Filament Caddy

thingiverse

Say goodbye to filament spool feeding problems! A new era of printing has begun, thanks to a clever Filament Caddy design. Ball bearing rollers support the spool, gliding effortlessly even when it's fully loaded or almost empty - eliminating frustrating "air-printing" situations where the extruder can't pull due to insufficient tension. And to top it off, you can position the caddy for maximum accessibility. This nifty device accommodates all spool widths and features a convenient handle, making it simple to carry multiple spools around. Want to stay organized? Make several Caddies and store various colors/types within reach, allowing you to quickly switch between them when needed. To see the Filament Caddy in action, check out this YouTube video: https://youtu.be/lhfd9e6ddz4. For kits, head over to plasticlayers.com. Now that we have that covered, let's move on to the assembly instructions for your very own Filament Caddy. Here's what you'll need: A laser-cut chassis, which can be cut from 1/8" birch plywood or acrylic - see the EPS file layout for details. 1 x laser-cut chassis (refer to EPS file) 10 x 4-40 machine screws or M3, 20mm long 4 x #4 or M3 washers 4 x F623ZZ flanged bearings (if you want to use the roller tube. As an alternative, you can stack multiple (at least 12 - 4x3) 623ZZ bearings together, as shown in the exploded view.) 10 x 4-40 nuts or M3 nuts 2 x 85mm long tubes with a 10mm ID and a diameter of about 25.4mm - they should be made from aluminum or another material that suits your needs. 2 x tube adapters (refer to STL file) 3 x zip ties 1 x 36" (90 cm) length of tubing with an outer diameter of approximately 0.25in or 6 mm (I find teflon to be really 'slippery') Please take a look at the exploded view for a detailed assembly guideline