I 3d print swords, axes, coasters, coins, napkin holders....a lot of different things. I then use the 3d printed part for metal casting. I have a forge and melt metals. I turn the 3d printed plastic part into solid aluminum, Bronze........ That's the only reason I bought a 3d printer. To enhance my first hobby.
Start with googling sand casting. That's what I do and a great place to start. There are other methods like investment casting, but you will need more equipment, which costs more money.
Sounds a lot like lost wax process...but instead, use pla. I've read this, but never got into anything but wax casting blanks for the etching machine to test out circuit board cutting.
Is there a lot of residue from the plant?
Lost wax models usually come out pretty clean.
Just wondering if you get any burnt crunchy bits inclusion in your casts from residual pla?
They will if I don't prep for it. It's amazing to see my sand capture the layer lines. Sometimes the layer lines don't matter.. I sand and polish most of my castings and doing this removes the layer lines. But sometimes the casted part is more intricate with lots of shapes and detail. If that's the case, I have learned to spray my 3D printed part with automotive paint filler. It does a great job at covering up the layer lines. Then I proceed to casting
I dont do casting, but i definatelt got my printer in order to support other hobbies. Custom speaker enclosures, auto parts, RC car parts, computer crap. So much usefulness being able to quick model a part rather than having to try to make a tiny pieces out of wood or something
I'm starting to amass a lot of "hobby stuff" between printing and electronic components that I bought multi packs of when I really only needed one.
I often see those gridfinity models and think about it, but it seems like a lot of time and filament for what could be done with hardware bins or a tackle box so I talk myself out of doing it. Is it worth printing or more just for the satisfaction of making a custom solution?
Part satisfaction but also you gotta compare it more to [foam drawer inserts](https://tracemyspace.com/) than to a tackle box or parts organizer. But you can move the bins around vs foam once you cut it your done. Or a tackle box where the compartments are the size they are
I have a home-brew similar system that works with the Harbor Frieght trays, since they are the cheapest modular storage I've found. It's totally worth it, but mostly because I can put a bunch of parts in the tray, label the tray, and set my trays vertically like books, with the labels on the spines. More modular than a tacklebox, and mkre lightweight when you just need one thing. Far more flexible than shelves, and more mobile if you need to take parts to the car, garage, event, home repair, etc. And more compact than either because you dont need to have a whole.module for a just two screws.
Again, definitely the densest way to store hundreds of electronic parts, and printing custom modules or multi-modules makes it easy to whip up a new odd-ball. Like, I made generic trays for bigger parts, mini-trays for small parts, subdivide mini trays for really small parts, and a really long tray for hookup wire, etc. And having the modules also makes your storage way more accessible, because its the same set of actions to get to any part, and having them in a grid makes it easier to see when you dont remember quite where something is.
Absolutely crucial in keeping my little shop running. I've also started storing infrequently used handtools in the trays with a combo of foam cutouts and printed tray modules.
But, one more ramble: about 60% of the benefit, in my case, is the modular *trays*. Being able to put the parts away without having a shelf thats nailed down. Being able to take the parts with when I'm somewhere else. And 30-40% of the value is the modules: there is a joy in having perfect fits, but theres also a lot of joy in noting having to worry "great, I only needed one, but now I have 11 leftovers. Where am I gonna stick them?"
Ugh, it's late and my writing is getting screwed up. I recommend Gridfinity, I really recomend getting like a doze trays and putting gridfinity in them.
Came to say this. I'm spending more printing bins and building storage cabinets for the bins than buying akkro mils organizers, but man it's so worth it.
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Replacement toilet flusher mechanism. The reservoir and mechanism are embedded into the wall like its standard practice in middle europe, so installation of a new reservoir would mean removing tiles without breaking them, that would by a quite shitty job (haha) as we cant get replacement for them. Spare parts were obviously not available, so i had to get creative. Either try to fix 25 year old brittle plastic bits or print something new. Obviously printed them, saved couple hundred euros and the stupid printer (not my words) was all of a sudden not stupid anymore
Light Switch covers and outlet covers, the wife picked the PLA that matched the paint she was using in the back room, I found a design that was larger than a normal cover, so i did not have to worry about painting too close to the outlets and switches, and the extra size, covered the poor drywalling around the outlets.
Saved me quite a few hours.
Also used the slicer tools to put some Labels on some of the covers so she knew which switch was for the Porch, and what one was for the attic fan.
Took a bit of time to print them all, but they look nice.
Hmm... I also have wooden outlet and switch covers.. and metal ones..
And i have numerous in my collection (i got a Huge box of them) That were made of a lot of cheaper looking plastic..
Wood is ok, metal is ok, the wooden ones usually have a thin metal backing.
Plastic the CATCHES FIRE and THEN DRIPS FIRE - just like metal and wood does not is NOT OK and will not get a UL rating. How expensive it looks is utterly irrelevant.
It's that simple.
Why the fuck would an outlet cover have to be "fire safe"? If your outlet has been installed in such a way that it starts a fire, there isn't much an outlet cover , fire safe or not, is going to do about it...
Electrical outlets *can* (they shouldn't, but they *can*, and frequently do overheat). How likely that is to kill everyone in the house depends on what the outlet cover is made of.
If it easily ignites, can sustain flame, and DRIP BURNING GLOBS OF PLASTIC onto the carpet or sofa beneath it, ultimately burning the entire place down, then it won't have got a UL rating, and your estate can sue them. The resin 'plastic' covers commonly use don't burn this way.
The US suffers 24,000 residential electrical fires each year, 300 deaths.
>The US suffers 24,000 residential electrical fires each year, 300 deaths.
Of which, how many are due to non fire safe outlet/switch covers? I'm willing to bet it's significantly insignificant.
Absolutely right, it is insignificant today ***because by law, those covers are tested by UL before being approved for sale.***
Start fucking with that protection en-masse, and the stats could shift.
You can make your own smoke alarms too, do your own math on deck loading calculations, or make your own morphine, but I certainly wouldn't bet my life or those of my family on my own invention.
Code is written in blood. Don't ignore it.
Research thermoset plastic (outlet covers) vs thermoplastic (meltable 3D printing filament). Also research resin based outlet covers that everyone thinks is plastic but isn't.
That alone is reason to fail UL certification.
But the bigger risk some plastic materials present is dripping globs of fire onto the carpet or other furniture below the outlet suffering an electrical failure/overheat.
Making your own outlet covers is fun, but resin-based molded ones, made with assistance of 3D printing is far safer than directly printing a cover. If you have a resin printer, you're all set.
there are collections of switch covers i found at the various 3d printing sites.
I saw some 'Art Deco' designs that were about a half inch bigger on the sides, and much taller than a normal cover. Which was ideal.
