Spring loaded retractable measuring tape

thingiverse

Originally, I had a broken retractable measuring tape and decided to repair it myself. After disassembling, I discovered several damaged or missing internal components. To fix it, I designed a replacement part consisting of a small cylinder for holding the metal spring and a plastic holder with an interior spindle. However, the spindle snapped during assembly, so I improvised by adding two bolts for stability. Despite this, the assembled part doesn't spin as freely as desired. To save money, I could have replaced it entirely, but I decided to over-engineer a solution instead. If starting from scratch, I would use a skate bearing, captive nut, and short bolt. For those interested, Sketchup files are available for further modification. Follow these instructions: print both halves, insert the metal spring into the smaller part, attach it to the larger holder, and measure away!