Last January, the 3D printing community’s favorite benchmarking boat sailed into controversy when Printables.com began enforcing the 3DBenchy's original licensing terms. Widely used to test 3D printers and filament alike, the Benchy was released by Creative Tools in 2018 under the Creative Commons BY-ND 4.0 license. This license prohibits the distribution of derivative works, ensuring the model’s precise dimensions remain untouched. Creative Tools had been turning a blind eye to the massive amount of technically illegal remixes, allowing the community to have fun modding boats into memes, game tokens, and art.
Creative Tools was acquired by NTI Group in 2024 and unwittingly became the new owner of the popular little tugboat. When an undisclosed third party started reporting the remixes license violation to Printables, people immediately assumed the new owners were flexing their muscles – and intellectual property rights – to ruin everyone’s fun.
NTI Group acquired Creative Tools to expand its presence in the gaming, film, and visual effects (VFX) industries. The company said in a press release it had no interest in monetizing 3DBenchy and did not ask Printables to remove the files.
After seeing how important the file was to the 3D printing community, the company worked with 3D Benchy’s original designers, Daniel Norée and Paulo Kiefe, to transition the model to the public domain, ensuring it remains accessible and moddable for everyone.
As a public domain, the 3DBenchy can be printed, altered, and shared files without the need to credit Creative Tools. It also means anyone can sell their Benchy prints and modded files or incorporate the boat into new projects.
The website www.3dbenchy.com has been restored, and the 3D Benchy social media accounts were turned over to Kiefe and Norée. The boat’s new guardians have agreed to keep the file publicly available to all.
3D Benchy will turn 10 on April 9, 2025. Kiefe and Norée hinted at a special surprise to mark the occasion, and ask that Benchy’s fans “keep your periscopes locked onto 3DBenchy.com” for updates.
