I Created a 3D Printed Sheath That Should Work With (almost) All Scales (WORK IN PROGRESS)
Posted: Tue Apr 25, 2023 9:41 pm
Hello fellow spider enthusiasts! I have been working on a sheath that is nearly entirely 3d printed. It does require 6 M3 bolts/nuts. It can be printed without supports, but I recommend them, only for the recesses for the nuts/bolts.
I printed in PLA, this seems to work fine. My test was done with all components except the spring printed with a .6mm nozzle with 3 outer layers. The spring was printed with a .4mm nozzle and 3 outer layers (the .6mm did not have the resolution).
I tried attaching the STL's but the forum attachment uploader didn't seem to like them.
This is a work in progress and still has many issues, as follows:
1. Blade wiggles a little side to side/ will rattle if your knife has been used heavily and the blade is smaller due to sharpening.
2. The detent that holds it in needs to be tuned better, it is a little weak right now.
3. Need to develop mounting system using existing bolts.
4. Insertion of knife in sheath requires practice, need to find a way to make it more user friendly.
5. More that I am sure I am not thinking of.
Here are some pictures of the design, I will go over them in more detail below the pics.
Pics of prints:
Pics of 3D model:
Completed pics:
Bottom of the sheath uses the spydie hole (in combination with the printed spring, discussed below) as a detent to keep the knife in the sheath. It also contains a ramp to help keep the blade from rattling as much.
The top of the sheath is fairly simple, aside from the slot that holds the printed spring.
The spring itself:
Please see this image for some tips on using the sheath:
Thank you for reading!! If you have any questions please let me know.
I printed in PLA, this seems to work fine. My test was done with all components except the spring printed with a .6mm nozzle with 3 outer layers. The spring was printed with a .4mm nozzle and 3 outer layers (the .6mm did not have the resolution).
I tried attaching the STL's but the forum attachment uploader didn't seem to like them.
This is a work in progress and still has many issues, as follows:
1. Blade wiggles a little side to side/ will rattle if your knife has been used heavily and the blade is smaller due to sharpening.
2. The detent that holds it in needs to be tuned better, it is a little weak right now.
3. Need to develop mounting system using existing bolts.
4. Insertion of knife in sheath requires practice, need to find a way to make it more user friendly.
5. More that I am sure I am not thinking of.
Here are some pictures of the design, I will go over them in more detail below the pics.
Pics of prints:
Pics of 3D model:
Completed pics:
Bottom of the sheath uses the spydie hole (in combination with the printed spring, discussed below) as a detent to keep the knife in the sheath. It also contains a ramp to help keep the blade from rattling as much.
