SMD Component Storage Rings

thingiverse

It is one of life's great ironies that the teensy-weensy surface mount devices that make today's ultra-miniature electronics possible require a lot more storage space than their through-hole predecessors. This is due primarily to two reasons: 1) they're packaged in tape/reel carrier strips 2) their markings are often completely undecipherable, so if you want to remember what the heck they are you need to keep them in their original labeled shipping bags. For common resistors and capacitors on paper tape you can often just mark the values with a Sharpie, but even folded, those paper tapes are a difficult to cram into small parts drawers. The "napkin ring" dinguses of this Thing, included in three handy sizes, can help make your overstuffed parts drawers more manageable. Instructions I printed these in ABS at 0.25mm layer height to save time. Cut the zip closure and any other excess parts from your part's polybag, leaving enough of the label intact to tell you what it is. Roll it up and slide an appropriately-sized ring over the bag.