Home Ec – Page 105 – The Smell of Molten Projects in the Morning

Slic3r vs. Sequential 3D Printing

The tiny posts on the fencing helmet ear grommet produced a remarkable amount of PETG hair, because the nozzle had to skip between four separate pieces on the platform at each layer:

So I told Slic3r to build each part separately:

Fencing helmet grommet - separate builds - first attempt — Fencing helmet grommet – separate builds – first attempt

Due to absolutely no forethought or planning on my part, that actually worked. Slic3r defines a cylindrical keep-out zone around the nozzle that I set to 15 mm radius and 25 mm height, but those numbers are completely wrong for the M2, particularly with a V4 hot end.

To the rear, the nuts & bolts along the bottom of the X gantry sit 5 mm above the V4 nozzle, with the relaxed actuator on my re-relocated Z-axis home switch at Z=+1 mm:

V4 PETG - extruder priming — V4 PETG – extruder priming

To the front, the bed fan doesn’t sit much higher:

M2 V4 Extruder - 24 V fans — M2 V4 Extruder – 24 V fans

As it turned out, the front washers built first, sitting there in front of the gantry and behind the fan, the rear washers appeared last, and Everything Just Worked.

However, even though the M2’s layout won’t allow for automated layout, I figured I could do it manually by building the parts from front to rear:

Fencing Helmet Ear Grommet - Slic3r layout — Fencing Helmet Ear Grommet – Slic3r layout

That way, the already-built parts never pass under the gantry / switch. For particularly tall parts, I could remove / relocate the bed fan to clear the already-built parts as they appear.

Come to find out that Slic3r, for whatever reason, doesn’t build the parts in the order you’d expect from the nice list on the far right side of the screen:

Sequential Build Order - Slic3r vs Pronterface — Sequential Build Order – Slic3r vs Pronterface

Worse, the Slic3r 3D preview shows the threads by layer (which is what you’d expect), rather than by object for sequential builds:

Slic3r - sequential preview vs build order — Slic3r – sequential preview vs build order

I don’t know how you’d force-fit a four-dimensional preview into the UI, so I won’t complain at all.

There’s no way to tell which part will build first; selecting the part will highlight its entry in the list (and vice versa), but the order of appearance in that list doesn’t tell you where the G-Code will appear in the output file. That’s not a problem for extruders with a keep-out volume that looks like a cylinder, so there’s no reason for Slic3r to do it any differently: it will manage the extruder position to clear all the objects in any order.

The Pronterface preview creates the objects by reading the G-Code file and displaying the threads in order, so, if you’re quick and it’s slow, you can watch the parts appear in their to-be-built order. The detailed preview (in the small window on the right in the screenshot) does show the parts in the order they will be built as you scroll upward through the “layers”, which is the only way you can tell what will happen.

So doing sequential builds requires iterating through these steps until the right answer appears:

Add all objects separately to get each one as a separate line in the list to the right
- Using the More option to duplicate objects produces multiple objects per line = Bad Idea
Arrange objects in a line from front to back
Export G-Code file
Load G-Code file into Pronterface
Pop up the Pronterface layer preview, scroll upward to show build order, note carefully
Rearrange parts in Slic3r accordingly

That’s do-able (note the different order from the Slic3r preview):

Fencing helmet grommet - manual sequential build — Fencing helmet grommet – manual sequential build

But it’s tedious and enough of a pain that it probably makes no sense for anything other than parts that you absolutely can’t build any other way.

In this case, completing each of the bottom washers separately eliminated all of the PETG hair between the small pegs. The upper washers still had some hair inside the inner cylinder, but not much. If you were fussy, you could suppress that by selecting “Avoid crossing perimeters”, at the cost of more flailing around in the XY plane.

All those spare grommets will make a good show-n-tell exhibit…

2015-12-28

Copper Pipe Corrosion Pinholes

When we moved into this house, I noticed a hose clamp around the half-inch copper pipe carrying hard water to the toilets and kitchen sink:

That’s obviously a whole bunch easier than removing and replacing a section of copper pipe, so I’d say it was entirely justified. The fact that it hasn’t leaked for at least the last quarter century counts for something.

However, Mary recently discovered a small wet spot on the basement floor. Looking directly upward, we saw:

Copper pipe corrosion pinhole - 1 — Copper pipe corrosion pinhole – 1

That was in open air; I added the marks around the corrosion to highlight it.

I’d applied some foam insulation on the supply end of the pipe and, just to check, peeled it back:

Copper pipe corrosion pinhole - 2 — Copper pipe corrosion pinhole – 2

Huh. Although that leak was slow enough to not leak out of the insulation (the slit was upward), disturbing the corrosion produced a regular drip. Again, those marks are new.

OK, two active pinhole leaks and a small dry green spot further downstream says it’s finally time to replace that pipe. The lengths of pipe with the pinholes add up to about eight feet, which suggests the plumber installed a bad piece of pipe back in 1955.

