Look, I like benchies and torture-tests
just as much as the next guy, but put all that aside because in this video I'm
going to share 25 functional, practical, and useful 3D prints that will not
only put your 3D printer to the test, but will each challenge you to learn
a new and important skill that every 3D printing enthusiast has to learn. Instead of wasting kilos of filament on
useless junk, I've chosen a series of prints that test you and your printer
on each of the different skills involved in 3D printing - from bed adhesion and
retraction to advanced slicer settings and flexible materials, all while
leaving you with a practical part that you can actually use when you're done. It's a veritable triathlon of 3D printing. Can you print them all? Will you? Let's dive in. Let's start our list off with one
single functional part, but a part which will absolutely rigorously test four
different aspects of your 3D printer's performance, settings and tuning. Behold the tupperware lid organizer. I know. I know. At first glance, it might seem
like a pretty innocuous print. It holds up and organizes
your tupperware lids. Big whup, right? But look again. You see, because of the vanes sticking up,
this print actually serves as a phenomenal torture test of filament retraction. Almost like those retraction
tests that people love to print, but in a more practical form. If your printer has any issues
with stringing, this part will definitely bring them to light. And because each layer is so quick as
you get to the vanes, it will also expose any cooling issues you might have too. Plus because the vanes stick up so high
on the larger model, this is also a phenomenal test of the belt tension and
stiffness on your 3D printer, not to mention helping you identify if you have
any z-wobble caused by a bent lead screw. If all that is greek to
you, well, don't worry. It basically just means that because of
the tall pointy bits on this print, this print is going to be great for diagnosing
whether or not you have any issues with something called z banding, which causes
ribbing or banding on long tall prints. Finally, add to all this, the fact
that this print has large square surfaces with 90 degree corners, and you also have a fantastic bed
adhesion test juxtaposed with the cooling test of the upper layers. If your corners bend or warp, you
either have poor bed adhesion or you need to turn down part cooling
during earlier layers, or both. Four different aspects of 3D printer
performance and knowledge tested in just one super functional part. Pretty cool, right? If you agree, then don't forget to
preheat that like button, would ya? All right. Are you ready? Because this next one will test
three different skills that, as you can see, often trip up even the most
seasoned 3D printing enthusiasts. I'm talking about these
customized drinking glass labels. Why are they useful? Well, since printing these out for
every member of my family, plus some for guests, I've reduced the number
of times I need to run the dishwasher in our household by like 40%. Okay, but what's challenging about them? Oh sweet, sweet summer child. First of all, in order to actually
make these cool and custom, you'll need to tackle OpenScad, a software
that lets you customize 3D print files without doing any modeling. Now, if that's a little bit overwhelming,
don't worry because I actually have a video coming out about that next week. So generously apply glue to the
subscribe button to make sure that you don't miss out on that video. In addition to OpenScad modeling,
this 3D print requires you to tackle flexible filaments to prevent the
model from snapping in half when you press it fit onto your glasses. Plus, in order to accurately adapt
the model to the various different glasses in your house, you're going to
need to test your skills at precision measurement using a vernier caliper. Don't have a set? Well check out my video in the link below
with a full list of the tools you need to level up your 3D printing workflow. Finally, because this model is split down
the middle and printed with notoriously stringy TPU filament, it serves as a
seriously challenging retraction test, as well as a crash course in the importance
of drying your hygroscopic filament. As you can see here, my TPU was not nearly
as dry as I thought it was forcing me to dehydrate and reprint these models. Without a doubt, these are a couple
of my absolute favorite 3D prints, and I use them for honestly everything. From pill containers (cue
foodsafe army in the comments below), to earplug containers,
to storing knicknacks, and more. But beyond being a supremely useful
print, these containers also serve as a fantastic test of your 3D printer. First of all, because they screw together,
they test the dimensional accuracy of your printer, particularly whether or
not you are over or under extruding. What's more, this little knurling
on the side of them requires that your printer constantly retract
the filament and put little dots of filament over and over again, which tests your retraction
settings and just begs for nozzle clogging if they're not dialed in. Finally, because the walls are so
thin and under stress when you screw and unscrew the container, this
is a great way to test your layer adhesion and print temperatures. I love these cable organizers
largely because I really hate dangling cables everywhere. Now, while this might seem like
a silly, simple print, it's not. First of all, you'll need to use
flexible filaments if you want it to work smoothly and cleanly. That combined with the fact that they have
these very tight slits also means that you'll need retraction dialed in properly. And because infill versus additional
perimeters have vastly different effects on how much squish you actually
get in which areas of the print, this will also force you to learn about
the difference and play around with slicer settings to get it just right. But when you do get it right, these
are super useful prints that you'll want to keep extras of on hand. By the way, while we're organizing
our cables, let's jump to these little cable organizers if you notice them in
the frame, and they help you organize your cables when they're not in use. Now, I only recently discovered
