Making thing that have real world uses...besides upgrading the thing that made them :)

I've printed out a lot of things that are fun but of no real value in day to day life. I do occasionally print things that have a real use (besides upgrading the printer itself...which as we all know will eventually lead to Skynet and the end of mankind).

I live my Octopus fridge magnets, the tentacles are great for holding tons of stuff and only using 1 rare earth magnet.

I've also made several large prints for terrarium hides and such.

What have you made today?

 

I've been working on making business cards.

I made one with moving parts, a propeller and a mask hanging off it.

I covered my local contact number on purpose.

 

Looks great. Next try changing out the filament after the card layer is done and you can get some awesome contrast. Ive done it a few time with good results, you just have to be careful not to move the print head.

 

I've been looking for a piece of metal, that is tube cut down the centre (semi circle) that is just the right size for the filament. I plan on connecting two pieces of filament in it. That way it will feed into the extruder without issue.

I tried your method and there is always a movement someplace and it never worked out for me.

I am also making keychain type things that people will carry and remember me when they see it. (Every time they see their keys!)

 

Anybody have a business card template to share that I could customize? Also, I have posted a forum question asking for help with converting .obj to .stl files (to print in MatterControl); does anyone here have any advice for either 3d design software (other than SketchUp) that I could utilize to design objects that can be saved in .stl file types? My RoBo R1 is new to me but I am not new to 3D printing; I had a ZCorp, Z-Printer ZP250 until early 2013. Completely different printing technology but similar design process. I am attempting to prototype a relatively simple item for the landscape industry and will be happy to share the design after I have had a chance to print/test it (I need about 1 week for both) which is why I need to learn how to convert .obj to .stl or find new design software that is more accommodating. Any help is appreciated!

UPDATE...I just found a link to a 3D search engine (http://www.yobi3d.com/#!/) that is AWESOME! Lots of business card template files and many, many other items! Anyway, I'm sure that you probably know about this resource but I just wanted to post it JIC. Thanks-RD

 

Try 123D. It is free and the recent versions are pretty good. I also use Sketchup and sometimes Meshmixer.
http://www.123dapp.com/design
http://www.123dapp.com/meshmixer

Sketchup is helpful because it lets you directly edit meshes imported from STLs which is difficult to do in 123D.

 

Thanks! for the replies...I really appreciate it.

 

Looks good, guys! I think the most useful thing I've made is a dog bag holder that attaches to my leash. I screwed up a bit when trying to think about how the leash would attach to the holder, so that parts a little screwed up, but it's still pretty handy. Today I ended up forcing the leash to fit how I intended it to, so now it will quit falling off.

I just finished printing a ton of controller holders for our various 360/PS3/Wii U controllers. I think that qualifies.

I've also made an ID holder. I work in a building that requires you to wear an ID on your shirt, and we also have cards to log into our computers. They gave us a holder that holds the ID, but I wanted one that would allow me to slip my computer card in and out of it too, so I modeled that one up. Can't attach a picture of that ATM.

As far as 3D modeling programs go, I've been getting pretty good with Blender. It's far from the best, I'm sure, but it's free and can do everything I've needed it to, so far! Blender lets you import and export to a variety of file formats, including stl, and even lets you edit them. One of the most recent projects I finished was a phone mount for my RoBo 3D. I found a filament holder on thingiverse that I thought would make a good printer-holder mount, and modified it to suit my needs without much headache.

 

@bamhm182, nice NES.

 

Thanks, I've got all sorts of consoles. PS3, 360, Wii U, NES, SNES, Dreamcast, PS1, N64. Gamecube. The Wii U is the only one that's currently hooked up right now since I haven't gotten around to doing all the cable management I want to, but Super Smash Brothers came out last week. Haha. Currently working on another functional print that I can nail into my entertainment center and velcro-strap my power supplies to. I think I've got it modeled like I want, I just have to get around to printing more than one of them out. I'll have to post some pictures of that when I'm done.

 

I printed the first part of a plenum for an air intake that has integrated velocity stacks, as well as a rear caliper bracket for drift cars.

 

I designed and printed a couple of racks for my sons guitars. One of the first big things I printed on my robo. (After all the mods/tuning it prints much better now.
They use 4 of 3m commander strips to hold it to the wall, very strong.

 

Also designed and printed some coffee pod holders. Some scrap black channel Al with the prints.
Both done on blender.

 

@scotta, you should put your designs up on Thingiverse. You've done a great job and your prints are looking good.

 

Thanks & Yes, just got to find the time.

 

These are 2 of my first prints. Both done with a bone stock R1 with the starter PLA provided by Robo. One is a half size print from part of an air intake plenum I designed for 20 valve Toyota motors with individual throttle bodies. I did 10% infill because I was impatient and you can see from the holes that it didn't like that. The velocity stacks printed with little issue at all. Overall I was impressed and saw the capability this thing has.

The plate is a test fit piece. The "cutout" is for an axle flange to see if my design would bolt up. The product is a bracket to mount 2 rear brake calipers on drift cars. The first full size prototype is printing now with some Hatchbox PLA, and it seems to be outstanding. The quality is so much better than the starter filament.

 

Got something else to add to this list. There was this 140mm fan hole in the top of my computer that I was nervous about things falling down inside of. Decided to whip up a shroud to cover it. I was thinking it looked pretty plain, so I decided to throw a Hylian crest on there for extra pizzazz!

 

See I can make things besides parts for upgrading my printer!







Definitely stronger than the original. Though it probably won't be used for it's unintended purpose anymore