String Shooter

thingiverse

This is my custom-designed string shooter. I first spotted a string shooter at a Maker Faire held in Madison, Wisconsin. The string shooter I saw in Madison was created by the talented students of the Madison Waldorf School Maker Club. After deciding that I wanted to build one myself, I rummaged through a box in my garage and found two DC motors, which I then incorporated into the design. These motors were originally used in inkjet printers. When my string shooter is operating, the motors spin at approximately 5000 RPM. I link the ends of the string together to form a loop by applying CA glue (Super Glue) to secure them. I demonstrate this process in the YouTube video linked below. To give the 3D printed wheels a bit of traction on the string, I wrap loops of bicycle inner tube around them as shown in the video linked below. There is an image of the yarn that worked well with my setup - it's yarn designed for knitting dish cloths. (Lily, The Original Sugar and Cream, Article 930H) My string shooter functions perfectly without the funnel featuring a slot on the side. The funnel with the slot in the side is only necessary if you want to be able to replace the string loop with a pre-made string loop, as explained in more detail in the video linked below. Without the slot, you must thread the string onto the machine and then connect the ends of the string together to form the loop. The wire loop situated in front of the funnel is only required when using the funnel with the slot in the side. Without it, the string may occasionally find the slot and fly off the machine. All of the components (except for the bent wire) are included in the OpenSCAD design file. You can easily adjust the thickness of the material for laser cutting within the OpenSCAD file by modifying the "t_material" variable. I printed all of the parts with 100% infill, as they are very thin and it wouldn't make sense to skimp on the material. I created a YouTube video showcasing my string shooter in action and discussing the two types of funnels, as well as demonstrating how I glue the yarn into a loop. https://youtu.be/IGIDy-IJxmo