Make USEFUL 3D Prints with THIS List of Hardware

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With just a handful of different types of affordable, readily available hardware, you can level up your 3D printed projects from limited use, fragile, plastic toys to functional 3d prints, or even full scale mechanical wonders... and in this video I'm going to give you a complete list of which components to buy, what they're used for, and how they help you make your 3D prints more functional.

Stick around to the end because I also have some surprising and lesser known and frankly, downright funky goodies that I know you haven't thought of using in your own functional 3d prints yet... and they make for some REALLY cool 3d prints and 3d print ideas that you've probably never even seen before :)

🎥 IN THIS VIDEO: 🎥
00:00 Introduction
01:58 Nuts, Bolts and Washers
04:47 Heat-Set Inserts
07:00 NFC Chips
10:37 Magnets
13:05 Bearings
15:30 T-Nuts
16:43 Springs
18:11 Fans
19:46 Thermal Switches
21:00 Keychain Rings
22:01 Weights for 3d printing

🛒 RECOMMENDED GEAR: 🛒

🗳 STL FILES OF FEATURED 3D PRINTING MODELS: 🗳

🔗 OTHER LINKS 🔗
👉 My previous video on 50+ surprising functional 3D prints: 50+ Useful 3D Prints You Never Knew You Could Print

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[thenextlayer]

Thanks, as always, for watching! Let me know if any of these items surprised you below!

[chrismay]

Chopping at that rebar with the knockoff dremel and little cut off wheel is comedy gold...

[odw]

Really amazing content, never thought about NFC! I often design educational models, so being able to link to digital lessons is amazing. Some of my favorites:
1. Aluminum extrusions and threaded/smooth rods aren't just great for printer kits, they're also amazing to enhance weak printed plastic with a bit of a "spine".
2. I also like to use metal (jewelry box) hinges, bowden tube with wire (to transmit motion), and occasionally some wing nuts.
3. I sometimes like to use IKEA for parts, because people worldwide can source a metal "HACKÅS knob" or the textile from a "MAJBRÄKEN pillowcase", and replicate the same design that way.

[stevrgrs]

8:10. I’ve been using this for YEARS but it used to only work on android. I would have a sticker in my cars inside door jamb and whenever I changed oil or did any repairs I would tap it and update the info so it was always there ! It was AWESOME :)

[rudyandriani]

Yours is my new favorite FFF/Maker channel! It’s already been a huge help in getting my garage to be a more usable shop space!

[mikkelrasmussen]

It would be cool to see a comparison between the different software's. I personally use a combination of: fusion360, blender, mesh mixer and 3D Builder. it would be interesting to see some more about on shape since I have never used it, and I'm very curious to see what it can do and how easy it is to use. Awesome video I really enjoyed it, very helpful.

[akadventurer]

With a toddler around the house that helps dad with projects, you might want to Not get fishing sinkers, or old wheel weights for anything... Give it a year or two. Heavy metals and lead poisoning are a Real thing, and it is accumulative in your body... It builds over time and Can Not be removed. when you reach the critical level, thats it. For adults its generally OK, but do be careful, (wash hands, don't eat while working, well ventilate for any melting, etc) but you definetally don't want to have a toddler around that puts things, or their fingers, in their mouth etc...

[juandavidruizserna]

thanks for the recomendations, i am just starting my own collection of nuts and bolts, was forgetting washers, my budget is small but slowly i make it grow so i can grow my starting 3dprinting business

[davidstonier-gibson]

Thank you. You reminded me of a colleague from decades ago, a South African electronics guy. He had worked for a company in SA that made ghetto blaster radios (if you are too young to know what that is, google is your friend 🙂 . The Bill of Materials for the ghetto blaster include "House brick, qty 1"

I'm a retired electronics engineer. When I retired I started buying components, all cheaply on eBay. I now have a collection of transistors, chips, resistors, Arduino sensor module etc etc that would make some development labs look under-resourced. All, of course, stored in a 3D printed drawer system. There's not much I can't do in the space with my "in stock" range.

