Blog

  • Built locally, assisted by AI. Runs Without the Cloud.

    I know I’ve been a little quiet here lately, aside from a small tap-handle batch release and the occasional update. Life, kids, work, and a side hustle all compete for the same limited supply of time. Some projects move forward in whatever hours are left over. This has been one of them.

    Rewind more than a year and a half, and I was working through an idea for GarageCraft3d: a customer-facing customization system that could take someone’s tap-handle design choices and move them toward manufacturing without manually rebuilding the same workflow for every order. More importantly, I wanted that work to happen locally, on hardware I could bring to a farmers market or maker event, without depending on the cloud.

    That idea is now running on the actual kiosk hardware. The setup is a Raspberry Pi 4B with a touchscreen connected over a local network to an NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano Super with 8GB of memory and a 256GB high-speed SSD. The Pi provides the customer interface, while the Jetson handles the processing behind it.

    The customization and job-processing workflow runs completely offline, with no cloud dependencies.

    That is the part I want to emphasize. AI-assisted development does not have to result in a cloud-dependent product. I used AI to help develop and troubleshoot the software, but the software does not need to send every customer interaction back to a large, remotely hosted model to perform its job.

    Building the system and running the system are different workloads. During development, there are requirements to work through, code to write, integration problems to solve, and things to test. During a customer order, the task is much more specific: collect their choices, process the customization, generate a proof, and organize the job for the next manufacturing step. I do not need the kiosk to solve every possible problem. I need it to handle this particular job well.

    During the latest workshop test, I entered a customization through the Pi touchscreen and submitted it. The job reached the Jetson and generated a design proof in the production queue. After all the starts, stops, and late-night troubleshooting, seeing that handoff work on the intended hardware was a significant milestone.

    For a farmers market or maker event, this is a practical requirement. I do not want someone’s ability to customize a product to depend on venue Wi-Fi, a phone hotspot, or a remote service being available. The customer is standing at the booth. The equipment is at the booth. The processing can happen there, too.

    The purpose is to make custom ordering easier for the customer while reducing the repetitive work behind it. Someone should be able to explore the options, enter their wording, and see a proof without needing to understand the software or manufacturing process underneath. On my side, I want those choices carried forward accurately instead of repeatedly transferring them between tools.

    Screenshot of a digital interface titled 'Welcome to the Workbench' offering options for creating tap handles and laser engraving. The interface includes prompts like 'What will you make today?' and 'Choose your starting point.'

    We are now building out the product-specific customization around our established tap-handle styles, including their actual usable geometry, artwork placement, text, and font options. That work connects the interface to the physical products it is meant to support as we prepare for market deployment. Oh and I am working on direct to laser engrave workflows at the same time…

    There is a longer-term website application here as well. I want to bring the same product logic into online customization, while keeping the booth capable of operating independently. An online ordering channel should expand where customers can reach us, not become a requirement for serving the person standing in front of us.

    For GC3D, this is about making a small manufacturing operation more capable with hardware sized for the work. AI helped with development. The actual job runs locally.

    A year and a half later, that is the update worth sharing: a Raspberry Pi, a Jetson, and a useful workflow that does not need the cloud to get the job done and is one heck of an upgrade over my old google forms intake pipeline…

    Infographic showcasing the GarageCraft 3D process for AI-powered tap handle creation, including user input, local AI processing, text and image generation, SVG output, and final 3D model printing.


    Cheers,
    -Nick@GC3D

  • Five Taps. Two Brands. One Noble Takeover at MAMÓN.

    Five Taps. Two Brands. One Noble Takeover at MAMÓN.

    Some projects make more sense once they are installed.

    On Saturday, August 29, Noble Ale Works took over five taps at MAMÓN Hillside Eatery in Foothill Ranch. GarageCraft3d designed and produced the five-handle set that tied the brewery, the account, and the event together.

    This was not five copies of the same generic handle.

    It was one coordinated installation.

    Each handle uses its own colorway, but the geometry, shield, linework, and hardware remain consistent. Individually, each handle marks a tap. Together, the five handles turn the draft tower into one account-specific branded display.

    Directly above them, the board carried five Noble pours: Purple People Eaters, Man’s Milk, Downer the Foo, Big Whig, and Wheat the Hoppers.

    One visual system. That was the assignment.

    A tap handle should do more than occupy the threaded stud above a faucet. It should support the pour, carry the brewery’s identity, fit the account, survive actual service, and remain readable from across the room.

