3D Model on Plicatim

Graham Escapement Desk Model, Fully Printed

Fri, 06 Nov 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Background/Motivation

I’ve always been fascinated with mechanical clocks, and the escapement in particular is kind of addictive to watch. One tooth of the escape wheel just gets let go by the anchor, and the other side is just in time to catch the next one. You always wonder, will it miss or not? Right? It’s kind of hypnotizing to watch how it works. So I always wanted to make one for myself to look at, basically.

And I wanted it printed completely: no screws, no bearings, no metal and no glue. So this is my take on it, a Graham dead-beat escapement, the kind used in good regulator clocks, driven by a printed PETG mainspring.

This post is the story of how it went from “it doesn’t turn” to “it ticks”. For the files and the step-by-step assembly, see the MakerWorld page.

Model Design/Modeling

The look is a skeleton clock: a black portal frame on a base, so you can see the whole train, with the gold wheels as the focus and the pendulum hanging in front.

On paper everything worked. The first full build told a different story.

The first dry assembly: five problems at once

When I put the first full set together, I found five things wrong:

the click (the ratchet that holds the spring) didn’t hold, the pawl just slipped out
the wheels were stiff
the barrel lid was loose and rattled
the pendulum bob touched the front plate when the clock tipped back a bit
one frame leg lifted during the print, the first layer didn’t stick well

Some were easy. The bob got a window in the front plate behind it, and the frame got a brim. The other ones took a few rounds.

Stiff wheels: the test coupon lied

The wheels were stiff even with the front plate off, so it was the back pin and the bore itself, not the plate alignment. The funny part is that I tested this fit before with a small coupon, and it was fine.

The problem is that the coupon was a thin ring, and the real wheel hub runs much longer over the pin, inside 6 walls. So I printed a new coupon with exact copies of the real hub at three bore sizes. The smallest one was as stiff as the real wheel, and the two bigger ones turned freely. Lesson learned: a fit coupon has to copy the real part, same length and same walls, otherwise it doesn’t tell you much.

It needed a full wind to start, then stopped

Even with free wheels, the train needed a full wind to get going and then stopped. After some reading, the reason was the gear teeth. Normal (involute) gear teeth start pushing before the line between the two centres, and in that part of the mesh the teeth rub a lot. In a car gearbox that doesn’t matter, but a clock train runs on very little force.

Real clocks use a different tooth shape (cycloidal), where the contact happens after the line of centres. So I changed all the teeth.

The pawl that kept sliding out

The click pawl is printed in place and held in its socket by a small bead. It kept sliding out, and it took a while to see why: a groove I cut later in the model removed most of that bead.

So the order matters. The bead has to be added after the cut, not before. After that fix, the pawl stays put and the click holds the spring.

If you ask me which part of the clock I like the most, after the escapement of course, it’s this one: the pawl and the ratchet. I really like that the pawl is printed in place, and then when you wind it, you hear the click. It’s so satisfying, and it’s just so smooth. There’s nothing else to put it together, no pin, no threading, just the pawl printed in place, and it works perfectly. I hope you guys enjoy the clicking sound of the ratchet as well.

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Setting the beat

The pendulum first sat on a friction clamp so you could turn it to set the beat (an even tick-tock). It turned way too easily. The clamp turns along the layer lines, and with a 20 cm pendulum, a light touch is a lot of force. In the end I made it a threaded boss with a thumb nut, plus a small printed spanner to hold it while you tighten. Loosen, set the beat, tighten.

Printing Notes

A few things in the slicer made a real difference on this one:

Slits inside the gear teeth. With the default Arachne wall generator and 6 walls, I saw thin slits between the wall loops along the middle of the teeth. A few Arachne settings changed (minimum bead width, minimum feature size, transition settings) and the slits are gone, for about 6 extra minutes of print time. Everything is set in the 3mf.
Stringing. There were some mild strings across the pendulum hole and between the ratchet teeth. Turning on Avoid crossing walls fixed it. It’s on in every plate now.
Colours. I printed the frame in PLA Basic Black, the wheels and barrel in PLA Silk+ Gold, the anchor and pendulum in PLA Silk+ Titan Gray, and the spring in PETG. The silk wheels worked fine with the fits, which I wasn’t sure about at first.

The two frame plates are about 31 cm long, so it needs an H2-size bed for now.

