My First 3D Print Project

[Nifty]

I really would like to keep my 3D printing limited to stuff that I "need" and try to avoid as much junk / trinkets as possible!

I've been wracking my brain to think of something to build from scratch, and I think I came up with an idea!

The "nut" on our toilet seat is broken and hard to access. I was thinking I could print a replacement... but that's boring. I want to DESIGN the perfect replacement!!!

So, here's what I did so far (even before getting my printer which will come tomorrow):

1. Logged into www.tinkercad.com
   
2. Downloaded this nut and imported it:https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:537094 (I didn't want to bother with thread sizing, etc. so I cheated on this)
   
3. Inserted a new "polygon" shape and made it fit the same size as the nut
4. Hollowed out the middle of the polygon
5. Final result:

That made the nut easy to access and only the bottom part is threaded!

Then I thought: "It would be cool to be able to tighten this by hand"... so I downloaded / imported this wingnut: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:716147

... then resized it and grouped it with my existing extension and hole, which gave me this:



I'm pretty dang excited!

I think I'm going to do like @The Hat did on his nut project and only print the first bit to make sure it fits the bolt before I commit to a full printing.

I also need to decide if I really want the wings on there since I may want to just use a wrench, the wings may get in the way of the toilet bowl, and I may need to build-in supports to hold up the wings during printing... which I'd like to avoid (wasted material and a pain).

I can't wait to get my printer tomorrow and give this a try!

 

[stratman]

The ideas are coming now! This is going to be a great adventure.

 

[The Hat]

I also need to decide if I really want the wings on there since I may want to just use a wrench, the wings may get in the way of the toilet bowl, and I may need to build-in supports to hold up the wings during printing... which I'd like to avoid (wasted material and a pain).

Gee whizz @Nifty, you certainly hit the ground running, you don’t have the Friggin printer yet and you’re already a 3D-aholic, now you know how I felt when I forgot to get filament and couldn’t print anything...

I like the winglets on your model, but don’t worry about supporting them because CURA will take care of that for you in one of the first setting, and don’t worry about the waste, there’s a Kilo of filament on a single roll and that’s miles...

I reckon someone might be up all night with this thing..

 

[Nifty]

Gee whizz @Nifty, you certainly hit the ground running, you don’t have the Friggin printer yet and you’re already a 3D-aholic

ya, when it comes to stuff like this, I kinda dive head-first!

I forgot to get filament and couldn’t print anything

Ugh, that would be SO frustrating!

don’t worry about supporting them because CURA will take care of that for you

Does CURA really know for sure when supports are / aren't needed? I guess I have enough filament to test how much overhang I can get away with

The ideas are coming now! This is going to be a great adventure.

Ya, and I just had another... but it's going to be more tricky! I have a small travel tube of toothpaste that I want to refill from a big bottle. I thought I could print a threaded adapter that goes from one to another... but getting the size of the hole and especially the threading seems super complicated!

 

[stratman]

I have a small travel tube of toothpaste that I want to refill from a big bottle

Sounds like a challenging project - two different sized openings and threads. If it doesn't work out then go old school with a syringe without the needle attached. Pop the plunger out, squeeze toothpaste in, replace the plunger.

Maybe you can make the syringe with the printer! That would be cool.

 

[FryingSaucer]

I have a small travel tube of toothpaste that I want to refill from a big bottle.

I'm wondering whether all the plastics you can use are safe, or whether some of them may be toxic

 

[stratman]

I'm wondering whether all the plastics you can use are safe, or whether some of them may be toxic

An introduction: https://pinshape.com/blog/3d-printing-food-safe/

 

[FryingSaucer]

I spend a lot of time poisoning myself with soldering fumes when building electronics projects. I thought switching to 3D printing might be safer. Now I'm not so sure.

 

[Nifty]

If it doesn't work out then go old school with a syringe

Well, that defeats the purpose of what I'm trying to do If I wanted the easiest option, I'd just buy new tubes at the store

I'm wondering whether all the plastics you can use are safe, or whether some of them may be toxic

From what I understand, PLA is made from corn and other starches, so it's pretty safe... at least safe enough for a slow contact with my toothpaste

 

[FryingSaucer]

From what I understand, PLA is made from corn and other starches, so it's pretty safe... at least safe enough for a slow contact with my toothpaste

I'm sure you're correct. I'm just desperately trying to think of reasons not to buy one of these things. I have a load of other things I'm working on which I know will not get done if I start on 3D printing.