    That is where key-account-specific manufacturing becomes useful. A brewery does not always need one hundred identical handles. Sometimes it needs five handles for one restaurant, one event, and one specific deployment.

    Traditional production models can make that quantity awkward.

    Small-batch additive manufacturing is built for it. Design the system. Validate the fit. Set the colorways. Produce the exact quantity. Install it. Put it to work. That is the payoff.

    Big thanks to Steve and the Noble Ale Works team, along with Evangelo and his awesome team at MAMÓN Hillside Eatery, for giving GarageCraft3d the opportunity to build something specific for the account instead of forcing a generic answer onto the problem.

    Craft meets Craft.

    Need one handle for a special account, five for an event, or a full production run? GarageCraft3d designs and produces the quantity the job actually requires.

  • Production Update: Mission Ready Brewing, RSM

    The latest batch is complete and officially mission ready.

    This run included a full set of custom GarageCraft3d tap handles featuring Mission Ready Brewing’s new branding, along with custom coaster holders designed specifically for their taproom. The holders accommodate their standard round coasters because apparently even the coasters needed upgraded equipment.

    Everything was modeled, printed, assembled, and produced in-house here in the GarageCraft3d late-night garage.

    Mission Ready Brewing is a family-owned brewery and restaurant in Rancho Santa Margarita focused on craft beer, food, community, and supporting military members and first responders. Give them a follow at @missionreadybrewing and stop by to check out the new handles in service.

    Ill-prepared. Under-equipped. Always hydrated.

    #GarageCraft3d #MissionReadyBrewing #RanchoSantaMargarita #CustomTapHandles #CraftBeer #3DPrinting #AdditiveManufacturing #MadeInOrangeCounty #BreweryBranding #LateNightGarage

  • Here’s to you, America.

    From the GC3D team to all you patriotic people out there:

    Happy America Day.

    Here’s to freedom, family, cold drinks, loud fireworks, and the beautiful chaos that keeps this place interesting.

    Stay safe. Stay grateful. Stay American.

  • From “Here’s My Vision” to “Ready for Production”

    Client: “Here’s my vision.”

    GC3D: “Done. Does this meet your intent?”

    That’s what 48 total hours can do.

    Can art literally taken off of a can… The direction was clear. From there it was model cleanup, color matching, DFAM adjustments, print validation, and test units.

    The goal was simple: take the Aim for the Fences IPA artwork and turn it into a physical tap handle that still felt like the original brand.

    Custom 3D printed Noble Ale Works Aim for the Fences IPA tap handles shown next to the original can art used for color matching and design reference.

    Not just close.

    Intent matched.

    Garage-built. Production-minded. Ready for the taproom.

  • The Best Is Yet to Come

    Every now and then, things line up in a way that makes you stop and laugh a little.

    Earlier this week I was sitting down to draft some cold outreach, trying to make the next connection for GarageCraft3d, when a friend unknowingly made the introduction from the other side at almost the exact same time. Before I could even finish the outreach, the door had already opened.

    That turned into a great conversation with Brandon over at O’Shea Brewing, a new concept, and a same-night draft for a rebuild of his brewery: ROM and their current tap handle. It is still early, still in the adjustment phase, but that is the fun part of this work. A logo, the existing handle, an idea, a rough direction, and then the first version starts to become something real. A snapshot of the existing taken earlier this afternoon and a digital recreation the same night.

    Big shout-out to Brandon and the team at O’Shea Brewing. If you are in the area, stop by and check them out. They have an awesome selection of beers to go, homebrewing supplies, and an upstairs taproom that is absolutely worth visiting. It is the kind of local spot that reminds you how much craft, community, and small business overlap when the right people are in the room. They will always remain my go to spot for recharging the CO2 cylinder.

    That has been the story lately.

    GarageCraft3D started with custom 3D printed tap handles, and that is still very much the core lane. Breweries, taprooms, kegerators, beer releases, one-off handles, small production runs, and brand-specific designs are still the heartbeat of what I am building. But the more conversations I have, the more obvious it becomes that this is not limited to beer.

    The same process applies almost anywhere: take the artwork, the brand, the label, the inside joke, the event, the business, or the story, and turn it into something physical.

    Something people can hold.

    Something that sits on a bar, a counter, a shelf, a booth, or a display and makes someone ask, “Where did you get that?”

