Joy Con box with magnetic cover

thingiverse

I was asked to make a custom case for my friend Aubrey's Joy-Con controllers, as her Amazon-bought case was too loose and causing the buttons to be pressed, draining the batteries. My 9-year-old son also wanted in on the action by lending me his own controllers for fitting. (Yes, I made one for him too.) I couldn't find a pre-made solution that fit all of Aubrey's requirements: holding two Joy-Con controllers with straps, preventing battery drainage, and looking great while doing it. So I decided to make my own. With some M3 screws/nuts and magnets on hand, I fired up Fusion 360 and designed a custom case that would meet all of Aubrey's needs. The design features a "bump stop" to keep the top buttons from hitting the lid, and uses curves from the Joy-Con controllers for a seamless look. To ensure that the M3 square nuts wouldn't be visible, I used the Prusa Slicer "change color" feature at 95.00mm Z height, hiding them under a few layers of filament. However, for those who don't have this feature or prefer to avoid gaps and holes in their projects, I've included an extra file with holes on top for installing nuts after printing. Here are the materials needed: * 2 M3 nuts (square preferred, hex ok) * 2 M3 socket head cap screws 20mm or 25mm long * 4 magnets sized 3/16 dia x 1/8 thick ($.29 cents each) - available at KJ Magnetics * 2 M3 washers Optional: You can fit M3 washers with a small drop of super lube for smooth action. Important Tips: * When gluing the magnets, make sure to get the polarity right. You want them pulling towards each other, not pushing apart. * To ensure correct orientation, assemble the box and install the magnets on one side (bottom or cover), then stick the next two magnets onto the freshly installed ones. * Be careful not to crack the magnets when tapping them into place. If using hex nuts, make sure a flat side is down. Flat to flat distance is the same as square nuts. You can find M3 screws and nuts at Amazon, and the $.29 cent magnets are available at KJ Magnetics. I highly recommend using these materials with 3D printing designs that use this size.