Poke Ball

thingiverse

My young son, a Pokémon enthusiast, set out to create a unique poke ball that could be held together with magnets. Together, we came up with an innovative design. The top portion of the ball is secured by four magnets (two on top and two at the bottom). To print the two halves of the ball, place them upside down with supports in place, unless your 3D printer can handle the dome without additional support. I also printed the middle strip halves with supports to ensure the magnet hole doesn't sag and leave insufficient room for the magnet. You'll need six-millimeter by three-millimeter round magnets; you can find the ones I used here. This model requires some gluing, so be sure to use an appropriate adhesive for your filament. I also employed a small amount of hot glue in the instructions, but superglue may work as well. Print all five parts and insert two magnets into the receptacles on the middle band. Then, glue the two halves of the middle band together. The remaining two magnets go into the top receptacles on the ball. These are slightly more challenging to place since you need to approach from above without seeing them. To secure the top magnets in position, I applied a small amount of hot glue over them. Once the two halves of the middle strip are glued together, attach it to the bottom half of the ball, ensuring the round face aligns with the cutout on the bottom half. Finally, glue the button onto this round face. Magnets: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B078BGGYH8