Folding DNA model kit no support necessary

thingiverse

I loved the design made by mkuiper but I absolutely detest printing support. I broke down the models into separate parts in such a way that they can be printed without any support. All you need to do is glue them together afterwards using super glue, which works best I've found. Adenine, Cytosine, Guanine and Thymine were a breeze to alter because the molecule is already symmetrical along a single plane. The backbone was extremely difficult to find a suitable plane for along which it could be split such that it would print without any support. I finally found one that works, but it relies on rapid cooling to print a few pretty steep overhangs. Experiment with the orientation of the backbone in relation to your part cooling fan to achieve the best results (steep overhangs facing the direction of the airflow). In addition, I've also noticed that the stand is unnecessarily split up into separate parts. I combined the 3 parts that make up the bottom parts of the stand into one model. I've also broken down the grip so that it can be printed without any need for support. The maximum overhang angle for the grip is approximately 55 degrees. I included the other parts of the stand for completeness' sake. The small molecules that go on the ends of the helix are only needed in fours, so I just printed those with support material because it's not worth the effort of gluing them back together.