thzinc

3D printing

I sometimes post on Thingiverse

Hobby knife blade holder

I love a good “cutty tool,” and there’s nothing quite like using the right X-ACTO knife for the job at hand. However, I didn’t like the storage option provided by the X-ACTO Basic Knife Set. Getting the blades in and out of the plastic shell was a bit fraught and…
Official product photo of the X-ACTO Basic Knife Set hinged box showing ten blades set in a plastic shell inside the lid and three blade handles in the basePhoto of finished blade holder showing two rows of four blades on a relatively thin plastic card. There are compartments for each blade and the blades are held in place by a magnetic strip across each of the two rows.Sketches titled "Rough layout". A rectangle with two areas denoted across the top long edge saying "blade holder w/ magnet strips" and "tool holders." Across the bottom long edge under "tool holders:" "blades" and "handles" explain crude drawings of the hobby knives. On the short edge near "blade holder:" "lift-out trays" and "handle" pointing to an oval in the center of the tray. An inset diagram titled "Individual bladeholder" indicates that a single blade compartment is 14.5x50.5mm and has a magnetic strip that is 13mm tall in the center of the compartment.

Allen wrench holder

I needed a holder to keep my esoteric set of metric Allen wrenches together. (I also made a Gridfinity module to hold this with my pocket knife.) I made it to hold 2mm, 2.5mm, 3mm, 4mm, 5mm, and 6mm wrenches.
Photo of seven Allen wrenches slotted into a rectangular block. The block is debossed with numbers 2 through 6 indicating the size in millimetersPhoto of edge of rectangular block showing debossed numbers 10 and 20 along their respective edges

USB-powered AA shim

I wanted to display my Hackaday Superconference badge without continually burning through disposable batteries, or having to cycle through rechargeables every other day. A fellow conference-goer shared this LiPo holder design which just fits into the badge’s AA receptacles and provides a sturdy plane to which to strap a bigger…
Visualization of the AA shim design; a cylinder that has been bisected longways. there are discs remaining on the ends intended to help make contact to the AA battery receptacle and there is a protruding ledge to support the voltage buck board in an odd orientationPhoto of assembled shim next to a real AA battery for comparisonPhoto of assembled shim plugged into a USB micro cablePhoto of shim inserted into my badge

iPad mounting bracket for laptop stand

A few years ago, I bought a ridiculous-yet-useful octopus-like “Viozon Selfie Desktop Live Stand Set” to organize my desk and improve my work-from-home set up.
Product photo of "Viozon Selfie Desktop Live Stand Set", emphasizing the gangly arms that hold a laptop, a ring light, a mobile phone, and a microphone holderPhoto of 3D printed test jig holding an array of 3 by 3 1/8" magnets. The test jig is sitting on a paper print of the schematic of the iPad magnet detailsPhoto of iPad sitting in new bracket, showing a slim visible part of the bracket along the bottom of the iPad. A pair of headphones are hanging behind the iPadScreenshot of front of bracket design showing where iPad will rest
Art display board  🗒️

Iterations on hangers for art

I’ve been slowly iterating on designs to hold art on my cool, new display board. I haven’t settled on anything yet, but here are several of my attempts so far.
3D renderings of three clips. Each clip has a 45° angled cleat at its rear. The front features a downward-facing clip. The variations between the three are minor, mostly in the amount of distance between the ends of the clip3D renderings of a hook and of a bifrucated vertical support with a cleat as described earlier. The vertical support extends a long way from the cleat and has a support brace that keeps the design upright against the boardPhoto of printed bottom and edge supports3D rendering of a cleat with a circular hole for a magnet; a photo of a single printed cleat with a magnet installed next to a cube of approximately 100 cylindrical magnets; a photo of ten printed cleats with magnets installed
Art display board  🗒️

Big build day!

I have basically been thinking about building the display board all week, but haven’t had a chance to until today because of both work and weather. I’ve found this thinking time useful for planning the cuts and assembly procedure. I read up on some woodworking “best practices” that suggested a…
Technical drawing titled "Layout (Woodworking)" showing a diagram of the front and left sides with many specific dimensions called outTwo photos: 1) heavy-duty shelving unit parts assembled in a square with a protruding beam holding a mounting bracket for my phone and 2) me using the circular saw on a workbench located just outside my garagePhoto of me looking at two rails laid out on the board with the spacing toolsMe cutting French cleats with the circular saw
Art display board  🗒️

