Glue / Adhesive Spreader - 4" & 6" Wide - 1/8", 3/16" & 1/4" Teeth

thingiverse

This is a wood glue or adhesive spreader or trowel, in 4" and 6" blade widths, with three teeth width options for each blade - .125" (1/8"), .188" (3/16") and .25" (1/4"). The design is lightweight, but easy to hold. It uses ~ 8-10 grams of filament, depending on which version you print and your print settings, which makes each print cost less than $0.25. Some big box hardware stores sell their cheapest glue spreaders for $1 or more ($5 or more on Amazon). This design is more ergonomic and easier to hold and use than square plastic spreaders, credit cards or blocks of wood. BTW, the 6" wide models are slightly thicker so that they are a bit more rigid to handle the wider width, but not by much. Clean up is easy if using wood glue. Just wipe off the wet glue with a glue rag. This only takes a few seconds. Or, drop the tool in water to dissolve the uncured wood glue. If the wood glue is hardened, it can be scratched or scraped off, but it is much quicker to take a few seconds and wipe off the glue when it is still wet. I don't know how well this spreader will work with other adhesives, or what the clean up entails, because I have only used them with wood glue. I printed my spreaders with PETG, so I don't know how other filament types will fare. I typically like to lightly sand sharp edges so that 3D printed tools are comfortable to use. Be careful with this tool, the teeth are sharp enough that they can inflict a painful cut -- they are similar to a dull serrated knife. :) I wanted a glue spreader for my wood projects so that I didn't have to use my finger. I tried a square piece of plastic with teeth manually cut into it, but it just didn't work that well. I wanted something that fits my hand better, is somewhat flexible, and doesn't cost a lot. This is what I wound up with. It works for me.