Smart Spool Holder

thingiverse

**UPDATE** I've added a new rev. B with several key improvements below. After thoroughly searching and testing many spool holders, I realized that none met my requirements, so I decided to create my own using designs found here as inspiration, particularly: * [this design](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1319713) from [ali55](https://www.thingiverse.com/ali55) * [this design](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1725851) made by [steveyum](https://www.thingiverse.com/steveyum) This spool holder is specifically designed to sit atop an 8mm thick frame, like the Geeetech I3 Pro B acrylic frame, and can withstand the weight of up to three 1Kg spools (around 3.6Kg total weight). The design optimizes printer volumetric impact while staying within the printer's horizontal projection area. The curved lines allow for some flexibility under weight but also ensure no interference with the LCD and its buzzer. Used with standard 1Kg spools (~203mm outer diameter), no filament guide is required because the direct drive extruder remains visible in a straight line from any of the spools. When mounting, make sure the brackets' curved faces are directed toward the LCD screen while the bracket's flat surface touches the external frame on at least the left side of the printer. This allows access to the SD card slot. **UPDATE** In rev. B, I've reduced the curvature for easier SD card slot access and widened the bracket to use the LCD screen as a structural constraint. Additionally, I've simplified spool change by changing the shape of the PVC pipe lock so that it can be snapped into place without removing the brackets. This makes a huge difference in convenience! This design is meant to be used with a 20mm PVC pipe and uses spool adapters to center the spool on the pipe, depending on the spool hole: * [35-70mm](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3106032), designed by me for maximum reliability (no slipping) but requires some filament * [57mm](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2823611), can get slippy after a while * [53mm](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1246611), can get slippy after a while * [parametric](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:735213), uses some filament but not much, and can get slippy after a while * [parametric](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1370886), very light on filament and can get slippy after a while