Useful and Interesting 3D Printed Objects That Work
The Incredible Hulk, Dragon Ball Z, and Pokémon figurines (characters + Pokéballs), and that one plastic doohickey that's a doorstop and also opens beer bottles - that's what most people first think of when they hear about 3D printing. Now, while many 3D printing enthusiasts do tend to print Hulk and Goku quite often and with gusto, 3D printers, even the common, domestic ones - can be used for more. In this article, we're going to list some of the most interesting samples of 3D-printed items. As you will see, for every ten Charizards, there's a 3D-printed headphone cord untangler, so it's not all toys and mindless fun.
Also, what about a Charizard that's also a cord-untangling thing AND a wind-up toy? Read on to learn more.
30 Useful 3D-Printed Objects That Work
1) Mechanical Tally Counter
Do you like counting from 1 to 99 and sometimes going back a couple of digits?
[Source: Printables]
Some people do, and most don't. Well, the good news is, whether you belong to the first or second group - a tally counter can make counting fun. It’s a perfect little contraption for keeping track of passing cars, train freight wagons, boxes and items if you're moving, and other countable objects. (It can also be a great toy for kids to learn numbers and counting.)
2) Rain Water Collector
'Every crisis is also an opportunity.' - An old Chinese proverb.
[Source: Printables]
Well, how about harvesting global warming-caused rainfall and storing it for later? (Possibly for purposes of irrigation or loading a water-powered gun.)
3) Wind-Up Boat
If you like winding up mechanical toys so you can see them walk, talk, or race down your carpet and into the sofa - 3D printers can make these with ease. This wind-up boat can be made entirely with the help of a 3D printer - the winding mechanism included, warts and all!
[Source: Printables]
4) Battery Holder
… in the shape of a Patriot or Grad-style missile launcher.
[Source: Printables]
To store your batteries and arrange them neatly to keep them all in one place, you need to feed 'the rockets' into their individual launchpads. There, they will be safe, and you will always know if you have some 'live' ammunition left in your house in case a clock starts losing its time-telling prowess, for example.
5) Glasses-Mounted Headlights
… may sound like more of a cheeky gift idea than an actual useful item. That said, you can rest assured that this gadget will work like a charm in case an odd sound in the basement needs to be checked out, and you can't find your flashlight. Also, reading in bed without waking your husband or wife is possible with these on.
[Source: Cults3d]
6) Remote Control holder
“Oh, for God's sake, where's the remote this time? Who touched the remote?! … It's fallen between these pillows, hasn't it … Let me just, argh ….’’
[Source: Printables]
The next TikTok-worthy scene is your dad's struggles to find a way to control the TV (he worked hard to afford it) without having to get up every time. To spare the old man's nerves and dignity, 3D-print him a remote control holder and fit it underneath the desk. You will be appreciated.
7) Watering Funnel
Pouring water from one bottle to another means using funnels and wasting time.
[Source: Cults3d]
Why not produce out of thin air a funnel that you can simply screw onto a bottle and then use the newly-assembled thing to water the plants easily.
8) 'Bookish' SD Card Cases
What better way to pay homage to books, a medium that's getting substituted by various memory cards, than by making SD card cases in the shape of a book?
[Source: Printables]
Whether you want to do just one SD card per 'book' or fit in multiple pages for several cards - your imagination is the only limit.
9) Bicycle Valve Covers
The remote control, keyrings, tiny pieces of fishing tackle, and bicycle valve covers - all of these belong to the rather large group of small items that tend to get lost quite often.
[Source: Cults3d]
Bicycle valve covers are easy to print, look good, and make fellow cyclists ask you where you bought them, no doubt.
10) Container Capsule
Whether it's your glasses, deodorant, car keys, or flash drive containing important passwords and addresses of cool IoT companies, a 3D-printed container capsule will keep it all safely in one place.
[Source: Printables]
11) Smartphone or Tablet Stand
Tired of your tablet or smartphone falling over constantly as you try to find just the right angle at which it will remain perfectly tilted, so you can watch a Netflix special?
[Source: Printables]
Well, with 3D printing technology, you can materialize a stand for either of these two devices or some other contraption roughly similar in shape. Never again worry about your favorite TV show characters toppling face-first awkwardly onto your bed just as the crucial scene is taking place!
12) Phone Amp
… to make whatever you're playing louder without compromising the often-fragile speakers that get built-in phones these days.
[Source: Printables]
No Bluetooth or cables are required to make this thing work, either.
13) Earphones Case
[Source: Printables]
Despite their terrible reputation as self-entangling device accessories from hell, earphones can behave if you build them a place to stay. A casing for earphones is one of the easiest and possibly most useful 3D-printing DIY projects.
14) Cable Holder (Desk-Mounted)
If you have a desktop computer or run a bunch of peripheries such as scanners and printers and have them all arranged on your desk, a cable holder will help you keep it all tidy and easily accessible.
[Source: Printables]
15) Center Finder
[Source: Printables]
Rather than resort to calipers and other measuring tools that you probably don't have unless you're a mechanic or an engineer, you can quickly print a center finder. Simply place it on top of a round object and immediately find its exact center.
16) Tea Bag Rack
Keeping all your favorite tea bag flavors in a single container with different compartments can make trying out new tastes much more fun.