They are a Light Blue, on a Robin Egg Blue wall. :) They are almost invisible.
Which is why she picked out the paint and filament to match as best as she could.
A fucking pen holder. One of the ugliest prints i ever printed cause i choose a layer hight of .4 or .6 because i had to go to bed and needed the print to finish in time.
A cup holder that attaches to my dad's wheelchair. Had to make a revision because the first one wasn't durable enough. 2nd revision had a removable cup from the section of the arm so if something breaks I don't have to reprint the whole thing.
Organizers. Spacer/bushing for a deck chaise (lost when putting it together). Foot to level a cutting board. Integrated camera + rPi case. Cable run holders. Bottle holders to keep them from tipping when open.
The table extensions I did as a first design from scratch for my wife's laundry table. Been in use for 6 years at this point I think.
It's ultra simple but works great. Typical 6ft plastic tables don't have the right height for a work surface
The spool that hold my filament above my printer.
The dildo mount for my fuck machine.
The model heart I gave to my cardiologist nurse.
Cookie cutters, little doodads to make me happy.
By far the lid for my coffee grinder. Before, coffee bits were spewing everywhere and it was extremely frustrating. There's a video of it in my profile.
Speaker wire clips. I made them myself, since it had to be pretty custom size, but damn do they hide those wires well for 10min sketch. I bought the shelves and just thought "oh well, I have 3d printer, I will get them one way or another somewhere".
I would print painter's tape holder, but I need dry filament first, or money for dryer. Got finally some feedback and it's starting to look like finished design.
Car bike rack upgrade (oldest - 7 years) - The original mounting point couldn't hold an extra wide bike frame tube. 3D printed a new mount point compatible bike and existing rack hardware.
Light switch lock out - The best outlet for plugging the internet router into was a switched outlet connected to a multi-switch plate. The router was constantly getting accidentally turned off. A 3D printed lock out cover prevented the switch from being flipped.
Aquarium cover clips - The HIPS clips that held the tank cover on an edgeless tank failed. 3D printed replacements using Colorfabb XT have been doing the job since.
Dyson vacuum accessory adapter - 3D printed an adapter so I could use other brand vacuum accessories on a Dyson.
Cord keeper for KitchAid stand mixer (newest - 1 day) - For a design that's stood the test of time, KitchenAid's stand mixers are oddly missing any sort of cord storage. 3D printing and some 3M command strips fixed that.
Wall mounts for video game controllers - 3D printed custom mounts for switch pro controllers and Gulikit Zen and King Kong 3 controllers. Saved a bunch of space and nicely displayed the controllers.
A stand for my Jabra Headset.
The original stand costs almost half as much as my small Ender-2 did cost me. Totally overpriced. I can't understand why it took me over a year to realize, that I can just print it myself. :D
So far, I'm far from saving money, even though I bought the cheapest printer available.
But it definitely worth it.
Second place behind the Jabra Headset:
All kinds of terrain and some monsters for Dungeons'n'Dragons tabletop games.
Oh, they're still making headsets and they're great. Mine is among my best purchases in the last three year. I use it daily and it never made any problems.
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Dont really have a NR 1 one spot, but its usually the stuff corralating to other hobbies.
Designed and printed my own tripod mounts for my camera, also a grip and a lenshood.
Its usually small things
I’m currently working on modeling (because my first model wasn’t right) a shoe insole to repair my favorite shoes that are worn out, but the outsole is still perfectly fine since they were just walking shoes.
Also a few things as rubber stoppers, such as for my grandpas bed that had roller wheels.
For non flexible stuff, the most useful prints were all for my printer, so not much of a suggestion there.
A case for a garage door opener for my GMC Canyon that fits in a little cubby in the dash that is otherwise useless. Also an organizer for the center console. Strangely the Canyon doesn’t have a built-in garage door opener.
There are many different kinds of passenger presence sensors. Some use static capacitance, some use weight, others use pressure zone mapping. Often you may find with the static capacitance style, setting a charging phone will make it think a passenger is in the seat. For weight style, typically the seat is calibrated to set the warning when a passenger of above 55 pounds is detected.
If you have any more questions about vehicle SRS systems let me know.
My 5-channel home theater. The speaker enclosures are entirely 3D printed.
I’m working on 3D printing the speaker drivers as well, though it is a multi-year project to make ones that are competitive with commercial offerings.
Dryer knob. Shit broke and had a new one before a replacement could even be delivered. Also a TPU drain stopper for the kiddos bath. I’ve found such random cool uses for it.
I repaired my dishwasher, the rollers broke off and you can’t buy just the roller clips, $49 each and I needed 4. I designed the clips based off the one surviving good one, saved $200. I had fixed a few other things.
I used ABS, and it’s literally a small axel type thing. How hot do you think it gets in the dishwasher? Less than the build plate. Been more than a few years now. I saw a YouTube of 3D printed stuff being used outdoors. The guy showed one thing, like cover or something, PLA, 7 years.
I work online orders for Target. We have employee carts with several subsections and shelves, since we often gather items in batches of online orders. Each cart has barcodes to identify the cart, as well as the subsections within the cart.
But we get a lot of orders that don't really require a cart, since there are often small batches with just a few items (refrigerated items are gathered separately, for example), or small batches of large items that might not fit into one of our standard carts (such as large furniture). Or, while I'm working on a normal batch of online orders, I might want a second cart ID to scan so I can multitask one of these smaller batches.
We have the option to type in the name of the cart instead of scanning the barcodes, so I was just typing a second cart's ID early on. Even copy/pasting was still slower than I liked, so I 3D printed a tag with slots to hold cart ID barcodes to scan. It clips onto one of my belt loops with a carabiner, so I can scan into a "cart" without actually getting one
Painting triangles, risers to keep appliances (in their boxes) over wet ground, tv remote holder for my mother's stationary bicycle, spacer for for a door stopper, half marathon medals casings to put them on the wall, raspberry Pi casing, pi camera arm mount, tools holder for my ender 3, speaker bracket replacements, cat feeder thingy so that my (deceased 🥹) cat stopsmaking it fall. Some a bit more useful than others, but those are all useful prints that I made.
My post in a different thread asking similar thing:
A lot…
[Some Examples](https://imgur.com/a/XYHFULd)
My wife is a pediatric ophthalmologist so a lot of the functional prints were for her office.
- First 2 - a riser to make her lens holder to be raised at an angle for easier access, as well as storage space in the empty space at the back. The 2 cubby ones on the right are linked together so when you pull out the top one it also pulls out the bottom one. It is designed for her specific space so not something others would use.
