Reader Seeks Advice on 3D Part Design

By on September 16th, 2015 in Design

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One of our readers reached out with a 3D design question and we thought you might be able to help. 

Ian Stephenson of Technology Consortia Limited in Cumbria, UK, writes: 

I have designed a small assembly that comprises two components that are used together as two halves to hold and clamp a component through a 32mm diameter hole in the front of a control box. One half has a male external thread.to push through the hole and the other half has an internal thread that screws onto the first half to effect a clamp.

Originally I included a standard engineering thread, i.e. M30 x 2, but this has proved impossible to reproduce with 3D printing. I am looking for advice on how best to produce components with a matching thread?

This would seem to be something that can be accomplished with 3D design and 3D printing. Weā€™re not sure what design tools Stephenson is/has used, but matching threads should be a very common design problem. 

What functions in which 3D design software would you recommend Stephenson use? Are there better or simpler methods to approach this design? If you have a suggestion, drop it in the comments below.

By Kerry Stevenson

Kerry Stevenson, aka "General Fabb" has written over 8,000 stories on 3D printing at Fabbaloo since he launched the venture in 2007, with an intention to promote and grow the incredible technology of 3D printing across the world. So far, it seems to be working!