Lack Table Filament Guide

myminifactory

I'm currently building an enclosure for my Prusa i3 Mk2 and have opted for the cantilevered table design, which seems to be a popular choice. I've been researching various filament guides, and most of them feature either small holes or long narrow holes. Both options make sense. To increase the internal height of my enclosure to 18 inches, I'll be adding printed parts that will also serve as holders for the acrylic sides. I've been told that the small hole design might not be ideal for taller prints, so a longer hole would work better. This led me to come up with an idea: by using a wider cone base on the underside and a small hole at the top, the pivot point of the filament will be raised an additional 1.5 inches, which should allow for a small hole right at the top. At least, that's my theory – it still needs to be tested. I designed the bottom piece with a 2.5-inch hole, as I have a hole saw bit that size available. It should screw into place, and the top piece will simply fit inside from above, with some glue optional if desired (although I chose not to use any). My approach seems to have worked out well so far, although I did make a rookie mistake by getting the dimensions wrong for the larger cone. It fit, but clearly needed to be downsized – I'm guessing by about the thickness of the cone walls. I've since updated the files with better dimensions. The outside diameter of the cone is 2.5 inches, making it easy to use a hole saw of that size. This design has now been thoroughly tested: I've run several prints through and moved the filament full left and right at maximum height without any issues. Note that my enclosure's height (from the bottom of the cone) is exactly 18 inches – this is the pre-cut height of the acrylic I purchased, which informed my riser design. Paired with my filament spool holders, I feel like I've created a well-functioning system.