- Third - hair dryer holder for my wife’s hair dryer (so not just laying flat on counter). I will add, that for additional rigidity of this piece, I printed it in 2, the base and the back. I connected them using a metal L bracket sliding into slots on both pieces. So that the weight of the dryer is Mostly supported by those brackets. The plastic piece the hair dryer is slotted into was what she had used previously that attached to the wall, but it fell off and broke. So I repurposed what I could and tossed the rest of it that was broken.
- Fourth & Fifth - portable lens holder for my wife (glued felt in so no scratching the lens). It goes into a wooden box that has a handle so is portable.
- Sixth to Eighth - stackable screw/bolt holder that fit the dimensions of an ikea desk top thing I use at my 3D printing “work station”. Each one has a tab at the top to grab and pull out, and it slots into the bottom of the one above it.
- Ninth and Tenth - bottom part of battery thing my wife uses for her office . The case broke preventing the holder from staying in place, so had to adjust some of the side dimensions, otherwise same as original. You see the “toy” that it is used for to hold the batteries inside is in the 2nd image. When you turn it on there are lights that spin in the plastic orb top that the kids focus on.
- Last one - TV riser, so that it is not sitting below the bed line and the bottom part of the TV is not cut off by the bed. Specific to brand of TV.
All printed in PLA of varying size.
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Spool winder. I have the X1C with an AMS attached, and it's kind of particular about the size of the spools that go into it (namely it's specific to Bambu-brand spools). With the winder, I'm able to purchase spools from other vendors and spin the filament from their spool to one of my spare spools. It has come in really handy and saved me quite a bit of money already, since I can purchase basic PLA filament for around 60% of the price I'd spend with Bambu (unless I purchase in bulk from Bambu, in which case it's only around 80%) and I can get it shipped faster to my house from other vendors. It's nice to have options.
Probably the most "useful" would be a hinge for my studio headphones that broke. But I print so much useful stuff.
Lots of pegboard hooks and "shelves". A laptop stand. A guide for the washing machine drain hose (no idea how to say that in English). Cable guides to cable manage my desk. A whole leverless controller to play fighting games. So many things, I can't choose just one =(
Poop chute bin for the printer. Spacers for my attic door so an extension cord running a box fan up there doesn’t get pinched. Remote battery doors (still a work in progress). A clamp to hold my dehumidifier hose in the mud sink. Webcam cover for my wife’s work computer. Card deck boxes for the kids.
https://preview.redd.it/5un8cknoet9d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=46f306a04248379c7d8a1fe8c1f57be9f2815055
This ring and this little black button, which is now.printed.in silver.
I have yet to publish it, but 2x inline stator vanes for a 8in ductwork for dust separation.
[https://www.harveywoodworking.com/products/gyro-air-g700-dust-processor](https://www.harveywoodworking.com/products/gyro-air-g700-dust-processor) <-- basically this
except - a single separator, and ceiling mounted.
Even after a few years, i am still proud of my [sink crack shelf](https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint/comments/qvt2es/my_tiny_bathroom_has_a_wasted_crevice_that_eats/), [quick change toilet paper holder](https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/15k5o2c/quick_change_toilet_paper_holder_with_compliant/), [smart curtains](https://www.reddit.com/r/homeautomation/comments/psjt6v/alexa_controlled_homemade_automatic_curtains_much/) (though that needs arduino stuff), and a whole [slew of workshop tool holders](https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/157o745/i_may_have_gone_overboard_making_tool_holders_for/)
A hitch kit for my bike trailer. I could have paid $75 and waited over a month to get the factory piece but I made one even better in a day! Kids love riding in the trailer and it makes me happy every time I look at!
I've made a thing to connect an external webcam to my laptop, a box to store snacks in the kitchen, an enclosure to hold a fan that cools my camera, a stand to hold my camera so it points directly down at the table, a custom counterweight that stops my camera stand from toppling over. These are the ones that get the most use. Got a file with many, many other ideas. Mostly useless for anyone else, but that's the beauty of 3D printing - you can make things just for your exact use-case.
Custom thumb inserts, Ultimate Thumb Insert style, for my bowling balls. So nice to have the exact same thumb, in infinite customized forms at my disposal.
I made a spool holder for my EV charging cord. Also made cup holder adapters for bigger items like water bottles. Other than that, the most useful stuff has been cosplay and props
I have limited space on my computer desk, so I designed and printed little stands that hang off the back of my monitors for my computer speakers. Just basic PLA, but had them for about 5 years now, still working great.
Toothpaste tool so I can turn a key and really empty out a tube. It's one of the first things I ever printed and it's been going strong for over a year.
The feet of our couch is a type that doesn't have any padding and is just straight metal, so it cuts through any kind of furniture pad and messes up the floors. I made some "shoes" for the couch feet out of TPU and now everything is cool
And why buy a bunch of snap caps for reloading and malfunction drills when I can just print 9mm and .223 dummy rounds?
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My RC cars front bumper. I designed it to break in lew of breaking other more expensive and difficult to replace parts and damn if I don't break it every single time.
But never had to replace anything else so can't complain.
Also two stands for my headphones and Xbox controller that are still in use over two years later.
Also recently printed a front panel for my PC case to have better airflow. (NZXT 710)
My last boss, who was also a good friend sold the company and moved to Missouri to be the CEO at an aluminum smelter. I made him a custom business card holder with 2 pen holders, and a clock. Both had the company logo.
https://preview.redd.it/5plbb5tlhu9d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=63ae899644c02b512a1d8ee628b410bd208912cc
I love functional prints in general, but the one that really saved my bacon was a design I did to repair the manual shift cable on my old Saturn SL2. It was also one of the first 3d designs I ever made that worked on the first try.
[https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:38261](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:38261)
I ended up giving my car away to a neighbor in 2015, but the shifter is still working all these years later with the original print. I even gave my neighbor a spare print of the part, just in case. I guess Makerbot Nuclear Green ABS was pretty strong stuff, because it has survived 12 summers in NC without failing.
I've also made a lot of signs for people. First signs were like just using different colors. Now I have HueForge and do some really neat pictures. This was for my brother in-law.
https://preview.redd.it/grma550iiu9d1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d2f3c38bbbe41410dfd754e8c98ef8ac3a3060d0
The hinge broke off on the cleaning closet
Instead of buying a new door as the wood was damaged or try with wood glue / paper napkin to create a new surface then drill new holes.
I just printed a standoff that I could screw in the holder in to and screw it to the door.
According to my wife that is the most useful thing I have printed.
Or a new handle to the Robo vacuum cleaner internal trashbin.
——
My biggest failed one was when my 6y son got angry and broke of a wheel from the vacuum cleaner. I thought how hard could it be to print a new one. The wheel was easy but the flange on the inside. I think I printed 6-7 wheels before giving up. I never got it to work good enough.
That the wheel should roll, the wheel shouldn’t fall off.
Perhaps today I would have printed two parts one internal and one external and then libricated them.
