Flowercrane

thingiverse

This thing is a sturdy little crane (the arm fixed mounted) that I built in response to my wife's request three years ago. She wanted to hang a large flower pot onto our fence without drilling any holes, so I designed and printed it for her. Unfortunately, after two summers of use, the hook suddenly broke under the weight of an overzealous squirrel who had jumped onto the pots. Undeterred, I recreated the design from memory and made some minor adjustments to make it easier to print. To assemble this detachable crane arm, you'll need a few basic parts: two screws (M4x30mm), one screw (M4x40-50mm), some washers, and self-locking nuts. The assembling process is straightforward - see the pictures for reference. Start by attaching the hook to one half of the arm, then place the other half on top and screw everything together using the M4x30mm screws. Next, insert the M4x40-50mm screw through the front hole and add some washers as needed. The design is optimized for our fence thickness, but you may need to adjust the dimensions if your fence is thicker or thinner. The cutout width is 88mm, so be sure to check your print settings accordingly. Some post-processing might be required after printing to ensure a snug fit between the parts. You can edit the design online at Tinkercad. To print this crane arm, use a heat-resistant filament like ABS and set your infill density to 80%. The layer height should be around 0.3-0.4mm, and you can add as many shell layers as you like for added strength - at least three is recommended. When hanging the load, make sure it's secure on the sides of the front screw, such as with flower pots or strings.