DIY electronics, 3D printing and else

In a prior post I described the not at all long or harrowing process of getting my 3D printer up and running. With that out of the way, it’s time to move on to the hard part of owning a 3D printer: Figuring out how to make use of the thing. Having that level of manufacturing potential just sitting around creates a pressure to utilize it. It’s like this nagging feeling that a stopped printer is time wasted. Shouldn’t this thing be constantly churning out organizational and life hack tools that are a brilliant blend of form and function? Yes it should. But coming up with ideas is hard, and sitting around trying to brainstorm inventions is a waste of time. At least for me it is. Trying to notice solvable problems as they annoy you in everyday life is more effective. Once you get that mindset, all your problems are solved! Need a place to store your laptop so you stop almost stepping on it? Just hop on Thingiverse, download some wall mount brackets, and enjoy harnessing that vertical storage space. Smartwatch dock? Spare appliance knob? A weirdly large number of egg holders? No problem. A bracket to hang your bathroom squeegee* from the mirror? Nope. Thanks for nothing, internet.

Designing the Ultimate (aka only) ikea Bathroom Squeegee Mirror Clip

I whipped out the calipers (a must have tool for 3D printing!) and designed this in about fifteen minutes with Sketchup. I was aiming for a very high value to effort ratio, so while I did at least make things symmetrical, it’s not the prettiest design. You may notice the giant triangle cut out in the middle. This is a very lazy way to shave down on material. Proper designers utilize fancy bubble patterns or other fun tricks that reduce material and look appealing, but I guarantee that sort of thing takes at least several minutes longer. 

Take a look at the cut off corners that are highlighted in yellow. Originally those corners were fully intact. When designing this I had only ensured that the squeegee would fit, but did not all account for how much accuracy it takes to guide something into a slot like that. It took an hour and forty minutes to print that piece out, and it was unusable. I saved myself having to reprint by clipping off the corners with wire cutters. This is fine, but the moral of the story is that even after you have the means, and the idea, it can still be hard to execute it well. “Measure twice, cut once.” comes to mind, although “Measure twice, and try not to overlook obvious design problems” might be more appropriate. 

See below for a picture of the real thing, and come back next week for  TBD  5 Years on the Back Burner: Why Your Project Should Replace Pop Culture References with Bluetooth

*Do you suffer from moderate to severe mirror fog? Get a bathroom squeegee. They make towels look like idiots.