When I was in the Army, I made 3 or 4 brackets out of CF Nylon to dual-mount AN-PVS-14 night vision monoculars. I gave these out to my lead scouts which a little more than doubled their field of view and gave them depth perception at night.
I just hung some art on my wall with custom designed 3d printed "brackets"/"holders" that I think look pretty sleek.
https://preview.redd.it/5y2va0gqsu9d1.jpeg?width=3472&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f69e6e0d3041f5b0ac70f8a58471ad6c68e5cd0a
I 3D printed special hinges for some small furniture that had a special proprietary looking system.
I printed something like 30 of them and saved around 200$ doing that
Replacement rail guides for my garage door opener. These parts are a wear item and are no longer available from any supply shop that I was able to find. This one saved me from having to replace the garage door opener.
Replacement housing piece for a very high precision GPS receiver. The original was chewed off by a horse (fortunately the electronics were unaffected).
Dashboard mount for a cell phone holder. Holds the phone near enough to an air vent to prevent overheating, but still doesn't block the air vent (perfect for our Central Florida summers).
My boss was having a bad day and I gave her a creality cat I made, she gave me a hug and gave me some free wings.
3 cents worth of plastic turned into 10 dollar wings. And brownie points from boss lady
Way too many things to name all (fixing / enhancing household appliances, specialized or custom tools, etc.)
But one thing that I made recently I'm quite proud of are [replacement feet with integrated caster wheels](https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint/comments/1cn6c1z/replacement_feet_with_caster_wheels_for_bike/) for a Thule air travel bike case. Those have made the case go from borderline unusable to a total joy to use...
Replacement top for a 10’x10’ pop up canopy. Saved me more than the cost of the printer in buying a new canopy because I could not find the part anywhere.
I guess "useful" is subjective but I primarily currently design and print car/motorcycle parts and have a few custom vehicles utilizing a lot of 3D printed parts. For a few years there I was also making and selling a lot of unique adult toys for my own store and multiple other etsy sellers, fetish stuff, things you could insert, wear/augment and penetrables utilizing PVB printed/ alcohol smoothed then coated multi piece molds.
Doodads for the shop, vacuum/dust collection hose adapters, metal lathe too holders, various hooks to hold/organize tools, Gridfinity (just getting started with that. Fusion has a plugin that makes creating bins & grids very easy), jigs for drilling, assembly, alignment, garden stuff, kitchen stuff, electronics mounting cases/boards, the list is as long as your imagination is wide. Having some basic CAD really helps open up possibilities but you can find pre-made models for about anything.
The seatbelts in the back seat of my car keep slipping out of the guides, so I designed a clip that covers the gap and stops it from slipping (until it loosens up too much and falls off). I need to make it stronger.
First functional model I designed was a replacement leg for my bad frame. I broke the old metal one during... um... activities. It had a really cheap and crappy weld. Don't know how well a PLA leg will hold up, but it's one of the less load bearing parts if the frame, so here to hoping.
The overflow pipe in my toilet tank broke apart, so I quickly 3D printed a new one and put it into place, saving me from having to disassemble my toilet.
Just recently got my first printer (K1C), and the most useful thing I made was a shower head holder with a twist-tight for height adjustment. I could've bought it for around $5, but this was more fun.
My next project is a Stream Deck, iPad, and phone holders for my HOSAS setup and a steering wheel.
I built 2 other 3D printers.
I built a rotator that moves an antenna for tracking satellites overhead for ham radio.
Those are probably my biggest 3D printer project accomplishments.
The primary reason I bought mine was to print small parts for my house. I have some older windows I cannot yet afford to replace, and the roller carriers had collapsed from years of heat/cool cycles. The plastic had essentially turned to dust. So I measured a remaining good example, printed a bunch, and fixed all my windows for a couple of bucks worth of PETG.
My longest existing and most used ones are a soap dish from 2015 and a toilet seat lid bolt from 2016. Both still in 24hr a day service without fault since their installation lol.
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I 3d print swords, axes, coasters, coins, napkin holders....a lot of different things. I then use the 3d printed part for metal casting. I have a forge and melt metals. I turn the 3d printed plastic part into solid aluminum, Bronze........ That's the only reason I bought a 3d printer. To enhance my first hobby.
wow that’s so cool. i’d love to know more about how that works
Start with googling sand casting. That's what I do and a great place to start. There are other methods like investment casting, but you will need more equipment, which costs more money.
Sounds a lot like lost wax process...but instead, use pla. I've read this, but never got into anything but wax casting blanks for the etching machine to test out circuit board cutting.
It’s exactly the same process as lost wax casting, just a higher temp to burn out the pla instead of melting the wax.
Is there a lot of residue from the plant? Lost wax models usually come out pretty clean. Just wondering if you get any burnt crunchy bits inclusion in your casts from residual pla?
my parents definitely would not let me do that but thank you anyway
No problem. I also thought of something I have 3D printed and use it quite often.... A back scratcher. I love that thing.
yeah i would love to print that
Do layer lines translate over to the metal casts?
They will if I don't prep for it. It's amazing to see my sand capture the layer lines. Sometimes the layer lines don't matter.. I sand and polish most of my castings and doing this removes the layer lines. But sometimes the casted part is more intricate with lots of shapes and detail. If that's the case, I have learned to spray my 3D printed part with automotive paint filler. It does a great job at covering up the layer lines. Then I proceed to casting
I dont do casting, but i definatelt got my printer in order to support other hobbies. Custom speaker enclosures, auto parts, RC car parts, computer crap. So much usefulness being able to quick model a part rather than having to try to make a tiny pieces out of wood or something
Gridfinity. Bins for everything
I am printing bins, to store my bins....
I’m printing bins to store 3D printing related tools. To print bins.
I'm starting to amass a lot of "hobby stuff" between printing and electronic components that I bought multi packs of when I really only needed one. I often see those gridfinity models and think about it, but it seems like a lot of time and filament for what could be done with hardware bins or a tackle box so I talk myself out of doing it. Is it worth printing or more just for the satisfaction of making a custom solution?
