3D printed threaded collar for a Dremel

[A7er]

I thought that my Dremel needed to be mounted in a pillar type drill mount, one of those accessories that take a pistol drill. I measured the thread on the Dremel and drew it up in Designspark then printed out a test piece to see if I had the pitch right before printing the whole thing. It was a bit tight so I altered the design and printed another test piece which fitted perfectly. I then printed a collar that the test piece could be glued into. A simple thing that could possibly be bought, but now I have the sizes in my cad programme I can make other accessories.
Lee

[mklotz]

As long as you're into printing accessories for your Dremel you might want to think about a fan for blowing dust/swarf away from where the tool is working.  Dremel sells such a device (pictured upper right in the first photo) but it's incorporated into a collet closing nut for the device.  I use an adjustable chuck (pictured) so I hand carved a miniature fan out of plastic (lower right) since I don't have a printer.

It works so well that I keep it on the Milwaukee hand tool all the time now.

[A7er]

Thanks Marv, I've not printed a fan before. I'll see if I can make one.
I wonder if it can be made into a dust extractor? Instead of blowing the dust away.
Lee

[crueby]

Nifty fan! I do a lot of wood carving with the rotary tools, and to keep the dust under (some) control I built a large box, open towards me, with a grid of surplus computer muffin fans in the back wall. In front of the fans is a standard furnace filter - when I change the filter in the furnace, it goes to this box for more use. The filter needs to be vacuumed out after a carving session. It catches most of the dust, some of the fine stuff still blows around or sneaks past the filter, but it catches a lot. As the dust comes off the tool, you can see it turn in midair and get sucked into the filter (tiny little screams?)

[bent]

I don't think my Dremel has a thread like that on it, but that's a cool idea.

I like crueby's dust blower too...though I'm using my 3d printer to make a working dust sucker out of our old, broken Dyson vacuum cleaner.  So far I have it working ok as a cleanup, and have plans to create some clips/mounts to hold a suction tube near the milling face on the mini mill and/or mini lathe. 

[crueby]

Most dremels have the end threaded. There is a cap at the end of the case that is held on by the threads.

[mklotz]

Most dremels have the end threaded. There is a cap at the end of the case that is held on by the threads.

I made an adaptor which the nose of my Dremel threads into; I single-pointed a 0.75 x 12 tpi thread on the adaptor and it worked well.  The spindle itself, on which the collet chuck threads, is a remarkable bastard 7 mm x 40 tpi.

I've heard of, but can't confirm, a different size for the nose threads; check your tool to be sure.

[ddmckee54]

I know that people have successfully 3D printed props for small electric RC planes and impellors for small ducted fans.  At the RPM's that a Dremel is capable of I'd be kind of leery of trying to FDM print a fan for one.  On the other hand, I suppose it wouldn't be any worse than having a Dremel cut-off wheel explode while using it.

Don

[A7er]

The picture is from my cad programme and shows the dimensions of my Dremel thread. It was a snug fit on the Dremel and it threaded on without binding or force. The part is only the threaded insert, the main collar was printed as a separate item.

Don. I 3D printed a pla "whisk" for mixing my casting sand. 4 blades at an angle on a 15mm dia body with a 6mm hole for threaded rod and a couple of nuts mounted in a battery drill. The whisk was about 30mm dia. It lasted for at least 100 mixes without breaking, until it wore out!
Lee

[Zephyrin]

I just measured the thread on the plastic Dremel nose, the closest conventional thread looks to be 0.75 BSF : 3/4 " x 12 tpi; or 19.05 x 2.12 mm. A tap that few people have...
3 to 4 full thread in plastic allow a rather large tolerance...
this is useful to make a holder in a toolpost in the lathe.
on a chinese clone (Mac Allister) this thread is the same, but longer.

[A7er]

Zephyrin,
I have many BSF taps and dies, as well as BSF and Whitworth spanners and sockets. Standard fixings on my Austin Seven. I didn't know the Dremel used them though. I will have to check. Thanks for that!

[Allen Smithee]

When I made a toolpost mounting for a Dremel (and Dremel clone) I found that a 3/4"x12tpi thread worked fine. If it's not actually correct then it is "near enough for government work" as the phrase goes...

But I would be slightly nervous using 3D printed components in a structural role. In my experience 3d printed parts have poor shear strength and are prone to delamination even with 100% infill and the extruder temperature turned up (to get the best adhesion to the previous layer). It might be an idea to try setting your slicer to "vase mode" as this will attempt to print a continuous extrusion rather than printing each layer separately.

€0.007 supplied

AS

[Zephyrin]

I printed this holder, at the indicated thread, it fit on the Dremel perfectly, but halas, the drill is too bulky to fit on my lathe tool post at centre height, fortunately, my slimer Proxxon mini drill just do it, but with a quite different holder !

PS : the threaded ring was printed with 0.16 mm layer instead of my usual 0.2mm, and the fit of the thread was much better.