3d Printed Timing Pulley in 23 mins for $0.17

[@TheMartinson3]

I love that Mcmaster Carr has free 3d files on almost all their hardware and parts. I download them and add some fillets over the sharp edges and things usually turn out sweet!

[@michaelhenderson5098]

Just found this video while searching for how to print pulleys. Recently, the support bracket for our curtains broke. I ended up designing three supports (2 end brackets and a middle one). Each has two holes for the curtain rods to pass through. I installed them with 2 1/2 inch long screws so they go into the window framing. Cheep and easy to do. Wife spray painted them antique bronze. No one can tell they weren't store bought! :)

[@tuttuti123]

I love 3d printing. One day you just find something broken in your house and you are scratching your head on where the hell you can get spare parts for it. Heck, you have a 3d printer, and I need to use the broken thing today. So you print the small thing that you need to replace thinking that it will be temporary, and now you realizes that it's been months since it has first broken.

[@Themheals]

Powertool pulleys and their belts can be printed. Small bandsaws, drill presses etc. print the belts out of tpu and the pulleys from pla

[@amarissimus29]

Welcome to the future. I agree with your sentiments. It's the little things that make this technology great - the tiny little widgets that make parts work, fix broken ones, or adapt them to new uses. The true value is hidden to people who, as you said, don't care how things work.

[@michbushi]

It is worth mentioning that other youtubers have tested 3d printed gears and found that 100% infill is recommended, otherwise they get shredded too easy. Might be pulleys are more forgiving, as they interface differently with their working surfaces counterparts

[@gregoryhunter1698]

That has got to be the best shirt ever lol. Loving the videos, truly throwing some inspiration my way. Coming from a VW guy who does motor work, it seems there are endless possibilities for auto application, as well as industrialized application.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+Gregory Hunter thanks!

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+Gregory Hunter I think I will do a series or at the minimum a video about some of the 3d printed car parts I've made.

[@fsecofficial]

I’ve printed timing pulleys before but honestly they are so cheap it’s more of a get you buy till the real ones come. The best use of my printer has been mounts and things for various stuff.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

Yeah. The camera slider pulley is relatively light duty and I figured if it ever failed id just replace it with an off the shelf one, it hasn't failed yet. Mounts are great use.

[@PiefacePete46]

The uninitiated look at KZbin videos about 3D printing, and they see endless tutorials on assembly, troubleshooting, mods, using "black-art" software to finally enable them to make a little boat, or a tiny cat, or a vase, or maybe set their house on fire! WHY WOULD YOU BOTHER! The reality is that 3D printers are a very empowering tool for creative people. They are at their best making components for original designs, that would be almost impossible otherwise. You are on target with your thinking, although I am not sure my Mum is quite ready yet! I note, however, that you couldn't resist printing a Holy (holey?) Yoda! :o)

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

I agree. When I finally get my butt in gear to make some more videos I plan on releasing some fun new designs that print relatively easily and are fun functional toys, tools, games....beyond the benchy if your will. What do you make with your printer after you've moved past the honey moon phase and are ready to make something more than a Yoda head.

[@sanaehachi870]

Reason it not gonna break unless the steel shaft of motor break. The shaft and M3 screw is the one handling most weight.

[@ryangarrison7088]

I use the M2 at work with Simplify3D. I noticed that I can avoid that curling (you know how it curls up at the top when you print angled overhangs?) by using only 1 perimeter. Dude also, I've been looking into getting a "radial" blower fan to swap out the regular cooling fan. They're more powerful and you could add a fan duct that cools the print even better.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+Ryan Garrison great tips! Do you do one perimeter through the whole print or split the part up and use a different process near the top with one perimeter? I've been looking at changing the fans. I was just checking Thingiverse for mounts yesterday.

[@ryangarrison7088]

I know that printing a little cooler can also help. The M2 defaults to 215 degrees but that's actually really hot. A lot of people print at like 200-205. But I experimented and saw that the perimeters curl less on overhangs when doing 1 perimeter. If you're worried it won't be strong enough with 1 perimeter, then you can increase the infill to compensate. I've definitely used multiple processes to change layer height, but I haven't tried doing that for perimeters, that's a good idea!

[@Fluli]

hm only one perimeter isn't that good. It will be weaker even with more infill. Try a better fan that is blowing slightly under the nozzle at the extruding filament. Also decreasing the speed and temperature should be good.

[@JasonRobards2]

Great video. I'm actually looking for how to design the other pulley wheel (the one you didn't show :)

[@UDoIt2]

This is excellent. i want to do this to create a camera slide.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+U Do It that's exactly what I've used the pulleys for. I should do a video on my camera slider sometime.

[@josephschmoberg6778]

PlA is some pretty tough stuff, annealed, it is very tough and OK at a bit higher temps too

[@ronalddhs3726]

Hi, I agree with you 100%; the freedom that manufacturing democratization (the possibility of real and practical means of production in almost any household) that cheap 3d printing helps to deliver is still widely underestimated and untapped. (I have been 3d printing parts for a few years now) using it alongside with: A basic laser cutter, a few manual tools and some knowledge of mechanical engineering and electronics. Surface to say thanks for the video showing the possibilities of what can be achieved with relatively little effort and investment now a days.

[@williamchamberlain2263]

Obviously works, so I'm just being picky: why is the belt mounted so far down the shaft - would it be better (for torque on the motor shaft bearings, and on the motor mount) to have the pulley teeth as close to the motor as possible?

