A selection of pottery-related 3D projects that I open-source here under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license in case they are useful to others.
-
Turning spinner
This modular tool makes it easy to pin pots down to the wheel for trimming.
An internal bearing allows the top and bottom to spin independently. The top is finished with a knurled pattern for better grip while the bottom attachments are flat to avoid marking the clay. The top assembly is held together with a machine screw and captive nut and the bottom attaches with a friction fit to allow for easy changing. I designed two attachment sizes to accommodate different pots; the smaller of the two sizes is pictured. I recommend printing both and alternating as needed.
Bill of materials
1x 12mm M3 machine screw
1x square M3 nut
1x 6202ZZ ball bearing
Printing and assembly
When slicing turning-spinner-top.stl, add a pause step just before the captive nut hole is closed off. When printing, insert the nut at this pause step. The captive nut hole has a thin cover to ensure the opening above it prints correctly. The machine screw should break through this cover when tightened. Print this part with the knurled pattern facing up and add supports for the bearing recess. You can print all other parts without supports.
Files
-
Tile batt system
Making delicate forms on the wheel is hard: wiring them off and removing them can distort the shape. This modular tool allows you to mount a bisque-fired tile (or standard MDF batt) to the wheel head and throw directly onto it. When you're done, you can easily remove the batt and replace it with another.
Commercial batts are often made from MDF. This has the desirable property of being absorbent to allow the clay to stick, but it is prone to warping. I opted to experiment with bisque-fired tiles: they're cheap, equally absorbent and don't warp. After using them extensively, I can confirm they work well. This batt system accomodates two batt sizes via a nesting adapter: 100x100mm and 150x150mm. Orthogonal clamps hold the batt in place and allow for slight variance in batt size. The design also includes two shims, one for each batt size, to ensure thinner (6.5mm) batts sit level. You can use thicker (9mm) batts without the shims. The system attaches to the wheel via the standard 10in mounting holes, with a slot to allow for some variance in hole placement.
The main body of the batt system comprises four dove-tailed pieces that slot together. This is to allow printing on an 18x18cm print surface. In my next iteration of this design, I would make these pieces bolt together: clay can get stuck in the dovetails and make the system hard to clean.
Bill of materials
2x 25-32mm M3 machine screw
2x square M3 nut
2x 12-16mm M6 hex bolt
2x M6 wing nuts
100x100x[6.5,9]mm batt(s)
150x150x[6.5,9]mm batt(s)
Printing and assembly
When slicing batt-system-body-2.stl and batt-system-body-3.stl, add a pause step just before the captive nut hole is closed off. When printing, insert the nut at this pause step. Print all body parts upside-down with supports as appropriate for a clean surface finish. Print two copies of batt-system-clamp.stl and batt-system-clamp-inner.stl. You only need to print the shims if using 6.5mm batts, and you only need to print the inner parts if using 100x100mm batts.
Files
-
Calipers
These simple calipers are useful for measuring diameters while throwing.
The calipers can measure both internal and external diameters. A wing nut and recessed hex bolt allow you to adjust and lock the arms as needed.
Bill of materials
12mm M6 hex bolt
M6 wing nut
Files