18650 FIFO Battery Dispenser

cults3d

I like keeping things rotated - they last longer that way. With two flashlights using 18650 batteries and half a dozen batteries laying around, it's hard to remember what was charged first and what as just charged last. None of the dispensers on Thingiverse fit my needs, so I made my own. Just my luck, one of the batteries is slightly larger than the rest of it's brothers and sisters, so I had to scale this up just a tad to account for that lone rebel. No matter, though. The smaller ones work just fine and this allows for more versatility. You can either stand this on a counter or you can hang it on a wall using the two screw holes in the back. As you drop each battery in to the slot on top, it rolls down to the bottom. This allows for FIFO - First In First Out - rotation. This is printed in three parts. All three are printed in their presented orientation. The main body needs minimum supports enabled everywhere. The other two do not need supports. For the text plate, you can either print it all one color or, as I did, print the plate itself in the same color as the body, pausing the print and swapping to a contrasting color as soon as the digits begin printing. The plate is then glued to the body using your adhesive of choice. I prefer to use Weld-On SCIGRIP 16 acrylic cement. This stuff bonds PLA together just like the old model cement used to, before Big Brother decided with was too dangerous and demanded a reformulation. But I digress... The lid can either be glued in place or left free-floating so it can be removed as needed.