Learn How to Use Customizable 3D Models With OpenSCAD

If you know how to use a Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software, 3D printing is an extremely powerful and versatile tool for DIY projects. However, even if you do not have the time or motivation to learn CAD, there is still a way to make your own, custom fit models with very little efforts required: The customizable models.

Customizable models are 3D models designed with the open source software OpenSCAD. Contrarily to conventional CAD software in which you interact with an object in a virtual 3D space to refine the shape you want to make, OpenSCAD uses a programing language to "code" the shape of the object. While this approach is more time consuming and less user-friendly for the designer, the main advantage is the possibility to define variables to describe the main characteristics of the model. Once the code is finished, anyone can easily customize the object by changing the values of the parameters and recompiling the code.

Since the release of OpenScad in 2010, thousands of contributors have generated a large amount of open-source customizable models. Those models are available in particular in Thingiverse that has a special function to categorize and search for them.

In this tutorial i will show you how to look for customizable models, how to change their parameters and recompile the code to generate your own custom 3D models, and i will provide you with a few links and advices if you want to design models on you own.

To make your own custom STL file you will only need to access an online database like those ones and find a customizable model:

• https://www.thingiverse.com/
• https://www.printables.com/
• https://pinshape.com/
• https://cults3d.com/
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Most 3D model databases include customizable models. You can usually find them using the keywords "parametric" or "customizable". However Thingiverse is the most convenient database to use as it has a specific criteria in its research function called "customizable" to select only OpenScad parametric designs. In either cases, a customizable 3D file is characterized by the format ".scad".

Once you have found the file you want to personalize you have 3 main options to generate the printable STL file:

• Use the online OpenScad app: https://openscad.cloud/openscad/
• Download OpenScad locally on your computer: https://openscad.org/
• Use the Customized app included with thingiverse (only from thingiverse database)

Those 3 options each have their ups and downs. In particular if you use a customizable files including letters, the font and the letter arrangement will vary depending on the option you chose. Installing OpenScad locally can allow you to select you choice of font and use special symbols. The customizer from thingiverse may not show correctly on all net browsers but some .scad files are coded specifically to show a user interface in this app.

In the following steps i will illustrate how to use each of those options.

In this part i will show you how to use the online OpenScad app to generate your own STL file:

1) Find the ".scad" file from your favorite database and download it

2) Open the file with the Notepad and copy the entirety of the file

3) open the app in your net browser from the address: https://openscad.cloud/openscad/

4) Paste the whole file in the prompt area

5) Customize the variables. The variables are generally located at the beginning of the code and may or may not be accompanied by a commentary to explicit their function (in this case i did not comment i guess i was lazy that day...) Don't forget to read in details the description of the part where those details are usually written.

5b) You can also access the variables by opening the Customizer tab. Some codes are meant to be used that way and the variables will be difficult to localize in the bulk of the text. In reverse some variables including free prompt text will not appear here if it was not designed specially for the customizer. Specific selection option may also show in this tab so always check it before tweaking the parameters.

6) After modifying the parameters, generate the file by using the play button of the generate button in the customizer tab and check the geometry of the part generated in the visualization area. You can rotate the view with the left click, zoom in and out with the roll and translate the view with the right click.

7) once the part is to your liking download the 3D file using the Export STL button. You are now ready to go to your usual slicer.

In this part i will show you how to install OpenScad on your computer and use it to generate a file:

1) Download the app from the OpenScad website (https://openscad.org/) and install it

2) Find the ".scad" file from your favorite database, download it and open it with OpenScad

3) Customize the variables. The variables are generally located at the beginning of the code and may or may not be accompanied by a commentary to explicit their function, Don't forget to read in details the description of the part where those details are usually written.

Some files designed to be used in the customizer may have their variable "hidden" deep in the code. If you cannot identify them use the online OpenScad and refer to the previous step.

4) After modifying the parameters, you can preview the part using F5 or the preview button and check the geometry of the part in the visualization area. You can rotate the view with the left click, zoom in and out with the roll and translate the view with the right click.

5) When the geometry of the part is conform to what you want, render the part using F6 or the render button. Then save the file as STL using F7 or the dedicated button. You are now ready to go to your usual slicer.

In this part i will show you how to use Thingiverse's customizer to make you design. For this option you need a MakerBot account.

1) Go to Thingiverse and find the part you want to customize

2) Open the part in Customizer and change the parameters in the left area. The part will automatically be refresh in the visualization area.

3) When satisfied with your custom part generate the STL file using the "create thing" button.

4) Give a name to your file and select whether you want your newly created file to be published or not.

5) To find the STL file go to the contextual menu close to your profile image in the top right corner and go to "My designs". Your file will appear in the list and can be downloaded like any other Thingiverse file.

One of the interest of using directly OpenScad on you computer to generate your STL file is the possibility to tweak the code besides changing the parameters. Changing the geometry requires a deep understanding of the code but some changes like the font of a text can be changed easily without impacting the rest of the part.

To change the font, first localize the part of the code that generate the text. The function dedicated to this task is the function "text" You can use Crtl+F to find it.

This function contains a facultative variable called "font". If your file already contains this variable you can change it to change the style. If there is no "font" variable, just add it at the end of the function separated from other varaibles with a coma. Just right the name of the font you want between "". You can also add a style using the formulation:

font="FontName:style=FontStyle"

You can access the list of all fonts available on your computer using the menu Help/Font list

Example:

text(Text, font="Roboto:style=Bold", halign="center", valign = "center",size = Text_Size)

Just modify the bold portion to personalize your font.

If you feel like it don't hesitate to take a look at my parametric designs:

• Customizable Pen clip: https://www.printables.com/model/359514-customizable-pen-clip or https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5028279
• Customizable bookmark: https://www.printables.com/model/359511-customizable-bookmark or https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5035389
• Customizable cable pass join: https://www.printables.com/model/457591-customizable-cable-pass-join or https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5866145
• Parametric spur gear sanding tool: https://www.printables.com/model/359493-parametric-spur-gear-sanding-tool or https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5236512
• Parametric handle for embedded handle: https://www.printables.com/model/359492-parametric-handle-for-embedded-handle or https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5236719