An isometric view of the final Inventor model
A picture of the Spool Holder mounted and with a spool loaded
An isometric view of an early version Inventor model. Notice that this version is a single piece
An isometric view of the final Inventor model
Filament Spool Holder
Company: Personal Project (2014)
Software: Autodesk Inventor
For my personal 3D printer, I wanted something to hold the filament spool that would mount to the frame of the printer. This would supply filament more efficiently and minimize the footprint. Through an iterative process, I designed this spool holder, printed, and mounted it. It works great!
This was a fun challenge to optimize a design for 3D printing and achieve functional goals. I really came to love the prototyping and iterative process that is possible with 3D printers.
My original draft was a single piece. After mounting and testing, I adjusted the spool mount angle so that it would feed to the extruder more easily. I then incorporated ball-bearings and modified the design again to take advantage of the smooth rotation they provided. This split the fixture into two pieces, which provided benefits for swapping filament spools and making it easier to print.
​