Smooth Like Butter — Creative Tools Offers 3D Printed Filament Spool Holder

Your 3D printer could use a completely 3D printed filament spool holder, and Creative Tools have made one for you. Creative Tools Sweden, founded in 2004, is now the leading Nordic supplier of 3D software and hardware. They’re resellers of major 3D software brands like Autodesk, MAXON, Chaos Group, and SketchUp, and 3D printing hardware from MakerBot, 3DFactories, Ultimaker, and BOXX Technologies.

Now Creative Tools, who also publish an entertaining and frequently-updated blog, have designed a filament spool that’s entirely 3D printed. And perhaps most impressive is the fact that the rotating stand can easily be made without the need for fasteners such as screws, nuts, shafts, or glue.

That’s right, every component in the spool holder will print right out.

The spool holder will fit the vast majority of commonly used filament spools and works with shaft holes ranging from 16 mm to 62 mm in diameter. The spindle allows the filament reel to rotate on separate roller wheels, and it spins effortlessly, and best of all, you can download files to make all the parts yourself over on Thingiverse.

The spool holder includes an arm for filament guide tubes in the common 1.75 mm and 3.0 mm sizes, and it also contains a nifty pocket for inserting a piece of sponge meant to act as a filament filter to keep the filament clean and lubricated.

While some people may think this cool little holder is a touch “overengineered,” we think it’s mighty cool indeed. Below you will find some of its features:

• Easy to 3D print
• Needs no glue or fasteners
• All parts can be 3D printed
• Fits almost any filament spool size
• Has built-in filament filter
• Can also hold spool-less filament coils

Have you seen any other cool accessories to make 3D printers more effective? If you have, or you have thoughts about this one from Creative Tools in Sweden, you can let us know about it on the 3D Printed Filament Spool Holder forum thread on 3DPB.com.