[Source: Printables]
You can even organize a mini-tasting test for your friends and family as a fun party activity.
17) AA Battery Dispenser
… and it is important that these are AA batteries. (Because they are rotund and can be dispensed with more ease.)
[Source: Printables]
A great way to avoid losing batteries is to have them all neatly stacked, one on top of the other, like bullets in a chamber.
18) Recycled Cardboard Molds
… for pencil holders, boxes, trays, and other small stationery containers made from recycled cardboard pulp.
[Source: Printables]
3D printing these can be a great way to ensure you're all set at all times.
19) A Vase
Depending on the size of your 3D-printing apparatus, so to speak, you can print out a pretty decent-looking vase.
[Source: Printables]
Thanks to the power of the 3D printing logic, you'll be able to develop some pretty interesting designs, especially if you're crafty with the software part of the deal.
20) Mechanical Squeeze Fan
What better way to cool yourself on the hot summer days than with a fan you've made with your own two hands? (Well, designed in an app and then printed. Or, just download the template.)
[Source: Cults3d]
Fully mechanical, a fan such as this will only require some squeezing action to get you quite a fresh breeze.
21) Seed Pot
If you're into gardening, you probably know that developing a plant from scratch means paper tissues, small boxes, and plenty of patience. And water.
[Source: Printables]
Well, a 3D printer will help you with the small boxes. Using one of these printers, you can print a variety of seed pots with many segments in them that you can use for placing fertilized soil and whatever else you might need for seed development.
22) Credit Card Wallet
Credit cards tend not to fare that well in regular wallets. They are brittle, while wallets tend to be flexible, so breaking a card upon sitting down with your wallet in your back pocket is common.
[Source: Printables]
Printing one of these wallets can be a great course of action to keep all of your credit cards safe.
23) Storage Box for Small Gadgets
In this day and age, everyone's an owner of at least a couple of small gadgets, some of which tend to be quite expensive.
[Source: Printables]
To make sure these contraptions are as safe as possible when not in use, printing a couple of specialized storage boxes can be a great idea.
24) Bottle Opener & Cap Gun
… in one 3D-printed contraption that kind of looks like a gun.
[Source: Printables]
A perfect cheeky present, as well as a party item that will enable you to entertain your guests and also - open a bunch of bottles in a rather spectacular fashion.
25) Automatic Plant Waterer
As a plant owner, ensuring your precious anemones are well-hydrated is crucial.
[Source: Cults3d]
This is why printing a special flower pot that can water its contents periodically on its own represents a massive asset in possession of a flower owner.
26) Toothpaste Tube Squeezing Contraption
If 'frugal' is your middle name, then printing a simple-looking plastic object that you can fit on any tube of toothpaste will save you a lot of trouble when it comes to squeezing the toothpaste out. It will also save you some toothpaste.
[Source: Printables]
27) Card Shuffler
Avid card players will love the idea of being able to 3D-print a card-shuffling appliance.
[Source: Printables]
Of course, there's always some joy in shuffling the cards by hand, but after a couple of hours of playing, having a 3D-printed card shuffler might be just what you need.
28) Digital Sundial
Representing one of the cooler entries on this list, the digital sundial is a simple piece of plastic that you can mount anywhere it's sunny.
[Source: Cults3d]
This piece of plastic is shaped in such a way that the shadow it casts will display the correct time with the rays of light arranged like on a digital clock.
29) Hex Tool Box
… that rolls out when you open it can be a great way to both save space and fit quite a few items in your toolbox.
[Source: Printables]
The individual compartments can also be designed to feature even more compartments within them.
30) A Watering Spike
Last but not least, any type of gardening requires irrigation, and a watering spike is a perfect tool for the job while your plants are still small.
[Source: Printables]
This 3D printing job is quick and easy and can save you a lot of effort around your garden.
Best Software for 3D Printing
There are many different 3D printing software options available today, but we recommend using SelfCAD. With its intuitive interface and wide range of powerful tools and features, SelfCAD is the top choice for anyone looking to easily create professional-quality 3D models. Whether you are a beginner or an experienced designer, SelfCAD has everything you need to unleash your full potential in the world of 3D printing. In addition to being easy to use, SelfCAD also has various tools like freehand drawing and sketching tools to bring your ideas to life easily. There is also an image to 3D model tool that you can use to turn any photo to a 3D model easily.
SelfCAD also comes with its own rendering tool that is useful in generating realistic renders of your designs after you are done 3D modeling. There is also an animation tool that you can use to create simple animations of your designs. If you would like to 3D print your models, you can use the in-built slicer of SelfCAD to do so. The slicer is compatible with most of the commonly available FDM 3D printers and you don't need to have previous experience in design to be able to use this slicer. After you are done with 3D slicing, you can generate the G-code to send to your 3D printer with ease.
Conclusion
All in all, whether you're a gardener, IT executive, student, or just a handyman who likes to make new contraptions, getting a 3D printer can be a great new thing to try out. Not only will you be able to make fun toys and figurines of action heroes, but every now and then - you might even use the thing for something useful.
Author bio
Travis Dillard is a business consultant and an organizational psychologist based in Arlington, Texas. Passionate about marketing, social networks, and business in general. In his spare time, he writes about new business strategies and digital marketing for DigitalStrategyOne.
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