[WARNING: May lead to extreme tingling and happiness in the fingers.]
With coronavirus getting everyone running around screaming with their hands up in the air, people are doing 62% fewer things with their fingers. IT’S TRUE. Think about it. No more hugs, handshakes, or high-fives. No more going into that building or opening that door. No more kong vaulting the cubical walls or throwing donuts at the side of the neighboring building. What are we to do?
Just when we thought all hope was lost, Devin Montes shows up with something to keep our fingers busy and our minds busy. The host of the YouTube channel Make Anything has a 3D print design (quite a few actually) that combines fidget toy + brain teaser that’s sure to keep you focused and out of trouble. He calls it the ASTROLABICON PRO.
Rotate the two halves of this twisting hexasphericon and move the marbles along its shifting track to rearrange them until all like colors touch. The classic difficulty is to have 4 different colors, with 6 marbles of each color for a total of 24.
It’s a simple two-piece print he designed using Fusion 360. He designed each side with magnets located in a ring at the adjoining faces to rotate and change positions between the two parts. An additional ‘clip’ was designed to allow you to keep the beads in place as you attach the two pieces together.
He recommends a 0.12-0.15mm layer height and 10% infill for a support-free print using Polyalchemy PLA filament for the puzzle and ABS filament for the clip. There are just a few purchased items to include as well: 14mm acrylic (no hole) beads, 6mm x 3mm magnets, and some E6000 adhesive (if you don’t have some already).
You can download Devin’s FIDJ puzzle (and find the many, many other FIDJ puzzles) on MyMiniFactory. See more of Devin’s design (plus his favorite 3D printing gear) on his website. [Bonus: Devin has some great puzzles, but he also has some other nifty designs, like these 3D printed polypanel tool holders – Check ’em out!]
Have a model you think everyone needs? Share the link and details with us here!
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