Model Usage/Resources

Wind it with the key from the back, set the beat, and watch it tick. On my build it runs about 20 minutes on a full wind, and honestly, I can stare at the escape wheel for those whole 20 minutes. It’s a movement to watch, not a timekeeper, there are no hands. It also gets smoother after the first few windings, and a little grease on the pins and pallets really helps.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

All the files, the 3mf with every setting and the step-by-step assembly guide are on MakerWorld.

If you’d like a version that fits a 256 mm bed, leave a comment there or below. If enough people ask, I’ll split the frame.

I hope everyone enjoys it as much as I do.

Seahorse Square Tail

Fri, 30 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Background/Motivation

When I saw the MakerWorld Biomimicry Design Contest, the seahorse tail came to mind right away. A seahorse tail isn’t round, it’s square, made of small bony plates. Researchers found (Porter et al., Science, 2015) that the square shape grips better and doesn’t twist as easily as a round one. I wanted a model where you can actually see that tail curl.

At first the idea was a clamp, a seahorse that grabs things with its tail. Along the way it turned into a model that shows how the tail curls, and honestly that is the better version of it.

Model Design/Modeling

The tail is 14 square plates, print-in-place, getting smaller toward the tip like the real one. The joints only bend toward the belly, so the tail only curls one way. One cord runs along the belly like the muscle, and the black eye is the winding knob: turn it and the tail rolls up. The fin above the eye works as the release.

The joints were the easy part

I was most worried about 14 print-in-place joints in a row. I printed a few clearance coupons first, and a 0.2 mm gap in the design turned out right on my printer. The first full tail came off the bed with all joints free, and they hold well even if you try to pull a joint out sideways. That part just worked.

The ratchet that never locked

The first eye knob turned, but the teeth and the pawl never locked, in either direction. When I checked the print, the small sharp teeth came out rounded, so the real overlap between tooth and pawl was much smaller than in the design. On top of that the knob sat on a split post that wobbled. Basically, there was nothing left to hold.

The fix was bigger, solid hooked teeth, a matched pawl, and the knob printed in place in two bearings instead of a wobbly post. That one worked well on the next print.

If you ask me what I like most about this one, it’s the print in place again, especially the knob. The whole knob is printed in place, so it comes off the bed and you can just turn it, without any assembly. Yeah, that’s the part I like.

Small things you only find with your hands

The second print worked, but using it showed a few more things:

the fin was in the way when turning the eye with a thumb and finger, so the grip on the knob moved up above the fin
the holes in the tail were tight for the 0.6 mm nylon cord, so they became tall slots
the cord channel at the tail tip had a sharp turn, now it’s a smooth curve, and the exit under the eye gets bigger toward the end so the cord never meets a smaller hole
the knob had a bit of play, so it got more teeth and a tighter bearing

One more came from the slicer preview: the wall on top of the head was too thin over the release lever pocket. That got thicker before the final print.

Printing Notes

It prints in one piece, no supports, a bit under 4 hours, in white and black PLA Basic on my H2C with 0.2 mm layers. The joints and the eye knob come off the bed free, nothing to break loose.

Model Usage/Resources

Wind the eye and it clicks, the tail curls and stays curled. To let it go, turn the eye a tiny bit more, push the eyebrow fin, and let it unwind slowly.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

It’s a model to show how the tail curls, not a strong clamp. The files, the cord stoppers and the threading steps are on MakerWorld.

Hope you find it useful, and if you know an easier way to thread the cord, please leave a comment below.

LED Lamp with Twisted Square Column

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Background

This LED lamp builds upon the twisted square column concept I explored in my previous twisted square column project. That design featured a simple geometric twist, but here I wanted to incorporate functional lighting to create a practical yet visually interesting household piece.

On the side, the lamp has gone through a few iterations as shown below.

The first on the leftmost is obviously a failed print. The main thing I noticed is that it’s not a great look for an LED lamp, as there are too many columns making the LED light on the bottom not penetrate high enough to make a pleasant look. So I reduced it to 9 columns in total as you can see in the middle.

The middle one looks better but when I put it under the LED lamp, it’s just too gray and the final result is on the rightmost, which is the best, as I personally think. Of course, it’s all about personal choice, and hence as mentioned at the beginning, I made the lamp three separate parts such that people can choose different colors/materials for each part, adding some flexibility/freedom of choice for this print.

Model Design/Modeling

I made the lamp consist of three parts: the base, where the LED is placed; the connector, which connects the PETG translucent top and the base; all three parts connected with a simple snap fit.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

Printing Notes

PLA Base

A brim for small surface area parts is important; otherwise, the part may move or warp near the bottom.

