Universal Cardboard Spool Adapter by RC3D

The print profile is no longer public

Part 1 down and 1 to go. It printed excellent, let’s just hope it works as good as it looks! Docking 1 star as this design causes the spool to become too wide for Overture’s PLA cardboard spool. Being this wide causes the AMS not to be able to turn the spool and insert filament. Amazing design could use some tweaking but not sure how to fix that.

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@agustafson1

It works awesome does not interfere with AMS lid at all I am using on Poly maker and Overture spools Perfect fit.

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Replying to @agustafson1 :

That’s so good to hear! I can’t wait, you’re 100% right if this works like it seems it should I’ll be printing 3 more! Glad to hear yours was a success.

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@lai.arc

Your print looks awesome, would you mind sharing what filament and setting you used?

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Ok I am spending 20+ hours printing a filament spool winder because of the cardboard spools and then this comes along. I gotta know how well this works! The idea sounds like a true solution for the cardboard problem. The printable rings barely stayed in place so I have to print this too now. (Fingers crossed) I hope it works as good as it looks.

The designer has replied

@bista1

This was exactly what i was going to put! Printed my spool winder and ordered all my bearings, and then find this! guessing that will go on the shelf if this works just as well lol.

@agustafson1

This item prints perfect will not hit lid on AMS.10 out of 10 the Best one so far on this site. Game changer.

Replying to @agustafson1 :

So happy to hear that. I went through some flak at first because bambu had a new AMS revision I guess, but that seems to be sorted and everyone loves these including me!

@98x98y

okay this is the most awesome spool for cardboard spools. this thing prints perfect and it's got a place in the center of the spool to put your dehydration pellets and. this is one of the best print files on the site. 10 out of 10. this one actually fits in the AMS a lot of the other ones don't. they are too tall and the lid will not shut. you won't have that problem with this one.

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The designer has replied

@agustafson1

I agree with you it IS the BEST in my opinion :)

Thanks a ton. It took a while to figure out the best way to be compatible with the most spools and I'm very happy it's so well received.

unfortunately it’s not even close to working with the AMS system. it printed beautifully and fits my polymaker spools perfectly. doesn’t work with the AMS lid closed by a long shot. The spool sits a good 3mm above my normal spools and closing the lid pinches this adapter so tightly it won’t extrude. I can print with this lid popped open of course, but what’s the point? disappointed.

The designer has replied

Can you share a photo of where the spool touches the spool guide in the tray? It's <200.5mm, which fits within the latest AMS revision. If it's sitting too high, there's either a problem with the AMS, or the spool width doesn't fit the guides properly.

Replying to @RC3D :

I appreciate the quick response. My P1S and AMS system is about 3 weeks old. This is the second design I’ve tried for these polymaker spools that hasn’t worked. My AMS lid is getting all scratched up from these adapters :(

Replying to @Paulby :

Ok, so if this isn't the only one that doesn't fit properly, it would seem that the issue isn't in the adapters, but rather somewhere in the AMS. First off, does the spool only have issues fitting that slot or is it any slot? For troubleshooting, if you could please do these, it would help me determine what might be the issue or if I need to make adjustments to the adapter. 1. If you could remove the spool, pop the rear roller out and make sure there's nothing in the slot where it sits. Then put it back and make sure it's firmly seated. Next, the drive gear is a little harder to remove, but you should be able to push down where the bearings are to make sure it's not artificially raised for some reason. This is a quick step, so even if you feel like it happens in all slots, it's a decent place to start. 2. I designed the adapter to just BARELY fit, so the tolerance is very low. With that said, even the slightest dimensional error in printing can cause it to not fit properly. If you have the means to measure the OD of the spools you print, it should be no more than 200.8mm at most. Anymore than that and it's going to catch and bind. This will quickly rule out whether your printer might be printing items just slightly too large. It could also be a product of the filament you're using, but if you're using a common brand, the former is more likely. If you suspect it might be printing a hair large, try scaling to 99.5%, and if that works I'll adjust the spool adapter for you and everyone else just in case others have the issue. I prefer the thicker edges as that's part of what makes it so universal, but I'm willing to sacrifice a bit of the thickness in favor of user friendliness. 3. This is what I think is most likely. It looks to me like the spool is slightly too wide for the slot, causing the spool to ride slightly elevated. This happened to me quite a bit during prototyping, which is why I added the lock nut feature so you can crank it down until it fits width-wise, then lock it in place. What I would do is pull the spool out, remove the lock nut, tighten or loosen the spool ends until the spool is directly flat against the cardboard sides. Then give it maybe 1/4 turn more at most to make sure it's tight. Finally, put the lock nut back on and see where it's at. If all of these fail, please share the OD of your spool, the total width from outer sidewall to outer sidewall, and one or two more photos of the AMS guides with the spool in and out. I'm looking to see where it sits in respect to the guide, so I'll share a photo in a second reply that shows exactly what I need to see. Finally, the brand of your spool, the width and the outside diameter would be helpful for me to make sure it will fit your spool properly, and if not, I can make adjustments so it does. If you end up resolving the issue through one of these steps or not, please let me know. Feedback is all I have to rely on since there's so many variables when it comes to fitment, so it's greatly appreciated. Thanks for the response and hopefully I can help you get to the bottom of it.

