12 Leaf Aperture Box

myminifactory

A 12-leaf version of my aperture box design produces a sliding 12-sided aperture, similar to a camera iris. The box utilizes a simple mechanism involving sliding dovetail joints and screwed hinge joints. It measures approximately 80mm wide, 80mm tall (using the standard container), and has a 64mm container opening. To open it, push the handles on the doors in a clockwise direction. I also have many more iris box designs available on my profile page, including an improved version of this design called "12 Leaf Aperture Iris Box." The part files are designed for M2x6 countersunk/flathead screws like these (as with all my other designs); 24 screws are required in total. The parts can be scaled to use larger or smaller screws, such as M3x8 screws at 150% scale. Buying screws in bulk from a specialist supplier is significantly cheaper. Two versions of the container are included: the standard container, which makes the box 80mm tall, and a shortened container that makes it about 40mm tall (as used on the green/grey example). There are also two types of "door" part: the "Door handle," which has a ridge to grip and open the box (two are used on the printed example), and the simple flat "door" part, which has no handle extension. Before printing all the parts, make sure the sliding dovetail and screw joints work correctly with your print settings. Supports are required for the overhanging section of the dovetail on the door parts. Don't worry about trying to remove all the support residue, as I've included extra gaps in the dovetail to account for this. I recommend printing just one "link" and two "Door" parts to test the joints. The sliding dovetail joints may be a little stiff at first but should slide smoothly with very little effort for the box to work well. Materials with low friction are ideal, and adding a little lubricant can help significantly. If the joints are too stiff, consider using a lower layer height or contour xy compensation (ideamaker is a free slicer that does this). Also, check that your screws fit securely in the holes on the base of the doors but are free to spin in the link holes and the head is flush with the part surface. You may need to use hole xy compensation (ideamaker also does this) to get a good fit. To assemble the box, print: 12x "Door" parts (any mixture of "Door" and "Door handle" parts up to 12), 12x "Link," and 1x "Container" (Short or standard size). Assembly is straightforward: first, slide all the door parts together. Then, screw the non-pointed end of the links to the container, and finally, screw the links to the base of the doors. It's easiest to open the box using your right thumb and fingers near the center of the box on an opposing pair of door handles. Let me know if you have any questions or problems with the design.