PETG Translucent

The wall thickness of the model is 0.8mm, which should only have 2 wall loops after slicing. However, different wall generators can remove the tiny gap filling, which has an impact on the translucent quality of the PETG.

As you can see, there is a tiny white gap infill between two walls when using the Classic wall generator.

But when I changed the wall generator to Arachne, the tiny gap infill is gone.

Because the wall thickness affects how translucent it is, you will see a subtle difference in the print, where there are two different “translucent” effects. I’m not sure if I can capture it in the photo below.

Once you remove the tiny gap infill by using the Arachne wall generator, you can’t really see different translucence effects, as the wall thickness is constantly the same, i.e., two wall loops.

More information can be found on the Introduction to wall generator in Bambu Lab Wiki.

The last setting I changed for a better look of the translucent part is to print outer wall first and then inner wall. You can check out the details in the Bambu Lab Wiki about the Order of walls. In essence, this setting can minimize imperfections on the surface, which is what I want to achieve.

The translucent part turned out great in the end.

Assembly

The assembly should be easy: just put the LED into the base.

And then put the connector on the base.

Finished LED Lamp

It could be used as a night light, or personally, it’s more like an art piece, featuring the rigid square column and yet the twist adds a dynamic element.

Resources

Twisted Square Column

Mon, 09 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Background/Motivation

I came across an X post featuring a twisted square column and was immediately fascinated by it. The visual impact for me is the rigid square column contrasting with the twist in the middle section—a beautiful geometric contradiction.

Fascinated by this hot wire cutouts by Piotr Waśniowski (left) so i tried to recreate it in WebGL (right). pic.twitter.com/DXpHpJUZRz
— Marcin Ignac (@marcinignac) February 1, 2026

Model Design/Modeling

Basically, for the purpose of advancing my modeling technique, I tried to recreate the same design. It wasn’t easy at first, as I only learned how to use Fusion back in December 2025, and my main workflow was solid modeling—i.e., sketch basic form, extrude it, and fillet/chamfer, etc.

At first, I thought it should involve a sweep, since the square column profile is the same along a path. But the question was: how do I draw a twisted path for each column?

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I know there is 3D sketching in Fusion, but it’s more free-form drawing, and I didn’t see a way to recreate all the paths precisely.

I thought about using Create Form to free-form each column, which I think is possible but not really a “logical way.”

Finally, I came across the Include 3D Geometry command, and then I had an idea for how to model the twisted column in a relatively “logical” way.

Basically, I used Create Form to create the “surface” of the twist. As you can see, the edge on the surface of the form body is the exact path I need for sweeping.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

Now, I used the Include 3D Geometry command to “capture” the path into a sketch, then I could use the Sweep command in the solid body tab to recreate the twisted column.

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There are some important details about how to do the Sweep so that the column twists as intended:

It needs a guide rail to sweep along, ensuring the twist is exactly 90°.
The profile scaling must be set to “none,” otherwise the profile will be scaled according to the distance between the path and the guide rail.

Printing Notes

The model can be printed without support. The bridging print near the bottom looks fine with default settings. It’s also useful to check out the Bambu Lab Wiki regarding the bridge.

However, there are a few important details I learned after my first failed print.

On the first print, I didn’t turn on the brim setting, which caused poor bed adhesion and led to print failure.

After turning on the brim setting, the print worked well. However, I noticed the top surface finish wasn’t great. I think this is because the column is small, so when the printer tried to finish the surface with “ironing,” it moved the column and caused a poor finish at the top. Turning off the top ironing should fix this issue.

Notes/Lessons Learnt

The Include 3D Geometry command is powerful for capturing edges from form bodies.
Using Create Form to define a twisted surface, then extracting edges as sweep paths, is an effective workflow.
Guide rails are essential for controlling twist direction and angle in sweep operations.
Profile scaling must be set to “none” to maintain consistent cross-sections.
Brim is essential for small, thin features to ensure bed adhesion.
Disable top ironing for small models to prevent the nozzle from moving them.

Spiral Lattice Vase

Sun, 01 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Background/Motivation

I just came across a YouTube video that teaches surface loft + thickness techniques. I used similar techniques to make a beautiful spiral lattice vase with an intricate cross-hatch pattern.

Model Design/Modeling

It should be fairly easy to make different lattice effects by using the techniques shown in the YouTube video.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

The main idea from the video is that:

The profile for the Revolve defines the shape of the vase.
The angle of the top and bottom surface loft defines the “twist” of the lattice pattern.

Iterations

Actually, there are two versions of the vase design. The first one had terrible print results because the lattice strands were too thin—I followed the diameter used in the YouTube video, which is 2mm thickness.