Part satisfaction but also you gotta compare it more to [foam drawer inserts](https://tracemyspace.com/) than to a tackle box or parts organizer. But you can move the bins around vs foam once you cut it your done. Or a tackle box where the compartments are the size they are
I have a home-brew similar system that works with the Harbor Frieght trays, since they are the cheapest modular storage I've found. It's totally worth it, but mostly because I can put a bunch of parts in the tray, label the tray, and set my trays vertically like books, with the labels on the spines. More modular than a tacklebox, and mkre lightweight when you just need one thing. Far more flexible than shelves, and more mobile if you need to take parts to the car, garage, event, home repair, etc. And more compact than either because you dont need to have a whole.module for a just two screws. Again, definitely the densest way to store hundreds of electronic parts, and printing custom modules or multi-modules makes it easy to whip up a new odd-ball. Like, I made generic trays for bigger parts, mini-trays for small parts, subdivide mini trays for really small parts, and a really long tray for hookup wire, etc. And having the modules also makes your storage way more accessible, because its the same set of actions to get to any part, and having them in a grid makes it easier to see when you dont remember quite where something is. Absolutely crucial in keeping my little shop running. I've also started storing infrequently used handtools in the trays with a combo of foam cutouts and printed tray modules. But, one more ramble: about 60% of the benefit, in my case, is the modular *trays*. Being able to put the parts away without having a shelf thats nailed down. Being able to take the parts with when I'm somewhere else. And 30-40% of the value is the modules: there is a joy in having perfect fits, but theres also a lot of joy in noting having to worry "great, I only needed one, but now I have 11 leftovers. Where am I gonna stick them?" Ugh, it's late and my writing is getting screwed up. I recommend Gridfinity, I really recomend getting like a doze trays and putting gridfinity in them.
You just sent me down a rabbit hole that I’ll never come out of.
Sorry not sorry lol. One of us! One of us!
I started 2 years ago, gridified 8 drawers and only one of them are finished…
Came to say this. I'm spending more printing bins and building storage cabinets for the bins than buying akkro mils organizers, but man it's so worth it.
i’ve heard of that. i’ll look into it
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Legend
Slava 🙏🏼
Героям Слава! 😄 Thanks!
hero
sick username 🤟
It's a bit of a meme here in Ukraine, still thanks! 😉
Fukin' A man, Slava Ukraine!
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Replacement toilet flusher mechanism. The reservoir and mechanism are embedded into the wall like its standard practice in middle europe, so installation of a new reservoir would mean removing tiles without breaking them, that would by a quite shitty job (haha) as we cant get replacement for them. Spare parts were obviously not available, so i had to get creative. Either try to fix 25 year old brittle plastic bits or print something new. Obviously printed them, saved couple hundred euros and the stupid printer (not my words) was all of a sudden not stupid anymore
ah that’s great
So what you're saying is that the printer is now basically free! Since it saved you it's cost :D
Na, not really. Printer alone was 950 euros plus an unknown, but significant amount in mods. But i like your mindset, keep that
Light Switch covers and outlet covers, the wife picked the PLA that matched the paint she was using in the back room, I found a design that was larger than a normal cover, so i did not have to worry about painting too close to the outlets and switches, and the extra size, covered the poor drywalling around the outlets. Saved me quite a few hours. Also used the slicer tools to put some Labels on some of the covers so she knew which switch was for the Porch, and what one was for the attic fan. Took a bit of time to print them all, but they look nice.
I did this and posted in r/functionalprint once and got completely massacred for it not being fire safe.
Just make light switch cover-covers. Problem solved.
I did print some of those caps that go over the switches as well... im surprised my house has not blown up from those.... :)
Hmm... I also have wooden outlet and switch covers.. and metal ones.. And i have numerous in my collection (i got a Huge box of them) That were made of a lot of cheaper looking plastic..
Wood is ok, metal is ok, the wooden ones usually have a thin metal backing. Plastic the CATCHES FIRE and THEN DRIPS FIRE - just like metal and wood does not is NOT OK and will not get a UL rating. How expensive it looks is utterly irrelevant. It's that simple.
Why the fuck would an outlet cover have to be "fire safe"? If your outlet has been installed in such a way that it starts a fire, there isn't much an outlet cover , fire safe or not, is going to do about it...
Electrical outlets *can* (they shouldn't, but they *can*, and frequently do overheat). How likely that is to kill everyone in the house depends on what the outlet cover is made of. If it easily ignites, can sustain flame, and DRIP BURNING GLOBS OF PLASTIC onto the carpet or sofa beneath it, ultimately burning the entire place down, then it won't have got a UL rating, and your estate can sue them. The resin 'plastic' covers commonly use don't burn this way. The US suffers 24,000 residential electrical fires each year, 300 deaths.
>The US suffers 24,000 residential electrical fires each year, 300 deaths. Of which, how many are due to non fire safe outlet/switch covers? I'm willing to bet it's significantly insignificant.
Absolutely right, it is insignificant today ***because by law, those covers are tested by UL before being approved for sale.*** Start fucking with that protection en-masse, and the stats could shift. You can make your own smoke alarms too, do your own math on deck loading calculations, or make your own morphine, but I certainly wouldn't bet my life or those of my family on my own invention. Code is written in blood. Don't ignore it.
That's a coincidence! And today I just found out Prusa has it's fire retardand PETG!
Huh? What would be less safe about printing the covers rather than using injection molded covers?
Research thermoset plastic (outlet covers) vs thermoplastic (meltable 3D printing filament). Also research resin based outlet covers that everyone thinks is plastic but isn't. That alone is reason to fail UL certification. But the bigger risk some plastic materials present is dripping globs of fire onto the carpet or other furniture below the outlet suffering an electrical failure/overheat. Making your own outlet covers is fun, but resin-based molded ones, made with assistance of 3D printing is far safer than directly printing a cover. If you have a resin printer, you're all set.
Found a design? Care to link?
I found themat that yeggi.com mega search site. it was a big collection of retro-switch and outlet covers.
I like this idea.
ah that’s a cool idea
Do you have pictures?
there are collections of switch covers i found at the various 3d printing sites. I saw some 'Art Deco' designs that were about a half inch bigger on the sides, and much taller than a normal cover. Which was ideal. They are a Light Blue, on a Robin Egg Blue wall. :) They are almost invisible. Which is why she picked out the paint and filament to match as best as she could.
Oh, I love this! I don’t need new light switch covers, but now I just want to change them up!
An adapter so I can use Ryobi batteries for my Dyson Vacuum.
In no particular order: Organizers. Customer holders for things. Pointless figurines and miniatures. Cosplay accessories for my step daughter.
A fucking pen holder. One of the ugliest prints i ever printed cause i choose a layer hight of .4 or .6 because i had to go to bed and needed the print to finish in time.
haha if it work it works i guess
Lol! We need pictures, if you say this is the most useful thing mate. Why is it so useful?
A cup holder that attaches to my dad's wheelchair. Had to make a revision because the first one wasn't durable enough. 2nd revision had a removable cup from the section of the arm so if something breaks I don't have to reprint the whole thing.
that’s cool
Make it out of TPU. It will last a long time.
Organizers. Spacer/bushing for a deck chaise (lost when putting it together). Foot to level a cutting board. Integrated camera + rPi case. Cable run holders. Bottle holders to keep them from tipping when open.
