum over at 3DPB.com.