The print profile is no longer public

Second part complete… well I had great expectations and maybe with some modifications it might work but with Overture PLA spools it causes the spool to become too wide and rub against the tabs on the machine not allowing the AMS to pull in filament. Subtracting 1 star due to the above reason. Not able to be used for Overture maybe still useable for a more narrow spool so it’s still fictional. Still such an awesome design!

The designer has replied

Thanks for this! Can you shoot me a photo of the inner dimensions on that spool? I'll adjust the taper to fit.

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Replying to @RC3D :

Sure I hope this helps! It’s Overture PLA.

Replying to @ExtremeElementz :

I've just uploaded two additional print profiles. These are a touch thinner in the wall, so should fit in your guides better.

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@gilahacker

Print Profile

Spool Adapter - w Slots

Printed in cheap old PETG. Had to turn the temp up past the Bambu defaults and the filament manufacturer specs to get it to stop making a mess. Not the fault of the designer, so please ignore the poor print quality. All fit together just fine after minor cleanup and I've run the spool it's on (eSUN PLA+) for several hours now with no issues. Several of the cardboard ones I have are deformed from being shrink-wrapped. Printed brims still had issues in my AMS, but this seems to work well.

The designer has replied

Thanks! I spent WAY too much time testing these to be worth it for sure, but im actually really happy with how it came out. I absolutely love Polymaker, and the whole cardboard spool thing is whatever to me personally, but working in my AMS was a must. If this didn't work as well as it did, I was done buying cardboard spools.

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@gilahacker

Replying to @RC3D :

I tried tweaking it to be just an infill grid (hexagon) for the base piece (leaving the central column alone) when printing a second one. Was far too delicate and I broke a lot of the infill pieces just trying to get it off the bed. Tried with two bottom layers and the rest as infill and it might "work", but it's pretty floppy. It seems you had it *just right* to start with!

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Replying to @gilahacker :

Yea, I had a lot of requests for slight changes like thinner walls and changes to the edge of the spool. Suffice it to say, I ended up trying all of it. Many of them broke apart in my AMS, or the cardboard was still piling up inside. I'm really proud of where I settled. I had a lot of haters at first, but time proved them to me.

@zakolix

Print Profile

200mm Internal Diameter

BTW How to make an inscription on the first layer that neither sticks out nor hides?

The designer has replied

I use the Bambu studio tool now to add a 0.6mm thick text to the surface. I then jump to the objects tab, select the text, and move it down by 0.6mm so it's embedded in the print. Then orient that face on the build plate. I'll redo this one so it comes out easier soon.

@zakolix

Replying to @RC3D :

thanks a lot :) a person learns all his life

Replying to @zakolix :

I believe firmly that everyone in this world knows something I don't. In other words; everyone can teach me something.

The print profile is no longer public

Printed perfect on my P1S combo. out of the few that I printed I felt like it was better to print without the brim on the spool holder, and I think those ones turned out a little better. The brim on the one that had it didn’t peel off completely perfect and I had to spend some time cleaning up the edge before I felt comfortable putting it in the AMS. minor detail for such such a great design

The designer has replied

I 100% agree with you. I only added the brim due to several people commenting that it needed one. Pretty sure it's not an issue with my print profile, but rather a printer issue. Thanks for the feedback!

Replying to @RC3D :

Side note, it would be great to provide this model without the little overhangs. I use a ton of Polymaker PolyLite PLA Pro and the cardboard doesn't fit under the teeth very easily. It causes the rim of the adapter to bulge slightly where the overhangs are. I followed your trick in the description and used a flathead screwdriver to gently work the cardboard under the overhang, however removing the adapter from the cardboard spool caused one of my adapters to break, and another actually broke the rim free from the body of the adapter. Out of the 3 sets of these adapters I've printed in the last couple of days, only 1 set remains usable. I like the design and I think you did a good job working within the tight tolerances we have with the AMS, but I don't think this is going to end up being a useful solution for me personally.

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@Baseball51898

Replying to @Paulby :

i've made two and thy both have broken the same way, making the adapter useless. I really like this design, its the best one around, but i hope this problem gets fixed

@dekoth

Print Profile

Narrow Nut

so this is the second attempt printing from the app and it's failed the same way both times. first side no trouble. doesn't seem to print the smaller object, almost like the profile has it floating, I'm unsure until I can get home and slice it myself. I believe the model is just fine, it's a pre-sliced app problem. edit: sliced myself and it printed perfectly. updated to 4 stars as I don't believe it's the creators fault but a bambu handy being new fault.

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The designer has replied

Interesting. That doesn't happen to nearly anyone else so far. Seems a bummer that I deserve a 1 star for that, but I accept your honesty. Thanks for the feedback.

@dekoth

I'll adjust it based on the model I'm printing now that I sliced once it completes. the first half printed without a hitch, this was aimed at getting you to take a look at it because I think it might be a bambu handy problem, not a model issue.

@dekoth

updated

@Piingy

The print profile is no longer public

This thing is perfect! I was about to print a filament roll winder to transfer everything to plastic rolls but I found this and it’s amazing! The lid to my Bambulab AMS doesn’t close completely when I use it but that’s ok I guess 🤷🏻‍♂️

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The designer has replied