Torque Box (Patreon)

Howdy, wonderful people!

It's a box with sliding geary bits, a hinged lid, and a secure threaded closure!

Many years ago I made a box with a lid that had cogs along the side.  It was fun, and it was an easy print because the rack gearing ran horizontally.  Could, I wondered, such a thing be engineered to run vertically?

The first hurdle is the angle of the gear teeth.  That long run of teeth sits at an angle that is far too shallow for neat printing.  However, the idea occurred that things would become quite viable if enclosed at either side, as long as the teeth didn't involve horizontal curves.  That way, what was previously a significant overhang problem became instead a very reasonable bridge printing exercise.

The lid prints separately and is slotted into a track behind the gears, and when the box is open the lid can just sit neatly along the side (back?) of the box:

To close the box, slide the lid up, fold it at the hinge so that the slots in the lid engage with the pins at the front of the box, then screw down the handle until things are nice and secure!

Print Description

This is an articulated print, so make sure your first layer is nice and neat, and to avoid print issues like stringing or overextrusion that might bind moving parts together!

Print Dimensions

The main body of the Torque Box is 82mm x 99mm on the print bed and is 155mm tall.

Supports Needed?

Not at all!  Designed for straightforward printing!

Scalability

Take care if scaling this model, and ensure it's scaled uniformly!  There is generous tolerance in the gears and threads, but they aren't designed to scale.

Print Orientation

The box prints right-way-up, and the lid prints flat-side-down, like so:

File Location

You'll find this one at at 593 Torque Box

Link to dropbox post: https://www.patreon.com/posts/31697592

Further Thoughts

OH, I totally forgot one of the most significant aspects of this design!  The box itself has a hexagonal mesh enclosure that sits out from the box walls.  I was working on a couple of different designs at the same time, and I got enthusiastic and just incorporated a bunch of ideas into this thing :) 

Happy printing!

xoxo

Sven.