these cable organizers, but let me tell you, they're quickly
becoming some of my favorite prints. Oftentimes, 3D printed gadgets like
this don't work all that well because they're too fragile or they have lots
of mechanical friction, but not these. These are smooth and easy to use as they
are practical, and I absolutely love them. What's more, they actually offer a
bunch of fun tests for your 3D printer. First, the tight tolerances of the lid
and the snap-on tabs test the dimensional accuracy of your printer and extruder. Once again, the thin walls on the body,
which will be under pressure when the cable's inserted, tests layer adhesion. The split spines and cable
slit test retraction. And finally, because you'll inevitably
need to change the dimensions and scale them non proportionally to fit
different types of cables or drawers, they are a great introduction to
customizing prints within your slicer. Now, you'll probably notice that most
of these prints so far are pretty low tech, but 3D printing doesn't have to be. In fact, with something as simple as a
custom PCB and a little bit of wiring, you could create literally anything
you want from a 3D printed robotic dog that looks and works like the $50,000
Boston Dynamics robot, to a complete retro handhold gaming console, to even
a micro handheld resin 3D printer. But in the past, getting custom PCBs
has been really hard and expensive with huge minimum order quantities. Fortunately, that's no longer an issue. Thanks to today's sponsor, PCBWay. PCBWay allows you to upload your
own custom PCBs and order as few as 10 of them for just five bucks. If you don't know how to design PCBs, no
worries because you just check out their library of amazing projects where you can
order the PCBs that others have uploaded and follow along with their instructions. So check 'em out in the description below
and get a discount on your first order and support this channel in doing so. Big thanks to PCBWay for your support. All right, back to the video, and since
we're on the topic of mixing technology and 3D printing, let's talk about this
tablet stand that I have standing here. And I hope you're ready for a tough one. See, obviously it's very functional. I'm actually using it so I can
see my monitor right on here. But it’s also a pain in the you-know-what
to print properly and here's why. First, because it uses these 3D printed
nuts and screws with extremely tight tolerances in order to maximize tension, it simply won't fit together
properly if your dimensions are off. I, for example, tried to print it on my
Voron 2.4 before finishing a thorough extruder calibration and pressure
advance, and the parts just didn't fit. You'll see I actually had to glue
them together in order to get it to hold the iPad so I could fit here. And the little friction divots
were nowhere near precise enough to actually catch on one another
and provide adjustable ratcheting. So as you can see, I literally had
to glue this thing together with some 3D glue to get it in a fixed position
enough so I could just use it until I have time to print another one. On top of that, there's obviously a
lot of tension on this entire thing due to the weight on it, the tiny snap-in
fins that go under it, which if your print strength isn't dialed in, or if
again, the holes are too tight because of extrusion issues, they'll break. Finally, this large base with minimal
surface area, actually touching the bed is a great way not only to test bed
adhesion, but also first layer quality. All in all, you can definitely tell
that I printed this on a printer that was not yet fully calibrated, and it
was because of this part, actually, not because of the bunches of benchies
or other functional parts I did, that I realized how off my extrusion was
and I was able to diagnose and fix it. Now, I don't know about all of
you, but I do a lot of drilling around the house, and when I do,
I make a godawful mess doing it. Fortunately, I discovered the simple
drill dust collector, which does exactly what the name suggests. Now, you might think that this is
a simple print, and quite frankly, you'd be right, but that doesn't stop
it from challenging your 3D printer. In fact, this was one of the first
prints I did on the Bamboo Lab X1-Carbon, and it was because of this print that
I realized how finicky the cool plate can be when it comes to bed adhesion. Now that's because this is a relatively
tall print with a large, flat square surface area that will curl up
if it's cooled too much too fast. But conversely, the bottom of this
print hasn't been designed as well as it could have for 3D printing. Instead of using chamfered
edges - 45 degree angles, it uses filleted edges or rounded ones. And those round edges on the build
plate are really hard overhangs for your 3D printer, and so they require an
insane amount of cooling to get right. But with that insane early cooling,
it means everything is likely to curl off the print surface. In short, this is a challenging print for
even the best printers on the market, and it will bring to light any bed adhesion
issues that you didn't even think you had. Here's another one that I just love. I've printed off a fair number of
broom holders and the like, and I'm generally really disappointed because
they often lose their shape after a few months under tension, but not this one. It holds your broom or other
cleaning device firmly with a satisfying snap when you insert it. It's also our first "print in
place" device on the list, meaning it prints in one single piece. And that's really cool, but it also
means that you need to have things like dimensional accuracy absolutely dialed in. And since it's going to be holding weight
with two screws that can easily separate the layers if they aren't fused properly. It also tests layer
adhesion and strength too. As you probably noticed, I love
plants and gardening, though I'm not all that good at it. In any case, these garden labels are
awesome because despite being relatively simple prints, they test a few different
things and develop a few very fun skills. First, because they're going
to be used outside in the sun, they ideally should be printed
in ASA, or at least PETG, earning them an advanced filaments badge. Because of the unique and sharp shapes
