The relevance of the work is determined by a fundamentally new direction of 3D printing in the manufacture of ship models for hydrodynamic testing. In this paper, we study the towing drag of a model of a small boat manufactured using additive three-dimensional printing technologies. Based on the dimensions of the 3D printers used and the technological parameters of working with them, as well as the design features of the test pool, small-sized vessels of a series of kayaks, kayaks and canoes, which are of sufficient length, but not too wide and high, were investigated as a prototype of the future model, which is ideal under the methods of additive manufacturing. A base of prototypes of vessels of this class has been compiled and a rationale has been given for the choice of the prototype vessel itself for research, including an analysis of the design of the vessels presented, the availability of design and technological documentation, as well as technological schemes for manufacturing the model. A 3D model of the vessel was developed, its optimization for 3D printing and analysis of geometric shapes for deviations from ITTC requirements. The study of deviations of the geometric shapes of the ship model from shrinkage deformations was carried out using 3D scanning with the development of a technological scheme for describing this process. When developing a 3D model, in the process of 3D printing, as well as processing the results of 3D scanning, modern software tools — FreeShip, Autodesk Inventor, Cloud Compare, and others — were used in the work. In the manufacture of the model, the new DPA adhesive compound formula was used, able to provide durable joints for PLA plastic products. It was found that the measurements prove the possibility of using 3D printing for the production of ship models for hydrodynamic testing, subject to all the nuances of the technology.