Modular Hexagonal Drawers/Storage (Vase Mode, Cheap to print!)

prusaprinters

I REALLY liked a lot of the modular hexagonal drawers that you can find here, but after I printed some of them I learned that they're SO EXPENSIVE to print. I spent 40 bucks in filament just printing the hexes themselves, not even including the drawers! Because I really do like the hex drawers, I decided to make a cheaper (materials wise) drawer to print.  My design uses a vase mode part for the main “cylinder” of the drawer, then uses caps on both ends to provide additional stiffness. Compared to similar models of similar sizes on different sites, this model only takes HALF the amount of filament!! Plus you can mix and match colors to your heart's content!  HOW TO PRINTNO SUPPORTS are needed for any piece.For each “drawer” you will need the following pieces.Front x1Back x1Middle x1Drawer x1Optional: Drawer Separators. Each drawer contains slots to split it in half, in quarters, or in thirds. There are multiple sizes of “middle” and “drawer” pieces. Pick the size (depth) you want and print those. The front and back are universal.The front and back pieces should be printed the way you would imagine. Put the flattest/largest side down. These CANNOT be printed on their sides as the hex pattern would not have any support. I printed these with 0.4mm line width.  The middle section should be printed in “vase mode” or whatever your slicer calls it. In cura, it's called “spiralize outer contour.” In superslicer or prusa slicer it's called “spiral vase.” Make sure you turn top/bottom layers to 0 so it doesn't print a top or bottom. You want to print a (hexagonal) cylinder with no top or bottom on it. Furthermore, I recommend printing the center section (vase section) at a layer width of 0.6-0.8mm. No, you do not need a 0.6 mm or 0.8mm nozzle, just set your layer width to 0.8 and your slicer will essentially extrude a bit more than twice the amount of material. (If you were using a 0.4mm nozzle.) You may have to slow down a bit if your extruder can't keep up, but vase mode is already very fast so that's not a problem. I set my 0.4mm nozzle to print 0.8mm widths and it came out to be about 0.7mm, which works fine. For some of the taller/larger middle sections, it may be useful to print with a brim, although that will require a bit of post processing to remove the brim so it fits in the front/back nicely.  ASSEMBLYMake sure the pattern lines up with the middle section and either the front or back piece. The front and back of the center section are NOT identical, so make sure you choose correctly. I oriented the middle sections with the front UP and the back DOWN. Then make sure the pattern is rotated correctly (it can only go one of two ways.) Put in 4 of the 6 corners all of the way. If you are assembling the front, make sure you slide the middle section UNDER the little bit that sticks out (the non symmetrical side) FIRST or else it'll be hard to get that side in last. Then push in the flat side between the two corners that are not in yet. Push it toward the middle of the hex, bending it. Eventually it'll snap in place. Then make sure the front/back is pushed ALL of the way on and it should be good! It's a bit tough to get the front/back on, but I made it that way on purpose so it doesn't come apart.  To put the drawer in, put the non symmetrical side of the front piece up, then insert the back of the drawer while it is angled upward. Then slide the drawer in. The non symmetrical side of the front piece has a bit sticking out to make sure the drawer can't just slide out. It gets caught on that piece.  To assemble the hexes together, you'll need 4x “connector_F.” Two for the front and two for the back. I recommend tapping them in with a hammer.  COMPATABILITYThese drawers are compatible with these hexagonal drawers on thingiverse.  https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2862455 Basically I started printing these drawers, noticed they took a TON of filament, and designed lighter ones.  TROUBLESHOOTINGCan't get the middle section into the outer sections? Scale the middle section down by a percent and try to print it again. Do NOT scale the height, just the other two axis. (So use the non symmetrical scale option to just scale two of the three axis.) I initially had the middle section a percent bigger but it was a bit TOO tight and hard to assemble, so I scaled it down to 99% (and uploaded THAT version here.) This size gives me a good mix of holding power vs. difficulty to assemble. However, everyone's printer prints differently, so scale as needed. I recommend trying just 1% smaller if you find it to be too tight. Do NOT scale the front and back pieces. (They're sized to be exactly 100mm flat to flat.) It's easier just to scale the middle piece.