Predator Action Pliers

thingiverse

Having mastered Fusion360 basics, I set out to create a grabtoy similar to those made with OpenSCAD. A crucial requirement was designing it so that it could be printed without supports and assembled in place, ready for use directly from the printer bed. I recalled my parents' cool ice cube push plunger claw tongs and initially aimed to replicate that design. However, I wanted to change the push-to-open action to push-to-close, as you naturally close the hand when pushing. This was another requirement for the design. After experimenting, I arrived at an overcomplicated geared approach, which reminded me of the alien's mouth in the movie "Predator." I thus decided to name it Predator Action Pliers. For building the gears, I utilized the Helical Gear Generator by Gear_Down_For_What. The finished product appears menacing but has a weak grip, making it less than ideal as a grabbing tool. Nevertheless, it prints-in-place without supports and closes when pushed, fulfilling the design specifications and marking the project a success. **EDIT:** A new version of this thing is available: Predator Action Pliers Mk2. **EDIT2:** If you prefer the original design, you may want to print the PredatorActionPliers--more_grip.stl upgrade, which provides better grabbing capabilities.