As you can see, the print was terrible. The root cause was the thin lattice strands: as the printer moves upward,

The thin lattice strands cannot provide enough support.
The thin lattice strands wobble, making the next layer not adhere well to the layer below.

The second version uses thicker lattice strands (4mm), and the result is much better.

You may notice near the top of the vase, the pattern is different—it’s because I added a different pattern so the vase can be printed without any support. Actually, it’s kind of tricky to make a different pattern near the top of the vase. If you know an easy way, please comment below.

Printing Notes

I got pretty clean results by turning on the “avoid crossing wall” setting in the Bambu Studio slicer. There is no stringing issue.

Model Usage/Resources

This vase is decorative—perfect for displaying flowers or as a standalone piece. The lattice design allows light to pass through beautifully, creating a stunning visual effect.

Notes/Lessons Learnt

Loft techniques in Fusion 360 are powerful for creating organic shapes.
Lattice strand thickness is crucial for print stability—4mm worked better than 2mm.
Adding patterns for support-free printing requires careful planning.
“Avoid crossing wall” setting eliminates stringing on spiral prints.

Resources

Want to print this model? Check out the MakerWorld Profile.

Ball Launcher 2000

Thu, 22 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Background/Motivation

We have a ball-pit with a lot of balls. Kids of course liked it. Just one day, thinking about anything else we can do about it—kids also like to throw the balls around—then I was thinking, why not make a ball launcher that adds more fun to it?

Hence, the Ball Launcher 3000—it’s mainly for the kids to play.

Model Design/Modeling

This is part of my learning process in 3D printing and CAD modeling. This is a challenge in terms of the complexity of the CAD modeling, which includes many mechanical moving parts.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

Launching Mechanism

It consists of three moving parts: the button and two levers. Why this launching mechanism? It was inspired by one of my kids’ toys. There are of course many ways to “launch” balls—I guess it’s just a matter of choice.

Another important launch part is the barrel, which can rotate to set the launch angle. Last but not least, there should be a spring mounted under the launch button. For this, I simply printed a torsion spring and used hot water to “reshape” it. It’s not an elegant way, but it works.

The idea is that by pressing the button, it triggers a “chain-reaction” to the last lever, where the ball is, and it will launch the ball.

By the way, the ball is 50mm in diameter.

Color

My kids picked the colors—yes, I think it’s strange, but they seem to like it. Plus, it’s a good way to test my H2C multicolor printing.

Appearance

I just built around the launching mechanism with a box-like appearance. I know it’s boxy and boring, not really eye-catching, but again, they seem to like it.

Joining Two Parts

As you can see from the design, it consists of two halves. How to hold two parts together is a challenge for me. Of course, there are many ways to do so. For this model, I constrained myself to use a snap-fit approach.

After some YouTube learning and iteration, here is my design:

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Initially, the snap-fit parts didn’t have the extrude feature on the side, so the two parts could wobble side-by-side or up-and-down. By adding the side extruded feature with a tight clearance of 0.1mm, it makes the two parts hold up nicely and tight.

Printing Notes

This is not an optimized way to arrange different parts with different colors together, but I just want to test out the capability of the H2C multicolor print. Also, this is an over 24-hour print—again, just to check out the H2C’s performance with such a long print.

Model Usage/Resources

Launch balls for fun.

Assemble

This should be fairly easy. First, put all the snap-fit pins into the holes.

Then put all the parts in the slot.

Finally, put the other half of the case together.

By the way, you can see the torsion spring is ugly because, as mentioned above, I used hot water to reshape it. Anyway, it works and it’s inside the case—no one can see it. And my kids care even less as long as it works.

Notes/Lessons Learnt

There are several things that need to be improved:

The loading hole on the side is too big; need to somehow confine the ball.
It’s tricky to align two lever pins together when closing the case. Two solutions, maybe?
- Cut holes on the side such that the lever pins are accessible by hand when closing the case.
- Make the mount slots bigger such that the pins can align easily.

Minecraft Sword Parameterized

Sun, 04 Jan 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Background/Motivation

I parameterized this Minecraft sword with cube size and edge shaping, so anyone can print it in whatever size they want—tiny or massive.

Model Design/Modeling

The sword modeling is fairly straightforward, as you can see from the playback below. It starts with a 10mm × 10mm square and keeps repeating using the Rectangular Pattern along a construction plane/line of the first block. Of course, this is my “intuitive” way to do it—probably there is a better way? Let me know in the comments!