New project – Display board for art postcard collection

I’m starting a new woodworking–plus–3D printing project add some more art to my home office: a display board for my art postcard collection! For this project, I’m trying out a new way of writing about my progress through the project. I’ll write smaller updates as I iterate on the designs…
Sample of art postcard collection; several colorful postcards are fanned out nondescriptly; some postcards appear to be hand-sized versions of US National Parks posters3D rendering of a 400mm x 400mm French cleat system with 8 rails from which to hang postcards and other small accessories. There is a single plywood panel with each rail running horizontally across the face.Closeup of completed print of rails still affixed to the build plateCloseup 3D rendering of the same board from earlier, but with two spacing jigs on the left and right showing how the jigs will be used to position the rails consistently

Making candles with 3D-printed molds

My wife has been enjoying making anise, cinnamon, and citrus water centerpieces with floating tea lights. They look pretty on the table and they smell nice without setting off my scent allergies. But after a few weeks, we started accumulating spent candles. I started to wonder if I could melt…
Rendering of a small cupTwo renderings and a photo: 1) a small cup with a line bifurcating the cup vertically, 2) the same cup with one half hidden to show the base and the remaining half cup and 3) a photo of the final cup with a rubber band bound around the mold to keep it togetherPhoto of double boiler on stove; the inner pot already has candle wax melting in itPhoto of mold containing translucent wax; a pair of tweezers suspends a wick and metal base in the middle of the molten wax

Fidget switch on a whim

On a whim, after someone on a Discord server shared a video of a fidget switch they printed, I decided to try a quick interpretation of the design with the materials I had on hand.
Screenshot of the fidget switch modelPhoto of printed and assembled fidget switch

Paint fume extractor adapter for shop vacuum

Recently, I designed and printed a battery box to power some new lights on my bike. The box is pretty great and feels reasonably study, but I wanted to give it a bit more of a protective coating to avoid friction from pulling the printed layers apart. I decided to…
Cutaway view of assembly showing threaded central tube, a ring, and a grilleCutaway view of the concentric circles that contributed to the grille designTriptych of three-quarters view, top view, and cutaway three-quarters view of assembly fittingGrille still attached to printing plate

Prototyping a real CO2 monitor on the Flipper Zero

Updated January, 12, 2023
Screenshot of the applications list with the CO2 Monitor application highlightedphoto of Sensiron SCD30 sensor with a STEMMA QT / Qwiic cable connectedphoto of the a CO2 sensor affixed to a Flipper ProtoBoardscreenshot of section 3.3 of Sensiron's Design-in Guidelines

Prototyping a volatile organic compound (VOC) and CO2 monitor on the Flipper Zero

I’ve been playing with environment sensors for a while to help me understand how factors of air quality correlate to my health. In 2019, I had a particularly bad asthma attack that was exacerbated by wildfires in California. Since then, I’ve learned a lot about how 2.5 micron particulate matter…
screenshot of VOC monitor app showing good ventilationscreenshot of VOC monitor app showing moderate ventilationscreenshot of VOC monitor app showing poor ventilationphoto of Flipper with two sensors connected by a length of wire harness

My first year with a 3D printer

It’s been a full year since I bought my Sovol SV02 printer. I’m sitting at my desk with at least a dozen printed objects around me: fidget toys, small art pieces, organization trays, and electronics enclosures. The process of learning about modeling, manufacturing, and materials science has been fascinating (and…

New housing for RadioShack 22-810 15-Range Digital Multimeter

I was tired of fiddling with the fold-up case that my RadioShack 22-810 multimeter (photo not mine) came in. The probes were a pain to fit into the case properly and I also wanted to have the option to use wires with Dupont connectors to play nicely with my breadboard.…
Screenshot of Autodesk Fusion 360 showing a traced profile of the meter overlaid on a photographic scan next to a ruler for scaleFront of assembled meterBack of assembled meterMeter being used with a breadboard showing a measured DC voltage of 6.68

mRNA Vaccine Visualization (and cute frame for my vaccination record card)

I grew up with my mom telling me stories about chicken pox, and then a few of my friends caught it. I avoided catching the pox and I was able to be vaccinated against it. Now I’m an adult with a significant protection against shingles! I think vaccines are fantastic…
Screenshot of Fusion 360 rendering the mRNA visualizationPhoto of 3D-printed mRNA visualizationPhoto of 3D-printed frame holding a vaccination record card and an mRNA plaque

How I turned my Levoit Core 300 air purifier into a fume extractor

For multiple reasons–my asthma, air quality, and COVID-19–I run several air purifiers throughout my home. I run a whole Levoit Core 300 air purifier on top of my desk, which typically is useful for collecting my cat’s dander in addition to putting clean air out close to my face. However,…
A protractor on top of papers used to trace the partial profile of the cylindrical air purifierThe adapter, nut, and flange parts laid outThe assembled adapter fitted to the air purifier