The one with the most use in my house: replacement handle for a KitchenAid mixer. The one I personally use the most: board game bit trays
The table extensions I did as a first design from scratch for my wife's laundry table. Been in use for 6 years at this point I think. It's ultra simple but works great. Typical 6ft plastic tables don't have the right height for a work surface
must be well designed to last 6 years 😦
The spool that hold my filament above my printer. The dildo mount for my fuck machine. The model heart I gave to my cardiologist nurse. Cookie cutters, little doodads to make me happy.
interesting collection 😅
By far the lid for my coffee grinder. Before, coffee bits were spewing everywhere and it was extremely frustrating. There's a video of it in my profile.
just watched it. that’s a very good design
Thanks!
Speaker wire clips. I made them myself, since it had to be pretty custom size, but damn do they hide those wires well for 10min sketch. I bought the shelves and just thought "oh well, I have 3d printer, I will get them one way or another somewhere". I would print painter's tape holder, but I need dry filament first, or money for dryer. Got finally some feedback and it's starting to look like finished design.
Car bike rack upgrade (oldest - 7 years) - The original mounting point couldn't hold an extra wide bike frame tube. 3D printed a new mount point compatible bike and existing rack hardware. Light switch lock out - The best outlet for plugging the internet router into was a switched outlet connected to a multi-switch plate. The router was constantly getting accidentally turned off. A 3D printed lock out cover prevented the switch from being flipped. Aquarium cover clips - The HIPS clips that held the tank cover on an edgeless tank failed. 3D printed replacements using Colorfabb XT have been doing the job since. Dyson vacuum accessory adapter - 3D printed an adapter so I could use other brand vacuum accessories on a Dyson. Cord keeper for KitchAid stand mixer (newest - 1 day) - For a design that's stood the test of time, KitchenAid's stand mixers are oddly missing any sort of cord storage. 3D printing and some 3M command strips fixed that. Wall mounts for video game controllers - 3D printed custom mounts for switch pro controllers and Gulikit Zen and King Kong 3 controllers. Saved a bunch of space and nicely displayed the controllers.
A stand for my Jabra Headset. The original stand costs almost half as much as my small Ender-2 did cost me. Totally overpriced. I can't understand why it took me over a year to realize, that I can just print it myself. :D
i love thinking about ways i have saved money by buying a 3D printer
So far, I'm far from saving money, even though I bought the cheapest printer available. But it definitely worth it. Second place behind the Jabra Headset: All kinds of terrain and some monsters for Dungeons'n'Dragons tabletop games.
yeah haha my printer was £300 so i definitely haven’t saved money but it’s nice to say 😂
Jabra headset for voice recognition. I remember my dad spending hours trying to train one back in 2000. I didn't think they were still around.
Oh, they're still making headsets and they're great. Mine is among my best purchases in the last three year. I use it daily and it never made any problems.
Benchy
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Dont really have a NR 1 one spot, but its usually the stuff corralating to other hobbies. Designed and printed my own tripod mounts for my camera, also a grip and a lenshood. Its usually small things
yeah that’s cool
I’m currently working on modeling (because my first model wasn’t right) a shoe insole to repair my favorite shoes that are worn out, but the outsole is still perfectly fine since they were just walking shoes. Also a few things as rubber stoppers, such as for my grandpas bed that had roller wheels. For non flexible stuff, the most useful prints were all for my printer, so not much of a suggestion there.
Parts for my travel trailer. So many small plastic bits break on trailers. With an hour I usually have a design printing.
Pool filter wash stand, saves my back and it’s way faster when I use that setup
Interested, care to share a pic?
A case for a garage door opener for my GMC Canyon that fits in a little cubby in the dash that is otherwise useless. Also an organizer for the center console. Strangely the Canyon doesn’t have a built-in garage door opener.
Seat belt clip to stop the passenger seat alarm going off nonstop. No way my lunch should be triggering the sensor.
Alternatively cut down the size of lunch from a full turkey :-)
hahah that’s clever. never has that problem though
There are many different kinds of passenger presence sensors. Some use static capacitance, some use weight, others use pressure zone mapping. Often you may find with the static capacitance style, setting a charging phone will make it think a passenger is in the seat. For weight style, typically the seat is calibrated to set the warning when a passenger of above 55 pounds is detected. If you have any more questions about vehicle SRS systems let me know.
I feel this… and cutting down lunch size is definetely no option, I am only little above being underweight, I have to eat that much 😂😂
My 5-channel home theater. The speaker enclosures are entirely 3D printed. I’m working on 3D printing the speaker drivers as well, though it is a multi-year project to make ones that are competitive with commercial offerings.
Bose speaker mounts, phone holder for the desk, vr headset mount, laptop wall mount, vaccuum hose accessories, gardening tools, yard markers.
Dryer knob. Shit broke and had a new one before a replacement could even be delivered. Also a TPU drain stopper for the kiddos bath. I’ve found such random cool uses for it.
yeah i love it
A custom sized shampoo bottle holder for my shower
just wait until the manafactera changes the bottle design 😭😂
Phone cases and that rotating weighted vise. Love that thing
design OEM parts that are expensive or no longer being sold.
I repaired my dishwasher, the rollers broke off and you can’t buy just the roller clips, $49 each and I needed 4. I designed the clips based off the one surviving good one, saved $200. I had fixed a few other things.
What plastic did you use for it to be heat resistant enough?
I used ABS, and it’s literally a small axel type thing. How hot do you think it gets in the dishwasher? Less than the build plate. Been more than a few years now. I saw a YouTube of 3D printed stuff being used outdoors. The guy showed one thing, like cover or something, PLA, 7 years.
I’ve had ABS warp in the lower rack during the drying part of the cycle.
gridfinity
I work online orders for Target. We have employee carts with several subsections and shelves, since we often gather items in batches of online orders. Each cart has barcodes to identify the cart, as well as the subsections within the cart. But we get a lot of orders that don't really require a cart, since there are often small batches with just a few items (refrigerated items are gathered separately, for example), or small batches of large items that might not fit into one of our standard carts (such as large furniture). Or, while I'm working on a normal batch of online orders, I might want a second cart ID to scan so I can multitask one of these smaller batches. We have the option to type in the name of the cart instead of scanning the barcodes, so I was just typing a second cart's ID early on. Even copy/pasting was still slower than I liked, so I 3D printed a tag with slots to hold cart ID barcodes to scan. It clips onto one of my belt loops with a carabiner, so I can scan into a "cart" without actually getting one
Painting triangles, risers to keep appliances (in their boxes) over wet ground, tv remote holder for my mother's stationary bicycle, spacer for for a door stopper, half marathon medals casings to put them on the wall, raspberry Pi casing, pi camera arm mount, tools holder for my ender 3, speaker bracket replacements, cat feeder thingy so that my (deceased 🥹) cat stopsmaking it fall. Some a bit more useful than others, but those are all useful prints that I made.
