set of reinforced cable spools on a diet

thingiverse

This set of cable spools features extra cuts to conserve plastic and reinforce weaknesses thanks to slicer 3's 'modifier' option. Cable spools don't come apart easily now! I pinpointed the weakest spots as the cable openings, breaking both during unwinding and assembly/disassembly, so I made modifiers for those exact areas using slicer 3. No more broken spools! The extra cuts are parameterized, see scad files, but it's not an elegant solution, works though. Files included: * 3.5m 6mm thick cable - a very stiff spool requiring ~3-4m of filament for the print It excels at handling thick or stiff cables like power cords, monitor cables, short network cables and other tricky cables that need reinforcement. * 1.5m 5mm thick cable spool weighing in at 10.5g, with ~1.2m of filament needed for the print Good fit for 2x1.5mm power cords like those used for desk lamps. Thinner cables will work even better on this spool. With 0.7 extrusion width, single perimeter layer, a single bottom and 3 top layers I've managed to get these spools weighing only 10.5g. * 1.5m 4mm thick cable spool - an economy pick at just 8.5g Best for most applications, from USB cords to cellphone cables. For delicate or thin cables try the following: Put a thicker cable in first then wrap/unwrap quickly several times if drag persists, you may also need to apply acetone into the opening slot and wind/unwind fast again. Keep repeating if drag still exists then let acetone evaporate for dozen of minutes after you quickly disasemble it. Alternatively use non-oil lube like acrylic gel. Best slicing parameters so far with 0.24 layer height are as follows: * Minimum one perimeter, * .5 internal and external width * no infill % it produces sturdy part Inlays for reinforcements need at least .7mm perimeter , external and minimum three perimeters also printing slower will result in stronger parts (reinforcement files included see image ) edit : an even sturdier incarnation of the 3.5m spool with a smaller hub. The print settings remain mostly unchanged except that you should add another two external perimeters on those zones that have extra modifier (from reinforcements) in settings and then you may proceed to normal 2 perimeter and print normally with speed about as much or slightly less. it is now better suited for 4mm wire due small hub added, though if its flexible enough can use up to 6 mm wires for cables etc .