Grabber or Clamp Toy

thingiverse

The "fulljoint" is a 3-part assembly, with some rotational freedom in each arm and full rotational freedom (around one axis) in the center joint. With tolerances no greater than 0.1 in. and difficult gaps to reach, you may need a long, thin, and narrow blade to clean the print. A thin letter opener may be useful in that case. Always remember gloves and eye protection. This is a multi-part construction, and the fulljoint requires a decent fill for stability: printing from ABS (with relatively hollow fills for all other parts), this used approximately 330 grams of filament. Do not overtighten the bolts. The clamps may be egg-shaped but should not be used to hold actual eggs. This produces something similar to the "grabber toys" often sold by toy outlets, using a dual-arm construct that is operated like large scissors but clamps instead of cutting. It may have other uses, such as makeshift salad tongs or as a pooper-scooper for pets (whatever use you pick, pick one). For stability, the "arms" are kept short: I originally made extensions for the arms but they were too unstable. When printing, you need two postjoints, two handles, and 12 fasteners to make one complete object. The clampfasteners are indeed identical to the UTS #12 24UNC bolt (0.325in. length) that I submitted in a different file. Let me know if there are any unmentioned issues in the prints or construction. Give 'em the clamps! Instructions Print one fulljoint, and make sure the fulljoint has freedom to rotate, so that the full indent area in each arm is used between the two extreme positions (the arms rotate between 60 degrees and 90 degrees). Print one firstclamp, one secondclamp, two postjoints, two handles, and 12 fasteners. Insert the rectangular section of each handle into a similarly-sized hole in the fulljoint so the the handles curve away from each other like this (), not like )(. Use 4 fasteners with a flat-head screwdriver in fasten the handles in place, but do not overtighten the bolts. Attach the postjoints to the fulljoint similarly: then should never touch, but the farthest extensions should be parallel when the fulljoint arms are at 60 degrees. Attach the firstclamp to either postjoint, and the secondclamp to the other postjoint, so that the grooves mesh.