Category: 3D print (Page 2 of 3)

mouse rack

2018-12-22 / ron

No, it’s not a device for making rodents confess.

I use a MacBook Pro as my main computer, and I really love the trackpad. I only use a mouse for gaming and the occasional bit of high-resolution CAD work. I have really limited desk space, though, so the mouse was often unused but in the way.

This dirt-simple print (I don’t think it took me five minutes to design it in FreeCAD) lets me stow the mouse out of the way when I’m not using it.

Source and mesh files for your 3-D printing pleasure are on Thingiverse.

cameras, cheap and cool

2018-12-06 / ron

A recent article in TidBITS announced that the $20 WyzeCam Security Camera Is Almost Too Good to Be True. Joshua has been having a lot of fun with security cameras lately. He converted some old phones into surveillance equipment using Haven and Alfred. But $20 for a full-function dedicated camera just seemed like a deal we couldn’t pass up.

measuring cup rack

2018-10-22 / ron

In spite of having cleaned up my container lid drawer, I still have problems with drawer clutter. One place I particularly notice is when looking for measuring cups. I like to bake, and so individual-size cups are essential, but I hate pawing through the drawer looking for the right one.

printer filament shelf rack brackets

2018-08-21 / ron

I’ve started running out of space for my collection of 3D printer filament. I found this cool polished black PVC pipe on Amazon and printed some brackets to mount it on the wall. The spools nest out of the way between the pipe and the wall. Continue reading

shelf feet/caps

2018-08-05 / ron

I have a number of industrial racks I use for servers and storage. They’re a fairly standard design: angle iron and particle board. Interestingly, some came with no feet (which would be fine on concrete, but I have actual tile floors). Some came with only four feet. Some came with eight feet, the other four serving as caps on top of the angle-iron uprights.

When I first got a 3-D printer, I was excited to discover that somebody had already uploaded a design for feet to Thingiverse. The design was for much larger shelves, but it worked—it was, perhaps, the first actually functional print I made.

parallel productivity

2018-07-01 / ron

Josh asked me the other day about how we backed up early hard disks when we didn’t have small portable drives, the internet, NAS, or writable DVDs. I started telling him about my teak box with the tambour top that held 50 (or was it 100?) 1.4MB 3½” floppy disks. I remember a routine of running a backup program while feeding disk after disk into the machine for an hour or two every day.

usb thumb drive stand

2018-06-13 / ron

There are a number of cool-looking thumb drive holders around, but I decided to roll my own using FreeCAD and my 3D printer. It holds six drives with space in the middle for any loose caps. Continue reading

bit holder

2018-06-02 / ron

I’m not talking about computer memory.

I have a fair size collection of 1/4″ drive bits. Flat and phillips screwdrivers. Many sizes of Torx. Star drives, nut drives. But any way you cut it, sifting through them loose in a box was a mess.

It reached a critical point when I knocked the box off my tool chest and they scattered all over the garage floor. Colorful vocabulary and lots of searching on hands and knees ensued.

A quick FreeCAD design and some 3D printing later, and they’re all organized. Files are available on Thingiverse.

lid racks

2018-05-25 / ron

I have a lid drawer. I dread having to root around in it to find lids.

I have a 3-D printer. I can design and print lid racks.

lampshades

2018-05-21 / ron

Years ago, I bought a novelty gooseneck lamp for Joshua’s bedroom. It had four shades in primary colors (red, green, yellow, and blue if I recall correctly). It was fun, but the shades grew brittle with age and heat exposure and eventually broke. We redecorated Joshua’s room, and prepared to send the lamp for repurposing or recycling.

But wait…