making contact with the print surface, they also test bed adhesion to the limits. And in order to make the text clear and
legible, you're going to need to not only have your retraction dialed in,
but you'll also need to play around with more advanced slicer settings, such as
changing the color mid print, and then you'll need to learn how to execute
those purges, unloads, and loads to facilitate color changes on your printer,
which varies from printer to printer. While we're on the topic of more advanced
slicer settings, let's talk about one that every 3D printing enthusiast absolutely
must know about, and that's vase mode. With this beautiful dragon scales
pot and vase that I have here. In case you don't know, vase mode is
when your printer does one continuous spiral line around the entire print, instead of printing it layer by layer. It's a way to quickly churn out large
prints, but it requires mastering a bunch of different skills. First of all, you'll need to learn
how to use spiral vase mode and adjust all the other settings such
as infill to match in your slicer. Then for maximum success, you'll
need to learn how to change your printer's nozzle to a larger one,
ideally a 0.8 or 1.0 millimeter. Finally, because the layers happen
so quickly in spiral vase mode, and because this particular model has
sharp corners and overhangs, you'll need to dial in your cooling as well. The results though are honestly
really, really beautiful. And once you've mastered spiral vase
mode and all the skills that go with it, there's really no limit to how
many cool things that you can print. By the way, check out my 50 plus useful
things you didn't know you could 3D print video for more ideas and inspiration. This next one is an awesome test of
just how strong your 3D prints are. 3D printed carabiners. While neither of these are print in place
and you definitely shouldn't go rock climbing with them, they are challenging. The tight tolerances require
high dimensional accuracy. The fact that they'll be used outdoors,
plus the fact that you don't want them to snap violently, like PLA tends to,
means that you should use advanced filaments like ASA or even nylon. The need for strength means that
you'll need to play around with different parameters in your slicer
that you normally don't touch, such as number of perimeters rather
than just cranking up the infill. And finally, their small surface area
means that proper bed adhesion is a must. My wife and I love these because they
fit nicely on our son's stroller, and you'd be shocked at how much
weight they actually support. Fortunately though, because they print
laying flat, they aren't actually a real test of layered adhesion or strength. A handful of years ago, I ordered
a bunch of these flexible shoe lace replacements and started putting
them in all the shoes I could. Basically, they turn almost any shoe into
a slip-on, eliminating the annoying laces that untie, and making your shoes a whole
lot more comfortable in the process. Unfortunately, they sometimes are
not a perfect fit for your shoes or they aren't available in all the
colors that you want, but all of that was before I owned a 3D printer. Now I can just run these off in any
color TPU I happen to find on the internet, in the exact size that I want. This of course, means that I've had
to master flexible filaments, as well as precision measurement, and
retraction, and filament dehydration, as well as bed adhesion due to
the small nubs touching the bed. All of that was worth it. Check out these rad orange
ones I just printed. Here's one that unfortunately
I only discovered after my popular 3D printed tools video,
which you can check out up here. It does test retraction nicely, and
if you want it to be as smooth as possible, then you'll need to play
around with the more advanced variable layer height feature in your slicer. Basically, this is a tray for sorting
out all the different hardware you have in your office effectively, but beware. These spines sticking up have a
real tendency to string, so have fun tuning your retraction, friends. Have I mentioned that
I hate seeing cables? As if you didn't know from all the cable
organization stuff on this list already. Fortunately, I discovered these
awesome print-in-place cable organizers, which tuck under your desk. Now, like all print-in-place parts, they
require high dimensional accuracy, but because of the minuscule surface area
on the print bed, you'll need to enable brims, or level up your bed adhesion game. Plus, given the fact that the latch
needs to have some compliance in order to snap on and off repeatedly,
you'll wanna print it in PETG, earning it the advanced materials badge, though only barely, and you'll want to
dehydrate that filament, meaning that it'll also earn the drying filament badge. Here's one that surprised me with
how tricky it actually was to print, considering I printed it on my Prusa MK3S+
with default profiles, though admittedly, I printed it in wood filament, which
is really inconsistent with extrusions. It's a cup holder that holds
your cup below desk level, preventing any kind of disaster. What's hard about it is that it features
very tricky tolerances, especially on the screw that threads and the
actual track for the clamp here. If you have even the slightest
tolerance issue or over-extrusion or miscalibrated e-steps, this
model will let you know about it. So there you have it. My list of 15 or 25, or I honestly
don't know how many more, functional 3D prints that will challenge you and
your 3D printer to level up your skills. I'd love to know in the comments
below which ones are you planning to print, and while you're down
there, please remember to like this video and subscribe to the channel. We're trying to reach a hundred
thousand subscribers by August 30th, 2023, and we really need your help. Finally, let me take a moment to
thank my Patreon supporters who make it possible for me to come back
every week after week and make these 3D printing videos for all of you. If you'd like to help support the
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the link in the description below. Thanks for watching. I'll see you on The Next Layer. Bye-bye!