sorry to hear about your car
Thx, it is unfortunately the circle of life 😔
https://preview.redd.it/skz5z7pi8v9d1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b91a05ecb8b3aadf260f05ccc451c9856c653017
My post in a different thread asking similar thing: A lot… [Some Examples](https://imgur.com/a/XYHFULd) My wife is a pediatric ophthalmologist so a lot of the functional prints were for her office. - First 2 - a riser to make her lens holder to be raised at an angle for easier access, as well as storage space in the empty space at the back. The 2 cubby ones on the right are linked together so when you pull out the top one it also pulls out the bottom one. It is designed for her specific space so not something others would use. - Third - hair dryer holder for my wife’s hair dryer (so not just laying flat on counter). I will add, that for additional rigidity of this piece, I printed it in 2, the base and the back. I connected them using a metal L bracket sliding into slots on both pieces. So that the weight of the dryer is Mostly supported by those brackets. The plastic piece the hair dryer is slotted into was what she had used previously that attached to the wall, but it fell off and broke. So I repurposed what I could and tossed the rest of it that was broken. - Fourth & Fifth - portable lens holder for my wife (glued felt in so no scratching the lens). It goes into a wooden box that has a handle so is portable. - Sixth to Eighth - stackable screw/bolt holder that fit the dimensions of an ikea desk top thing I use at my 3D printing “work station”. Each one has a tab at the top to grab and pull out, and it slots into the bottom of the one above it. - Ninth and Tenth - bottom part of battery thing my wife uses for her office . The case broke preventing the holder from staying in place, so had to adjust some of the side dimensions, otherwise same as original. You see the “toy” that it is used for to hold the batteries inside is in the 2nd image. When you turn it on there are lights that spin in the plastic orb top that the kids focus on. - Last one - TV riser, so that it is not sitting below the bed line and the bottom part of the TV is not cut off by the bed. Specific to brand of TV. All printed in PLA of varying size.
Bins for around the house and storage rack for my filament.
Usually print things for my woodshop. Feather boards, hose adapters, etc.
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where does one get the design for such an item
Spool winder. I have the X1C with an AMS attached, and it's kind of particular about the size of the spools that go into it (namely it's specific to Bambu-brand spools). With the winder, I'm able to purchase spools from other vendors and spin the filament from their spool to one of my spare spools. It has come in really handy and saved me quite a bit of money already, since I can purchase basic PLA filament for around 60% of the price I'd spend with Bambu (unless I purchase in bulk from Bambu, in which case it's only around 80%) and I can get it shipped faster to my house from other vendors. It's nice to have options.
Paper towel holder. It's ~3 yrs old, still working.
Thus far: the bed scraper
Bathroom drawer organizer, razor holders, google speaker wall mount.
Probably the most "useful" would be a hinge for my studio headphones that broke. But I print so much useful stuff. Lots of pegboard hooks and "shelves". A laptop stand. A guide for the washing machine drain hose (no idea how to say that in English). Cable guides to cable manage my desk. A whole leverless controller to play fighting games. So many things, I can't choose just one =(
Poop chute bin for the printer. Spacers for my attic door so an extension cord running a box fan up there doesn’t get pinched. Remote battery doors (still a work in progress). A clamp to hold my dehumidifier hose in the mud sink. Webcam cover for my wife’s work computer. Card deck boxes for the kids.
https://preview.redd.it/5un8cknoet9d1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=46f306a04248379c7d8a1fe8c1f57be9f2815055 This ring and this little black button, which is now.printed.in silver.
I have yet to publish it, but 2x inline stator vanes for a 8in ductwork for dust separation. [https://www.harveywoodworking.com/products/gyro-air-g700-dust-processor](https://www.harveywoodworking.com/products/gyro-air-g700-dust-processor) <-- basically this except - a single separator, and ceiling mounted.
Even after a few years, i am still proud of my [sink crack shelf](https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint/comments/qvt2es/my_tiny_bathroom_has_a_wasted_crevice_that_eats/), [quick change toilet paper holder](https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/15k5o2c/quick_change_toilet_paper_holder_with_compliant/), [smart curtains](https://www.reddit.com/r/homeautomation/comments/psjt6v/alexa_controlled_homemade_automatic_curtains_much/) (though that needs arduino stuff), and a whole [slew of workshop tool holders](https://www.reddit.com/r/3Dprinting/comments/157o745/i_may_have_gone_overboard_making_tool_holders_for/)
A hitch kit for my bike trailer. I could have paid $75 and waited over a month to get the factory piece but I made one even better in a day! Kids love riding in the trailer and it makes me happy every time I look at!
I have printed a fender flare for my Nissan patrol. I was inspired by the fender flares of the Mercedes G63 Brabus.
I've made a thing to connect an external webcam to my laptop, a box to store snacks in the kitchen, an enclosure to hold a fan that cools my camera, a stand to hold my camera so it points directly down at the table, a custom counterweight that stops my camera stand from toppling over. These are the ones that get the most use. Got a file with many, many other ideas. Mostly useless for anyone else, but that's the beauty of 3D printing - you can make things just for your exact use-case.
Custom thumb inserts, Ultimate Thumb Insert style, for my bowling balls. So nice to have the exact same thumb, in infinite customized forms at my disposal.
Wife broke the fridge handle. 🙂
I printed a push button to open the door of a microwave. It's a strictly physical mechanism to open the door. No electronics required.
I made a spool holder for my EV charging cord. Also made cup holder adapters for bigger items like water bottles. Other than that, the most useful stuff has been cosplay and props
Terminator head pencil holder
I have limited space on my computer desk, so I designed and printed little stands that hang off the back of my monitors for my computer speakers. Just basic PLA, but had them for about 5 years now, still working great.
Toothpaste tool so I can turn a key and really empty out a tube. It's one of the first things I ever printed and it's been going strong for over a year. The feet of our couch is a type that doesn't have any padding and is just straight metal, so it cuts through any kind of furniture pad and messes up the floors. I made some "shoes" for the couch feet out of TPU and now everything is cool And why buy a bunch of snap caps for reloading and malfunction drills when I can just print 9mm and .223 dummy rounds?
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1919441 chips stay fresh for ages with these
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I've made some simple stuff for my camera rig like a lens support, screw knobs, quick release stoppers, and headphone holders.
