TinkerCrane - Crane

thingiverse

My grandson was captivated by a crane for his wooden train set, so I crafted this with various items at my disposal. It may not be an aesthetically pleasing creation, but he seems entirely unbothered. I'm thoroughly impressed with how well the printed parts interact with the dowel rods in this project, and I intend to incorporate affordable building materials like dowels or PVC into future projects whenever possible. Required components that aren't printable: String 1/4in OD water tubing (6.35mm) Small wood screws (#4x3/4) + plus some larger screws for anchoring the base. 5/8in dowel rods (15.875mm, mine vary from 15.7-16mm) Some sort of platform/piece of wood to screw the crane down to Glue You could probably use a set of drill bits for cleaning up/boring out holes that might end up slightly undersized. Assembly: You will need 3 of each CrankSpoolPart1 and CranksSpoolPart2. You will need 2 of TrolleyBolt. Parts with similar names are paired together. "Trolley.stl" includes the following parts installed into it: "TrolleyRoller.stl," "TrolleyPin.stl," "TrolleyPinRetainer.stl." The components listed as "retainer" are simply glued onto the ends to keep everything secure. CrankSpoolPart1.stl and CrankSpoolPart2 snap together to form the spools that hold the string. Make certain the holes align when putting them together. The "CraneJibHold.stl" sits in "CraneCap.stl," which then sits inside "CraneTop.stl." Only one side of the printed part can accommodate 1/4in tubes. Anything you don't want to move gets a screw through the provided hole. Tensioning the string: You can tension the trolley string in several ways. You can tie all your string on while leaving the horizontal beams mostly/partially extended and then just tap them out the rest of the way until everything is tight. I also modified the trolley with threads and a bolt so the tension can be set manually. Notes: "CraneJibHold.stl" demands support that touches the build plate. Part "CraneCap.stl" should be flipped upside down and printed on its top surface. In the pictures, I utilize excessively long tubing to guide the string. You could certainly use shorter tubing and route everything through the body. The pictures contain some parts from previous versions. The dimensions of the components are small enough to be printed on nearly any printer as the base and top are only 106mm x 106mm. The CraneTop features a gear profile, which I intend to add one additional crank handle and a gear to turn it...at some point in the future. 12/18/2018: I modified the design of the trolley to include threads for two bolts. This allows the string to be tightened by hand with ease. The TrolleyBolt.stl is hollow, enabling you to slip the string right through and out the side hole. The bolt originated from Thingiverse file "Nut Job" by mike_mattala. 12/18/2018: String spools were enlarged and divided into two parts. StringSpoolPart1.stl and StingSpoolPart2.stl. This allows for thicker string.