2017-03-11

Gearing up!

I really must stop looking at wikipedia - I read up on involute gears.

This time I did look on thingiverse first and there are loads of people that have published tools to make gears, but still, I really do feel the best way to learn is to do it yourself. It is not about re-inventing wheels (or gears) which I do a lot anyway, it is more about the process of understanding it by doing it. Published on thingiverse...


I ended up making a simple library to make the shape for involute gears. It is pretty simple, the shape of the gear is like the shape that would be made if you had a bit if string attached to the circle and unwound it. There it a great animation on that wikipedia site.

I had to take it further, of course. A general purpose gear module with loads of options...

A simple gear...
A chamfered edge - makes it easier to print...
Helical....
Double helix - herringbone/chevron (keeps gears aligned)...
With a hole...
With a recess for a hex bolt head (and a hole)...
With spokes...
Hollowed out with a base...

With a spindle in the middle...


Or pretty much any combination of the above.

But I did not stop there - I made a nice gear example module. Allowing some interlocking gear examples...
Why stop at 2? (I went up to 4 as it happens)...

And they work!


So more toys for my grandson to play with...

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