[@tuttuti123]

if your motor shaft is long enough the printed pulley can be supported by the shaft so it will be unlikely for it to shear. But if your shaft is short, well better get that infill to the max so it's unlikely to shear off.

[@AztecWarrior69_69]

12 cents and a thousand dollars in printing equipment and a few hundred hours on building and designing said equipment & part.

[@fsecofficial]

Awesome camera mount btw I need that

[@tonyt8807]

change to TPU and print the belt.

[@sadiqahmed-mg6or]

I need belt timing

[@jasoneyes01]

Hard to hear your commentary with the distorted noisy music.

[@starckmad1779]

Interesting and thoughtful commentary. Thank you!

[@Acoustic_Theory]

A) Keep us posted on how long the pulley lasts. B) Keep us posted on how long the belt lasts. (Does the uneven surface chew through the belt?)

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

It's still working fine to this day. The pulley and camera slider it's attached to will be 2 years old this summer. Granted it's used maybe a few times a month at light loads moving a light weight dslr camera around. Belt looks fine as well.

[@PiefacePete46]

The layers of the print are oriented such that the ridges are not "filing" away the teeth of the belt. It's like the difference between sliding down the bannister, rather than sliding down the stair treads! :o)

[@FirstLast-hp2tu]

@@SafetyGlassesRequired how about now?

[@kartikeyajp8294]

@@SafetyGlassesRequired yeah. We like to know.

[@avibank]

Do you think it could work for a motor belt drive system rated at 8000 rpm?

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+avi bank It might especially printed out of ABS or Nylon. If you need a bigger diameter of the pulley I might be concerned with it being out of balance by the metal nut inserted into the pulley for the set screw. In your application will someone or something get hurt if it fails?

[@tot2600hrs]

avi bank No, that "set screw" would cause unwanted vibrations at high rpm's due to the head. You would need a real allen set screw.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+tot2600hrs there is no reason you couldn't use an actual set screw instead of the socket head cap screw I initially used. Also in SCAD I would use two screws set 180 degrees apart to try and keep it balanced. It still might fail but it might last longer than you might expect.

[@heavyweather]

@@SafetyGlassesRequired the trick is to use an angle for the set screw.

[@RinksRides]

Fast, Quality, Cheap. Pick Two.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+Michael Rinkle I've heard the saying and used it myself and agree it's typically true. But that timing pulley has been used dozens of times now on my camera slider. I've used to shoot many of the​ videos on this channels. "Good enough for what it's for" is another saying I like that's appropriate.

[@heavyweather]

Quality+cheap....wait? Where?

[@MaxC_1]

@@heavyweather lots of quality stuff can be cheap. Thing is, relatively cheap so don't expect a 100$ part to go for 5$. More like 60-70$ is cheap And where? group buys, mass orders by a bunch of people and shit like that. Takes months and maybe years but much cheaper than single part

[@fsecofficial]

Where did you get that beasty vslot profile from? Must be 3 meters long?

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

It's Openbuilds Vslot. It's 1.5 meters long the longest profile they sell.

[@TheMikolasZuza]

Are you actually using Xiaomi Yi sport camera for not only timelapse, but as an Octoprint webcam as well? I think it can be done (rtsp) , but didn't get to try it yet.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+Mikolas 3D Printing I just use the Xiaomi for timelapse outside of Octoprint. I have a seperate cheap webcam for Octoprint.

[@timmusson4344]

What is that music for the first ~3 minutes? I want it!

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+Tim Musson Listen to From The Dust - Alive [Creative Commons] by Argofox #np on #SoundCloud soundcloud.com/argofox/from-the-dust-alive

[@rafatkhashan6079]

great Bro, i totally agree with you man

[@stephenprescott8105]

I agree with you ...

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+stephen prescott thanks!

[@thebeststooge]

Been there and done that and I rather have a metal one but thanks.

[@stevenjkirby2020]

100% agree with you here. I've tried printing timing pulleys before and whilst they turn out great an are totally useable, they don't last well (in PLA at least). Still I'm printing an AT5 pulley as we speak because I messed up on a timing belt order and now I'll have to wait another week for the right size. This pulley will keep my project moving until I have the parts I need, so there's definitely a use case for them.

[@MaxC_1]

@@stevenjkirby2020 PLA doesn't last that long in certain applications mainly because of the heat produced plus, it's plastic. PA/Nylon printed gears especially ones with specialised filaments last really long in most cases.

[@vidznstuff1]

You didn't attribute the source of the SCAD pulley files, or provide a link, like you are supposed to when you use it in public.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

+vidznstuff1 The link to both open SCAD and the Thingiverse page for the models are both linked in the video description.

[@-Gunnarsson-]

I cant see any use for a printed pulley thats not high accuracy.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

Driving a video camera on a slider. For this application smooth and steady motion is all that's needed. No need for precision.

[@PiefacePete46]

(1) A twenty tooth sprocket will move a belt twenty teeth, regardless. I grant you the lack of accuracy may introduce vibration, or other unwanted side effects. (2) Not all applications require high accuracy.

[@evertchin]

don't think it will last, also backslashes.

[@SafetyGlassesRequired]

For my application, a camera slider backlash isn't a concern, but it has barely any that I can detect by hand/eye. Out of curiosity I think I will take some backlash measurements with a dial indicator. I will update this page if it ever fails but for the load it carries I don't think it will.

[@edstar83]

ABS would.