Once in a while I may get some substandard parts. But I have the skills to test and recognise, and usually correct for it in my designs.

[LostButMakingGoodTime]

This really helps the thought process for practical, useable, creative uses for 3D printing. I am new to the hobby and as I recently remarked to a friend, there are probably 200, 000 ready designs available to download, but how many Mandolorian figurines does a guy really need. Give me ideas and designs for things for grown-ups. Things I can’t easily or cheaply find as close as the nearest store. I’ve created a couple of items and already appreciate the process of designing things from scratch. CAD software is a heavy lift at first, but totally worth it. Carry on!

[mrspart]

if you live in canada they sell bulk assorted springs at princess auto 101 random springs for like $13. i bought one of their dual sided organizers and proceeded to sort what was far more then 101 springs per pack and all assorted.

[nahkanukke]

The amount off information that there is for 3d printing is crushing me. Thanks for this tight video.

[JB-NZ]

@The Next Layer, just FYI - the black bolts you have likely are not 'anodised', unless they are made of Aluminium. Anodising is an Aluminium process, not a steel process. You cannot anodise anything iron based. If you have steel or stainless bolts which are black, the term is not anodised, they are just black oxide bolts - which is sometimes called blackening. Just so you know.

[knurles]

Fan tip. Corrugated wire loom its normall sold with a split for installing around wiring for chafing but it is available solid nonsplit. Larger fan isolated from printer hung on wall whatever. Use a relay if it has too much draw. But you can flow a ton of air by printing a duct for the fan and pushing the air through this cable loom which moves easily and get the mass off your servo.

[Wooden_yeti]

So I am a maker considering adding a 3D printer to my tool lineup. I found your channel in the process of trying to learn more and you give a lot of good info. You answer questions I didnt know I had. You even give inspiration in videos like this that I didnt expect. Thank you for all your work!

[Sembazuru]

Terminology matters, especially when ordering hardware where you can't physically hold the part before ordering (because sometimes catalogs (both paper and online) have the wrong pictures). At 4:22 the machine screws that you show aren't flat-heads. They are "cap head", and if you want flush mounting you need to use a "counterbore", but don't require flush mounting. The cone-shape you mention are (usually) flat head, and always require a "countersink"ed hole or washer. Though, depending on the design of the countersunk washer, it may be able to be used to fit a flathead screw into a counterbored hole.

Now, your hardware names and terms may be different in Israel (I wouldn't know), but my explanation is correct for the US.

[HowtoDeluxo-yt]

I just ordered most of what you suggested (minute the fans, thermal switches, and weights because I have that stuff already.)

From alliexpress I was able to order an assortment of m2-5 screws, nuts, washers, lock washers, m2-4 heat inserts, 50 nfc tags, a couple hundred magnets (I'm a heavy magnet user), 30 608 bearings, a spring assortment, for around 130 canadian. Given what it would cost to source these all localy, i'm pretty pleased with the price. They'll be here hopefully by the first week of october. Had I ommited the magnets, it would have been under 100 bucks. Thanks for the video, I've been meaning to stock up on hardware because I keep over-paying locally. The list was a helpful place to start and just overcome my analysis paralysis.

[austinc]

You should get an angle grinder; the corded ones are pretty cheap, cutting and grinding wheels are pretty cheap, and for cutting something like 1/2" rebar they're definitely better than wearing out your diamond cutting Dremel wheels on. But great content, you provide a lot of tips most people don't consider

[scottthroop]

Great video! Thank You! A tip for weights: Lead is far heavier than steel, and will take up far less space for the same given weight. Simply visit any fishing tackle shop, sporting goods store, or big box store that sells fishing tackle. Lead fishing sinkers come in weights from 1-1/160z to several pounds. They come in a wide variety of geometric shapes lending many options for 3d printed cavity shapes that are helpful to make clean, solid streamlined designs without rattling or shifting.

[hybrispsycho]

only got into 3d printing last week and im slowly working through your back catalogue. love your videos and some of the ideas they have given me ive only got a weefun tina 2 s but already ordered a new neptune 4 plus so cant wait to try some of the larger builds