YADB - Yet Another DryBox

thingiverse

Yet another DryBox. Not sure if the world needs another one, but I guess I just had to do it my way. The core, however, began with Stefan's (CNC Kitchen - maybe the best 3D printing channel on YouTube) Tube Holder. The nice thing about this is that all the 3D parts you need are here in one package. The additional bits that you will need are: 1. Some small machine screws and nuts. Washers optional. 2. Ezy Storage 19qt IP67 Waterproof Storage Box ($10 from Target) https://www.target.com/p/ezy-storage-19qt-ip67-waterproof-storage-box/-/A-81967133#lnk=sametab 3. Some used or extra bowden tube. 4. Some small diameter PVC tube (or you can print some tubes I guess). 5. Silica Gel 6. A hygrometer is optional but a good idea if you don't have some indicator in your Silica Gel. The scheme is simple. Divide the box into thirds. Mount the T-brackets - two sets back-to-back. Once mounted, they will help you more easily locate the side mounts. Maybe slide a tube through the them to locate the side bracket. Mount the side brackets. Mount the nozzles on top. Cut some PVC pipe to fit or print some tubes. Add some Silica Gel. Done. More Details I suggest using a drill bit that is slightly larger than the machine screws you decide to use. In order to mount the nozzles, you will have to cut a small hole about the size of a dime in the top for each one. You might want to drill the mounting holes first, and then temporarily mount the nozzles so you can see exactly where to cut those holes. I suggest spreading a little silicon seal around each nozzle hole when you go to permanently mount them. Two of the nozzles should be plain ones. The third can have the extra dummy nozzle that is used as a cap holder. I don't like futzing around with a loose cap when a nozzle is in use. This provides a secure place to put the cap. If you use a dual feed printer, then maybe two of your nozzles have dummy nozzles. The nozzles are designed to have a bit of Bowden tube inserted into the end. This facilitates low friction feeding. I've tried it without the Bowden tube and I could sometimes hear the filament rubbing on the nozzle - even with slick PETG. The box amplifies the vibration and sound. So, cut a piece of Bowden tube that is a bit longer than you think you need - maybe 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch. Because the bowden tube is so slick, you will need to press it into the nozzle by pushing the exposed end with or against something hard. The tube is a tight interference fit with the nozzle. Once fully seated, you can trim the exposed tube as desired and tidy up the exit hole. The nozzles are tapered inside to make it easier to feed the filament through them from the reel. Printing the nozzles with supports prevents distortion in the outer bead around the nozzle. That support snaps off of the front pretty easily, even with PETG. There is a small stop on the inside of the nozzle that locates the Bowden tube. That may need some clean-up if you use supports or maybe even if you don't. It's a small thing, so be careful not to remove it completely when cleaning it up. Its the part that keeps the Bowden tube from pushing all the way through. The caps are a bit fiddly and don't snap on tightly if printed using a hard material like PLA or PETG. They just won't seal with hard material, but they probably do slow air exchange a little bit. I suggest printing the caps separately at about 95% size using a flexible material. I used TPU95. The caps come off of the nozzles fairly easily if you lift from the bottom of the cap in a bit of a vertical twisting motion. Print them open end up. You will need cut three PVC tubes to the appropriate length to hold the filament spools. I found that the tubes floated around too much in the holes between the T-brackets and would sometimes drop off of the other holder. So I made spacer plugs to reduce their movement. I decided not to close the holes in the T-brackets in case that might be useful to someone else. I suggest printing two thick plugs and using them from the start. I used silicone seal on all the top mounted parts because I had to cut holes using a razor knife for those bits. I figure that the bracket mount holes get sealed well enough by the tightening of the machine screws. And finally, you'll want to cover the bottom of the box with a good amount of silica gel. I used and suggest the kind that has only a sprinkling of indicator beads since the chemicals used in the indicator beads have some hazards associated to them. Parts List: 1. Bracket_Set.stl - Print one of these for a to get two side brackets and one T-Bracket Angled to fit on an Ender3 V2 bed. 2. T-Bracket.stl - Print three of these and one Bracket_Set to get all the brackets you need - 4 T_Brackets and two side Side_Brackets. 3. Side_Bracket.stl - included in case you need extras. 4. Nozzle_Bowden.stl - print separately if you intend to print flexible caps 5. NozzleB_n_Cap.stl - print if you want caps with the same material as the nozzle. 6. Nozzle_Cap.stl - for printing cao separately with flexible material. 7. NozzleB_n_Holder.stl - Print one or more to provide holder for with loose caps. 8. Plug_thin.stl - I never used this, but it might come in handy for plugging hole in side bracket. 9. Plug_thick.stl - I used two of these to fill the holes in the two middle T-brackets. This has been working well for me. The nozzles are tapered toward the inside so feeding filament into them is pretty easy. Swapping reels is easy. The RH stays at 10% or lower according to my hygrometer. My hygrometers won't read below 10%. And the Silica Gel lasts a long time because the box is well sealed.