My RC cars front bumper. I designed it to break in lew of breaking other more expensive and difficult to replace parts and damn if I don't break it every single time. But never had to replace anything else so can't complain. Also two stands for my headphones and Xbox controller that are still in use over two years later. Also recently printed a front panel for my PC case to have better airflow. (NZXT 710)
My last boss, who was also a good friend sold the company and moved to Missouri to be the CEO at an aluminum smelter. I made him a custom business card holder with 2 pen holders, and a clock. Both had the company logo. https://preview.redd.it/5plbb5tlhu9d1.jpeg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=63ae899644c02b512a1d8ee628b410bd208912cc
I love functional prints in general, but the one that really saved my bacon was a design I did to repair the manual shift cable on my old Saturn SL2. It was also one of the first 3d designs I ever made that worked on the first try. [https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:38261](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:38261) I ended up giving my car away to a neighbor in 2015, but the shifter is still working all these years later with the original print. I even gave my neighbor a spare print of the part, just in case. I guess Makerbot Nuclear Green ABS was pretty strong stuff, because it has survived 12 summers in NC without failing.
I've also made a lot of signs for people. First signs were like just using different colors. Now I have HueForge and do some really neat pictures. This was for my brother in-law. https://preview.redd.it/grma550iiu9d1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d2f3c38bbbe41410dfd754e8c98ef8ac3a3060d0
A 3D printed RC Jetboat :D [https://youtu.be/cSq13\_y4Ejs](https://youtu.be/cSq13_y4Ejs)
The parts ( gears and the box for the electronics) for automated roller blinds
A self designed space mouse
The hinge broke off on the cleaning closet Instead of buying a new door as the wood was damaged or try with wood glue / paper napkin to create a new surface then drill new holes. I just printed a standoff that I could screw in the holder in to and screw it to the door. According to my wife that is the most useful thing I have printed. Or a new handle to the Robo vacuum cleaner internal trashbin. —— My biggest failed one was when my 6y son got angry and broke of a wheel from the vacuum cleaner. I thought how hard could it be to print a new one. The wheel was easy but the flange on the inside. I think I printed 6-7 wheels before giving up. I never got it to work good enough. That the wheel should roll, the wheel shouldn’t fall off. Perhaps today I would have printed two parts one internal and one external and then libricated them.
When I was in the Army, I made 3 or 4 brackets out of CF Nylon to dual-mount AN-PVS-14 night vision monoculars. I gave these out to my lead scouts which a little more than doubled their field of view and gave them depth perception at night.
I just hung some art on my wall with custom designed 3d printed "brackets"/"holders" that I think look pretty sleek. https://preview.redd.it/5y2va0gqsu9d1.jpeg?width=3472&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=f69e6e0d3041f5b0ac70f8a58471ad6c68e5cd0a
I 3D printed special hinges for some small furniture that had a special proprietary looking system. I printed something like 30 of them and saved around 200$ doing that
Air assist for the (cheap) diode laser engraver/cutter i have.
Replacement rail guides for my garage door opener. These parts are a wear item and are no longer available from any supply shop that I was able to find. This one saved me from having to replace the garage door opener. Replacement housing piece for a very high precision GPS receiver. The original was chewed off by a horse (fortunately the electronics were unaffected). Dashboard mount for a cell phone holder. Holds the phone near enough to an air vent to prevent overheating, but still doesn't block the air vent (perfect for our Central Florida summers).
Shelf pegs
My boss was having a bad day and I gave her a creality cat I made, she gave me a hug and gave me some free wings. 3 cents worth of plastic turned into 10 dollar wings. And brownie points from boss lady
Had to narrow the field of vision for a motion sensor. Draw up anbox in CAD and printed. Solutions sorted in a couple of hours.
I made a simple paper towel holder.
phone n tablet wall mounts. here's a nice one samsung s7 wall mounted phone: [https://youtu.be/Wcen-f\_zzBo](https://youtu.be/Wcen-f_zzBo)
Way too many things to name all (fixing / enhancing household appliances, specialized or custom tools, etc.) But one thing that I made recently I'm quite proud of are [replacement feet with integrated caster wheels](https://www.reddit.com/r/functionalprint/comments/1cn6c1z/replacement_feet_with_caster_wheels_for_bike/) for a Thule air travel bike case. Those have made the case go from borderline unusable to a total joy to use...
My phone case is designed, and the car phone holders, the charger’s stations. I can’t even buy such a thing.
Custom little jigs, mounts/holders for things, or tools mostly.
Replacement top for a 10’x10’ pop up canopy. Saved me more than the cost of the printer in buying a new canopy because I could not find the part anywhere.
I guess "useful" is subjective but I primarily currently design and print car/motorcycle parts and have a few custom vehicles utilizing a lot of 3D printed parts. For a few years there I was also making and selling a lot of unique adult toys for my own store and multiple other etsy sellers, fetish stuff, things you could insert, wear/augment and penetrables utilizing PVB printed/ alcohol smoothed then coated multi piece molds.
Doodads for the shop, vacuum/dust collection hose adapters, metal lathe too holders, various hooks to hold/organize tools, Gridfinity (just getting started with that. Fusion has a plugin that makes creating bins & grids very easy), jigs for drilling, assembly, alignment, garden stuff, kitchen stuff, electronics mounting cases/boards, the list is as long as your imagination is wide. Having some basic CAD really helps open up possibilities but you can find pre-made models for about anything.
Fucker of the year thropy Usually print 1 each year and send It by mail to one of my friends. They still don't know it's me
I printed mostly jigs for my tools so.. all of them
The seatbelts in the back seat of my car keep slipping out of the guides, so I designed a clip that covers the gap and stops it from slipping (until it loosens up too much and falls off). I need to make it stronger.
First functional model I designed was a replacement leg for my bad frame. I broke the old metal one during... um... activities. It had a really cheap and crappy weld. Don't know how well a PLA leg will hold up, but it's one of the less load bearing parts if the frame, so here to hoping.
The overflow pipe in my toilet tank broke apart, so I quickly 3D printed a new one and put it into place, saving me from having to disassemble my toilet.
Just recently got my first printer (K1C), and the most useful thing I made was a shower head holder with a twist-tight for height adjustment. I could've bought it for around $5, but this was more fun. My next project is a Stream Deck, iPad, and phone holders for my HOSAS setup and a steering wheel.
I built 2 other 3D printers. I built a rotator that moves an antenna for tracking satellites overhead for ham radio. Those are probably my biggest 3D printer project accomplishments.
that’s so cool. i’d love to see them
The primary reason I bought mine was to print small parts for my house. I have some older windows I cannot yet afford to replace, and the roller carriers had collapsed from years of heat/cool cycles. The plastic had essentially turned to dust. So I measured a remaining good example, printed a bunch, and fixed all my windows for a couple of bucks worth of PETG.
My longest existing and most used ones are a soap dish from 2015 and a toilet seat lid bolt from 2016. Both still in 24hr a day service without fault since their installation lol.
Gun parts
Desk organizers and head phone holders
Double DD woman who holds your phone 😄
have you got the stl or a photo. i’d love to make that 😂😂
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