    There are a lot of things in motion right now. Some are still too early to share. Some are just sketches, conversations, and “what if” ideas. Some are moving a little faster than expected. That is usually how the best projects start.

    What I can say is this: the next phase of GarageCraft3D is not just about making more things. It is about building better connections between local craft, local businesses, local makers, and the people who support them.

    Craft meets craft.

    Sometimes that means a brewery and a tap handle.

    Sometimes that means a friend making the intro while you are still typing the email.

    Either way, the best is yet to come.

  • This Is What Micromanufacturing Looks Like

    Every now and then, someone sends you a picture that makes the whole thing feel real.

    A friend and close confidant recently sent me a photo of one of our GarageCraft3d-produced StationCraft tap handles out in the wild. Not staged on a bench. Not fresh off the printer. Not sitting in the shop waiting for hardware.

    A beer tap handle labeled 'STATION CRAFT' with a logo that features a dollar sign and a leaf, flanked by two other tap handles.

    Actually deployed.

    On the line.

    At Mamon Hillside Eatery here in Foothill Ranch, CA (Highly recommend it!)

    That is one of the coolest parts of this entire process. You build something in a small shop (or garage in this case), hand it off to a brewery, and then one day someone sends you a picture of it doing exactly what it was made to do.

    Coincidentally a few days prior, we wrapped up a full production run of that same StationCraft handle, ready for deployment. A table full of finished parts, all designed, produced, assembled, and prepared through a small-scale manufacturing workflow that continues to prove what modern micromanufacturing can actually do.

    A pile of black and green bar tap handles with the word 'STATION' prominently displayed, along with a pink tumbler and snacks in the background.

    This is not mass production in the traditional sense.

    This is not overseas tooling, long lead times, large minimum order quantities, and “we’ll get back to you in eight weeks.”

    This is small-batch, brand-specific manufacturing. Fast iteration. Practical design. Additive manufacturing. Hand assembly. Direct relationship-based production.

    It is building what the customer actually needs, in the quantity they actually need, without forcing them into an outdated production model.

    That is the lane GarageCraft3d is building in.

    For breweries, tap handles are more than functional hardware. They are part of the customer experience. They sit at eye level. They represent the beer before the beer is even poured. They help a brand stand out on a crowded tap wall, whether that tap wall is inside the brewery or out at a local restaurant pouring their beer.

    Seeing a GC3D-produced StationCraft handle deployed at Mamon Hillside Eatery, all the while finishing another full production run of that same design, is exactly the kind of full-circle moment that keeps this moving forward.

    Small shop.

    Real products.

    Real customers.

    This is what micromanufacturing looks like.

    If you are in the area, I highly recommend stopping by Mamon Hillside Eatery. And of course, if you are near San Clemente or Dana Point, stop by Station Craft Brewing and grab one of their refreshing West Coast pales.

    Craft meets Craft.

  • Station Craft Tap Handles: Production Run and New Key Account Concept Work

    We are back into production with Station Craft.

    This handle design was already proofed during the original production run, which is the beauty of getting a model fully dialed in. Once the form, fit, and function are validated, future batches become much more straightforward.

    Load the file.
    Load the colors.
    Press start.

    From there, the printer gets to work and the production run moves forward.

    A hand holding two similar markers showcasing the word 'STATION' with dollar signs and a craft logo, displayed against a computer screen.

    The standard Station Craft handle has already gone through the important checks: brand layout, color placement, tap fitment, print orientation, hardware mounting, and overall durability. That means this new batch is not starting from zero. It is a fresh production run of an already proven handle.

    While those handles are cooking, we are turning attention toward the next layer of brewery support: key account-specific tap handles.

    For Station Craft, that means beginning CAD modeling for an Irvine Lanes concept built around “Bowling Blonde Ale” or “Bowlin’ Blonde Ale.” The idea is simple: create a client-specific art piece for one of the brewery’s accounts that just happens to pour beer when pulled.

    That is where this type of production workflow starts to get really interesting.

    A brewery may need one custom handle for a special account, five handles for a location rollout, or twenty-five handles for a broader placement. The goal is to keep that process flexible. No massive minimum order quantity. No unnecessary production gatekeeping. The real lead time is the CAD modeling, design review, and back-and-forth needed to make sure the handle fits the account, the beer, and the brewery’s brand.

    Once the design is approved, it becomes another production-ready file.

