Selecting the Ideal 3D Printed Fidget Toy for Kids Teens and Adults
May 21, 20267 Problems You Encounter Everyday That Can Be Solved With Fiddler Toys
May 21, 20263D printed fidget toys make an excellent beginner project. However many designs include moving parts or tight tolerances and can lead to failed prints. Instead of worrying about designs 3D printed fidget toys can require the right printing settings to achieve successful press fits on the first try.
One decent setting to try for fidget toys is approximately 0.2mm layer height. This is a decent balance of detail and speed and a reduction in the layer height setting for small gears can yield a smoother finish and edges when set at 0.12mm or less.
Fidget toys can also have spread limited to approximately 15-20% with many fidget toys falling around that range. More bending or repeated use will require a more dense structure (25-30% spread).
A common issue with articulated or print-in-place fidget toys is that they are designed to eliminate supports. Adding supports where unnecessary can cause parts with free DOF to adhere to each other and ruin the design. Always read the description to check for supports. When setting supports ensure that you use a minimum settings and preview the supports before printing.
Materials are important too. PLA is recommended as the best beginner material as it’s easy to use consistent and holds details nicely. If you’re working with fidget toys though it’s recommended to consider TPU as it has flexibility and prints great as a beginner material as well. PETG is a nice middle man as it’s flexible and durable however it’s a bit of a learning curve.
Some mistakes you’ll most likely run into are poor bed adhesion printing too fast and not considering tolerances. For moving parts scale down the design and use less printing and more cooling speeds. When designing fidget toys and considering every small adjustment will determine whether each individual piece can spin freely. Every adjustment is important for a successful fidget toy.
