If you’ve recently just bought a new 3D printer, chances are your mind is going berserk thinking about the potentials your new toy has.
But hold your horses! Instead of printing something as large and complex as a 3D printer or, dare I say it, a house, you might want to start your new printer off with something smaller and simpler.
Kickasss 3D Prints has 5 simple objects you can make with a standard FDM printer and some plastic filament. While not as life-changing as printing a new house, these “life hacks” are accessories you just might find useful when doing everyday tasks:
Toothpaste Squeezer
If you’ve ever had trouble squeezing the remaining toothpaste from its tube, you know exactly what this tool is for.
The toothpaste squeezer is made of three parts – a tube to wrap the toothpaste container in, a small roller, and a cap to keep the roller in place. Pop the toothpaste container into the tube, wrap it around the roller, and watch as your toothpaste ejects from the spout.
You might want to ease up on the pressure there, as a lot of toothpaste tubes tend to spray their contents excessively at the slightest hint of force.
Earphone Holder
Making this particular earphone holder requires you to print two covers with nubs on one end. These nubs fit into the holes of the third 3D-printed piece which you can wrap your earphones around.
Once you have your earphones wrapped, you can secure them in place with the covers to prevent them from getting tangled with all the knick-knacks in your bag!
Wrapping Paper Cutter
This one is a little more complex as it needs the addition of a small blade inside. You want to print yourself a rather wide tube of plastic so it can fit different sizes of wrapping paper but once you’re done, all you have to do is buy yourself some X-acto blades and squeeze one into the crevice of the cutter.
Slide the cutter down the length of your wrapping paper and you’ll have cut it into accurate dimensions with no problems whatsoever.
Lip Balm Cap Keychain
More an accessory than an actual life hack, printing yourself a lip balm cap keychain requires you to measure the dimensions of your ChapStick container and create a cap that fits it. Adding a small hole on the side of the cap allows you to add a keyring on it which in turn lets you keep your lip balm close to your keys.
Page Holder
The last “life hack” is a 3D printed page holder, with a hole to fit your thumb into as you read a book single-handed like the sophisticated person you are.
To be honest, no one really reads books this way; it’s just a fun object to 3D print. But if you ever find yourself with one hand on a long commute, you can always bust this out and look snobbish as you read literature with one eye and glare at the smartphone-using masses with the other.
If you want to make these yourself, you can find the digital files in the video description. For more 3D printing goodness, you can check the Kickass 3D Prints YouTube channel.