    Form. Fit. Function.

    That is the workflow we are building around: repeatable production for proven designs, and flexible custom modeling for the accounts that deserve something more specific.

    Check out Station Craft in Dana Point and San Clemente, or visit them online at:

    https://stationcraft.com

    Craft meets Craft.

  • Noble Ale Works: 46 Handles Out the Door

    Some production runs deserve to be stamped in the books.

    This one is officially there.

    GarageCraft3d just wrapped a full production run for Noble Ale Works, totaling 46 custom tap handles across three different designs:

    Three colorful beer tap handles from Noble Ale Works, featuring logos and names including 'Noble,' 'HangLoose,' and 'Big Whig West Coast IPA'.

    Qty 20 Flamingle
    A bright, electric seltzer handle that immediately brings pink lemonade energy. This one has that same loud, refreshing visual punch as an In-N-Out pink lemonade on a hot day. The cyan and pink combination makes it impossible to miss across the bar.

    Qty 20 Noble Generic
    A clean, high-contrast Noble-branded handle that really pops in black, white, and gold. This design keeps the brewery identity front and center while giving the handle enough visual weight to stand on its own.

    Qty 6 Big Whig
    A simple nod of the hat to the can art. This one stayed more restrained by design, using the existing branding language and turning it into a physical tap marker without overcomplicating the form.

    A table displaying various beer tap handles, including pink, black, and blue designs with 'Noble Ale Works' branding.

    What makes this run worth documenting is not just the quantity. It is the timeline.

    From concept, prototype, feedback, design refinement, color testing, production, and final output, this run came together in roughly a two-week production sprint. That is the GarageCraft3D workflow in motion: take established brewery artwork, translate it into a physical product, refine it until it works, and then move it into real production.

    This was not a single prototype sitting on a bench.

    This was a full batch. Multiple designs. Multiple color systems. Real production constraints. Real delivery expectations. And at the end of it, 46 finished handles out the door.

    The lineup photo tells the story well. Flamingle on the left, loud and bright. Noble Generic in the center, bold and high contrast. Big Whig on the right, clean and direct. Three different design approaches, all tied back to the same brewery identity.

    Side note worth saying: Steve at Noble Ale Works has been fantastic to work with. Straightforward, collaborative, and genuinely supportive of the process. That matters. Good people make good projects move faster, and this was one of those projects where the working relationship made the production side that much better.

    Steve and the Noble Ale Works team have been fantastic to work with, and the beers on tap do not disappoint. The seltzer especially is worth checking out. If you are local to Anaheim or looking to support them directly, check out their beers, merch, and current offerings at https://www.noblealeworks.com/

    For a small garage-based manufacturing operation, this is exactly the kind of run that proves the model works. Local brewery artwork becomes tangible bar-top branding. Custom does not have to mean slow. Small batch does not have to mean inconsistent. And production does not have to lose the character of the original concept.

    This Noble Ale Works run was a strong reminder of what GarageCraft3D is being built to do:

    Craft meets craft.

    Design it. Prototype it. Refine it. Produce it. Get it out the door.

    Forty-six handles later, this one is officially in the books.

  • Swatches, Colors, Testing, Refinement, Production

    That is where the Noble Ale Works project is right now.

    Both the Flamingle handles and the generic Noble Ale Works handles are currently in production, and this batch has been a great example of what the custom tap handle process actually looks like behind the scenes.

    It starts with the artwork and the general direction, but it does not stop there. Color choices need to be tested. Contrast needs to be checked. Small text needs to stay readable. Brand elements need to hold up at tap handle scale. The handle still needs to feel clean, intentional, and durable once it comes off the printer.

    For the Flamingle handles, the focus has been on the brighter seasonal look. Blue body, pink accents, flamingo elements, and enough contrast to keep the design readable from across the bar.

    For the generic Noble Ale Works handles, the goal is different. These are more of a clean house-branded handle that can work across different beers without being tied to one specific release. The black, white, gold, blue, and pink test pieces helped compare how the Noble mark reads across different color combinations and different visual styles.

    That is the part people do not always see with custom 3D printed tap handles. It is not just “press print and hope.” It is test, compare, adjust, repeat, and then produce.

    The gallery below shows part of that process. Swatches, color checks, production samples, and finished pieces all moving through the same refinement loop.

    Refinement = tuning to production.

    Lets go.

    -Nick