Spool Helper for Overture's Recycled Cardboard Spools

thingiverse

2022-04-24: This should also work with Duramic recycled spools. It may fit Inland spools but I’ve only tested one of those and out was still too tight, but later I plan to make a version specific to inland spools. I have used this remixed spool holder: [RODAM Ender 3 spool holder](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3502973) for over a year and have found it very useful, but the new cardboard spools from Overture don't work on the bearings, and the weight is causing the friction to be focused on 2 spots. While it works, the extruder has to pull a lot harder to rotate the spool, so I created a Spool Helper Tube for Overture's cardboard spool so it can properly rotate on the bearings of the spool holder. It was also designed to ensure the spool fit without any issues on the [RODAM Ender 3 spool holder](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3502973). While I specifically made this so the cardboard spool would use the bearings of the spool holder I use, it should still work for any stock/standard spool holder if your cardboard Overture spools seem to struggle to turn, as it should rotate easier for any spool holder due to the weight being spread out compared to all the force focused in 2 small spots when just using the cardboard spool. (The cardboard also seems to have noticeably more friction than the equivalent surface area of a plastic surface.) To use: the tube just goes through the spool, and the endcap uses a friction fit to stay on the other side. (The endcap is slightly tapered, so depending on the printer, it may fit better if put on one way vs the other. My intent was for it to go on top-first, which gives a tight fit slightly aided by the layer lines, but is still easy to remove, but this will likely vary for other printers and slicers.) Eventually I may add threads or make a more robust mechanism for the end cap, but I don't plan to do anything too complicated. My goal here was to make a reusable tube so the new Overture cardboard spools work the same as the plastic spools, and so far these do the trick with minimal effort.