Mario Francese
This morning I found my bike lying on the ground, probably because of the wind (living in the Netherlands it happens quite easily 
) and the front light holder was broken.
) and the front light holder was broken.I use the bike on an everyday basis to do my commute, and I had to solve the issue before coming back home as a bike without the front light during dark evening is pretty invisible! (Also, I wouldn’t like to get a fine!).
Therefore the scope of this project was to replace the broken piece needed to fasten the light on the bike.
That’s how I found my bike’s light!
Design Software: Autodesk Fusion 360
Materials and tools: –Ultimaker Original ++; -White Nylon; -Pliers; -Hex key; -Screwdriver; -Caliber.
3D printer settings : -100 micron quality; -50% infill; -30 mm/s speed; -retract.
1. Measures:
Measures were quite easy to take directly from the broken piece and I used a caliber to do that. I also simplified a little bit the shape in order to make it easier to print.
The broken piece 🙁
2. Design:
The design was basically a replica of the broken piece. I changed the side by making it flat in order to have a good surface to lay on the printing bed. I also had to thread the holes so that the screws would fit them; so I decided to use Fusion 360 as design software (it makes very easy to drill threaded holes).
Design in Fusion 360
3. 3D Printing:
The holder is going to withstand a lot of vibrations, so I used Nylon as printing material. Moreover, it had to be a quite accurate print to get threaded holes come out fine and, for this reason, I went for a 100 μm resolution. No issue while printing the model, which took 1.5 hours.
The model in Cura slicer
4. Assembling:
The 3D printed piece was quite good, consequently it didn’t need any post production to be assembled with the light. Moreover, the original screws fit perfectly in the threaded holes and, 2 minutes after the print had ended, the part was ready to be placed on my light!
Assembling the 3D printed bracket on the light
Finally the light came back in place to let me drive back home defying the darkness!
The light back in place!
…and this is how 3D printing can make your life safer!!!