Category: 3D Printing

Webcam Privacy Friend – 3D Printed Eyeball

Meet my new webcam privacy friend, a motorized and 3D printed eyeball that sits atop my screen.

I’ve used stickers and post-its to cover my webcam for years, for peace of mind that my webcam is only accessible when I want. But it’s hard to remember to replace the sticker after each meeting, and I’ve been looking for an excuse to try building a simple robot companion.

Here’s how I made it.

For this project, you will need:

And if you optionally choose to solder your circuit:

Check out all my favorite electronics tools and supplies.

To keep up with what I’m working on, follow me on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and subscribe to my newsletter. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases you make using my affiliate links.

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Tape Measure Yagi Antenna

My take on this classic design uses pieces of standard tape measure steel as radials, a 1-inch diameter PVC pipe as the mast, and 3D printed couplers to link the radials to the mast.

Supplies

For this project, you will need:

To keep up with what I’m working on, follow me on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and subscribe to my newsletter. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases you make using my affiliate links.

This video was sponsored by Ham Radio Prep. Get 20% off at hamradioprep.com with code BECKY20.

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3D Printed Candle Mold – Burn 2020

I’m saying goodbye to 2020 by burning a 2020 candle made with a 3D printed mold. This project is part of a collab with my friends 8 Bits and a Byte, Make It And Fake It, Hannah Makes, Ian Charnas, and Natasha from Technochic! Be sure to watch the dramatic supercut:

I embedded a handmade ornament inside made from sheet metal. The little dumpster fire is revealed as the candle burns. I was inspired by PyroPet candles.

I had the idea that I should be able to 3D print a mold for liquid wax to make this candle. See, the melting temperature of the wax (~60 degrees C) is way lower than that of the PLA filament (~185 degrees C). I had made soy wax candles in the past, so I pulled out my candle making supplies and did some research online.

Soy wax is much too soft to use for casting– it won’t pick up fine details or hold its shape after demolding. My research suggested beeswax and paraffin are more suited to molding into freestanding pillar candles, but that beeswax is notoriously sticky, making it more difficult to remove from molds. So I chose to start my experiments with paraffin wax.

Supplies

For this candle, you will need:

For the brass ornament embedded in the candle (optional), you will need:

To keep up with what I’m working on, follow me on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and subscribe to my newsletter. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases you make using my affiliate links.

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3D Printed Dust Port Adapter

Here’s a quick guide to making a 3D printed adapter to connect your power tools to your shop vac if they’re not naturally compatible.

For this example, I’ll be using my Ryobi planer and sander and my Festool shop vac hose, but these general instructions should work for any two tubes that are close to the same size as each other.

For this project, you will need:

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Cat Food Access Control with ESP8266

This project goes over the process I used to create an automated cat food bowl, for my elderly diabetic cat Chaz. See, he needs to eat breakfast before he can get his insulin, but I often forget to pick up his food dish before I go to bed, which spoils his appetite and throws off his insulin schedule. This dish uses a servo motor to close a lid over the food between the hours of midnight and 7:30am. The NodeMCU ESP8266 microcontroller’s Arduino sketch uses Network Time Protocol (NTP) to control the schedule.

This project may not be suitable for younger, more active cats. Chaz is so old and frail, he isn’t inclined to try to pry the bowl open, but it is possible.

Tutorial: https://www.instructables.com/id/Cat-Food-Access-Control-ESP8266-Servo-Motor-3D-Pri

If you’re new to the Arduino or the ESP8266, you may enjoy the following prerequisite guides:

Supplies:

To keep up with what I’m working on, follow me on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and subscribe to my newsletter. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases you make using my affiliate links.

3D Printed Parts

The cat food bowl holder is based on Ardy Lai’s design on Thingiverse. I made it bigger to accommodate my cat’s bowl, and also made it shorter since scaling it up had made it too tall. I added a holder for a micro servo motor, and a couple of holes for cables to route to the inside.

File on Tinkercad: https://www.tinkercad.com/things/49HoW04XYVq-cat-food-access-control-bowl

I modeled a simple lid using Tinkercad, designed to attach to the horn of the micro servo. You can grab my design directly from Tinkercad, and/or download the STLs attached to this step.