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

The challenge part for me is how to color the blocks in Fusion and preserve the coloring when importing to the slicer—in my case, Bambu Studio.

If I simply export a STEP file from Fusion and import it to the slicer, it just has a single color.

One way I found to preserve the coloring is to use Save as Mesh and export in OBJ format, then directly send it to the slicer. As you can see from the video, it preserves all the colors, and you are also free to remap with different colors.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

This way seems to work, but I think it’s not user-friendly if someone gets the model from MakerWorld, because a user cannot remap the colors again as the model will become a single object in the slicer, as you can see from the video.

So, the compromise way is that I “group” the blocks into some “functional” groups in Fusion—like what I did, grouping them as “sword-edge”, “sword-flat”, “handle-middle”, etc. In this case, when you import the STEP to the slicer, all the component names will be preserved. What you need to do is select all the “parts” with the same functional group name, then you can change the color accordingly, as shown in the following video.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

At the end, I colored the sword in the slicer and uploaded the print profile to MakerWorld.

Printing Notes

Super easy print. I used 4 wall loops and 30% sparse infill to handle my kid’s brutal play. Feel free to lower settings to save material and time.

Actually, one thing I noticed is that because the sword is formed by individual blocks, if they are different colors, when you slice the model, all individual blocks will have their own outer and inner walls—which makes sense—but in terms of the sword’s strength, it is a huge setback, as the sword definitely will not hold up with any brutal play. Therefore, I need to “print” two layers with the same color such that all the infill will cross all the blocks. This makes the sword hold up much better. This is the way I can think of to solve this problem. Leave a comment if you know a better way.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

Resources

Want to print this model? Check out the MakerWorld Profile.

Ice Melt Shaker

Fri, 19 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Background/Motivation

I remixed the original model from @AdamL to make this ice-melt shaker even better for handling stuff like salt on those slippery winter days.

Model Design/Modeling

I remixed the original model to add holes on the bottom of the cup, allowing me to scoop the ice-melt, shake, and spread it evenly without much mess.

I also modified the scoop part because the original design had ice-melt spilling over the side edges. I made the scoop more enclosed to keep everything contained.

Modeling in Fusion 360

Things I learned while modeling:

First version of scoop: Real-world use differs from what you imagine in Fusion. The scoop in my first print looked okay but wasn’t useful because it was too small and not enclosed enough. When I scooped up the ice-melt, it spilled over the edge.
Second version of scoop: After seeing the problem, I made the scoop more enclosed—it means it’s a half circle as shown in the sketch:

The end result is nice:

No more spilling:
Learned to model threads: Mainly use the built-in thread feature and make sure there is clearance. I used 0.3mm, and the end result is just right—not too loose or too tight. Of course, there are tutorial YouTube videos mentioning 0.1mm/0.2mm clearance, but it really depends on the size of the thread and how accurately the 3D printer is tuned.
Parameters Design: For the bottom holes so I can easily change the hole sizes to fit different purposes.
Final Model

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Printing Notes

The only support needed is for the threaded scoop, as shown in the image above.

I didn’t turn on “avoid crossing walls” on the first print, resulting in minor stringing on the threaded scoop. For cleaner results, enable this setting

For me, using PLA is good enough. It holds up pretty well.

Model Usage/Resources

Attach the threaded scoop to the shaker. Scoop the ice-melt. Open the bottom cover and shake.

Note: I’ve attached the STEP raw 3D model. Hope you find it useful.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

Updated 2026-01-14: Uploaded a parametric model where you can change the diameter of the bottom holes—enjoy!

Want to print this model? Check out the MakerWorld Profile.

Basket with Hexagon Pattern

Fri, 12 Dec 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Background/Motivation

This is a simple 3D model I created while learning Autodesk Fusion 360—a blue tapered cup with a hexagonal honeycomb pattern.

Model Design

The design features a tapered cylindrical shape with a honeycomb perforated pattern, making it both functional and aesthetically interesting.

Modeling in Fusion

Just a few things to learn in modeling this:

The angle of the “wall” should be larger than 30° so that it can be printed without support. In this case, I used 75°.
The wall thickness is 3 mm, and the print feels strong enough for heavy items.
Use the Revolve feature to make the cup.
Use the Circular Pattern feature to create the hexagon pattern around the cup.

Your browser doesn't support HTML5 video. Here is a link to the video instead.

Printing Notes

My first print exhibited some stringing between the holes. Lowering the travel speed should help minimize this issue.

Resources

Want to print this model? Check out the MakerWorld Profile.