I printed the parts on my Creality CR-10s Pro printer with gold PLA filament.

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Emergency USB Power Supply (3D Printed)

This project makes use of a 12V battery, like you would use for a vehicle, for charging USB devices in case of a power outage or camping trip. It’s as simple as affixing a USB car charger to the battery. After Hurricane Sandy, I was without power and used an inverter/battery setup at home, but it was huge and heavy. This project revisits the concept with a smaller battery (meant for motorcycles/ATVs) and DC-only charging.

I’ve also created an optional 3D printed battery topper to cover the battery contacts and hold the USB ports. The design is available on Tinkercad so that you may modify it to fit your specific battery and USB charger.

The compact design makes it easier to transport and store. There are many situations where this device could be useful:

  • power outage
  • camping
  • off-grid living

Supplies:

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Prism Holder for Rainbow Portraits

I was inspired by the rainbow portrait trend to create a tool for precisely positioning a prism. This 3D printed prism holder cradles the glass while providing freedom to rotate for that perfect angle. The holder can be mounted on a c-stand or tripod, and comes together quickly with the attached STL files and a couple of nuts and bolts from the hardware store. Although I created it as a photography tool, it could also be used for physics demonstrations.

Here’s a project that has been on my list for TWO YEARS! Ugh, it’s so 2017… but I had fun modeling this prism holder in Tinkercad, 3D printing it, and using it to capture some rad selfies. It’s always fun to put another tool in the photography toolbox. 

Supplies

To keep up with what I’m working on, follow me on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and subscribe to my newsletter. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases you make using my affiliate links.

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Geometric Succulent Planter

I designed and 3D printed this geometric succulent planter in Tinkercad, which has five chambers with drainage and a catch tray.

Supplies

To keep up with what I’m working on, follow me on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and subscribe to my newsletter. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases you make using my affiliate links.

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3D Printed Glowing Flower

Create a fun light-up flower using 3D printing and Tinkercad! Optionally add some needle felting to diffuse the light from the LED at the center of the flower. The special Glow circuit assembly in Tinkercad makes it easy to put an LED and battery circuit into your 3D prints.

If you’d like to make the exact flower shown, you can download the attached STL files and get printing. You can modify the base model by clicking the “edit in 3D” button on the embedded Tinkercad model above (free Tinkercad account/login required). Or model your own unique flower in a new Tinkercad workplane using the tips in this tutorial.

flower-base-and-pedals.zip

Gather Supplies

You’ll need a 3D printer and filament to build this project. If you’re new to 3D printing, check out Jonathan Odom’s excellent free Instructables Easy 3D Printing Class to get you up to speed.

Supplies and tools list:

To keep up with what I’m working on, follow me on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and subscribe to my newsletter. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases you make using my affiliate links.

IMPORTANT: Coin cell batteries can cause serious injury if swallowed. Keep coin cell batteries out of reach of small children!

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LED Mason Jar Lanterns

In this easy 3D printing project, we’ll build glowing mason jar lanterns containing a simple LED and battery circuit. Download my file or build your own custom lid using the Glow Circuit Assembly in Tinkercad, which is designed to hold the battery and LED together perfectly. I’ll show you four different ways to style your lanterns using materials you probably already have around.

This is a beginner project that’s great for students/educators. Let’s begin!

For this project, you will need:

  • Mason jar(s) in size(s) of your choice (quart, pint, 4oz)
  • 10mm LED(s) in color(s) of your choice
  • CR2032 batteries
  • Wire cutters/snips
  • 3D printed lid with embedded Glow Holder in size(s) to match your jar(s)
  • Paper & scissors, glitter glue, translucent beads, etc. for decorating your jar
  • Calipers or a ruler (optional, for designing your own lid)

Make a copy of my Tinkercad file (free account/login required). The two sizes match the common mason jar lid sizes. Export the one(s) that match your jar(s) and send them to your 3D printer. I used Autodesk Print Studio to prepare the printer file and set it to 20% infill with no raft or supports. If you prefer to design your own lid, skip ahead to the design step.

To keep up with what I’m working on, follow me on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and subscribe to my newsletter. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases you make using my affiliate links.

Mason-Jar-LED-Lantern-Lids.zipDownload
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