Yes, I applied two more hose clamps for the holiday season, but that can’t last.

Having a good stock of tees, elbows, and unions on hand, all I need is 21 feet (not 20, alas) of shiny new copper pipe to replace the entire run containing all the pinholes; I’m not going to fiddle around replacing just a few sections.

2015-12-26

Kenmore Progressive Vacuum Cleaner vs. Classic Electrolux Dust Brush

Vacuum cleaner dust brushes, separated by millimeters and decades:

Kenmore vs adapted Electrolux dust brushes

The bulky one on the left came with our new Kenmore Progressive vacuum cleaner. It’s fine for dust on a flat horizontal or vertical surface and totally useless for dust on actual objects. It’s supposed to snap around the handle at the end of the cleaner’s flexy hose, where it helps make the entire assembly too large and too clumsy, or on the end of the “wand”, where it’s at the wrong angle. The bonus outer shell slides around the stubby bristles in the unlikely event they’re too long for the flat surface at hand.

The brush on the right emerged from the Box o’ Electrolux Parts that Came With The House™, must be half a century old, and consists of a cast aluminum lump with various holes milled into it, adorned with luxuriously long and flexible horsehair. Suffice it to say they don’t make ’em like that any more. Heck, they probably don’t make horses with hair like that any more, either.

The blue plastic adapter atop the aluminum ball looks like you’d expect by now:

The short snout fits neatly into the space available inside the ball. The abrupt ledge at the top of the snout, of course, didn’t work well; I rushed the design for a show-n-tell.

The OpenSCAD source code (as a Github gist) bevels that ledge and tweaks the interior air channel a bit:

	// Kenmore vacuum cleaner nozzle adapters
	// Ed Nisley KE4ZNU December 2015

	// Layout options

	Layout = "LuxBrush"; // MaleFitting CoilWand FloorBrush CreviceTool ScrubbyTool LuxBrush

	//- Extrusion parameters must match reality!
	// Print with +1 shells and 3 solid layers

	ThreadThick = 0.25;
	ThreadWidth = 0.40;

	HoleWindage = 0.2;

	function IntegerMultiple(Size,Unit) = Unit * ceil(Size / Unit);

	Protrusion = 0.1; // make holes end cleanly

	//———————-
	// Dimensions

	ID1 = 0; // for tapered tubes
	ID2 = 1;
	OD1 = 2;
	OD2 = 3;
	LENGTH = 4;

	OEMTube = [35.0,35.0,41.7,40.5,30.0]; // main fitting tube
	EndStop = [OEMTube[ID1],OEMTube[ID2],47.5,47.5,6.5]; // flange at end of main tube

	FittingOAL = OEMTube[LENGTH] + EndStop[LENGTH];

	$fn = 12*4;

	//———————-
	// Useful routines

	module PolyCyl(Dia,Height,ForceSides=0) { // based on nophead's polyholes

	Sides = (ForceSides != 0) ? ForceSides : (ceil(Dia) + 2);

	FixDia = Dia / cos(180/Sides);

	cylinder(r=(FixDia + HoleWindage)/2,
	h=Height,
	$fn=Sides);
	}


	//——————-
	// Male fitting on end of Kenmore tools
	// This slides into the end of the handle or wand and latches firmly in place

	module MaleFitting() {

	Latch = [40,11.5,5.0]; // rectangle latch opening
	EntryAngle = 45; // latch entry ramp
	EntrySides = 16;
	EntryHeight = 15.0; // lower edge on inside of fitting

	KeyRadius = 1.0;

	translate([0,0,6.5])
	difference() {
	union() {
	cylinder(d1=OEMTube[OD1],d2=OEMTube[OD2],h=OEMTube[LENGTH]); // main tube

	hull() // insertion guide
	for (i=[-(6.0/2 – KeyRadius),(6.0/2 – KeyRadius)],
	j=[-(28.0/2 – KeyRadius),(28.0/2 – KeyRadius)],
	k=[-(26.0/2 – KeyRadius),(26.0/2 – KeyRadius)])
	translate([(i – (OEMTube[ID1]/2 + OEMTube[OD1]/2)/2 + 6.0/2),j,(k + 26.0/2 – 1.0)])
	sphere(r=KeyRadius,$fn=8);

	translate([0,0,-EndStop[LENGTH]]) // wand tube butts against this
	cylinder(d=EndStop[OD1],h=EndStop[LENGTH] + Protrusion);
	}

	translate([0,0,-OEMTube[LENGTH]]) // main bore
	cylinder(d=OEMTube[ID1],h=2OEMTube[LENGTH] + 2Protrusion);

	translate([0,-11.5/2,23.0 – 5.0]) // latch opening
	cube(Latch);

	translate([OEMTube[ID1]/2 + EntryHeight/tan(90-EntryAngle),0,0]) // latch ramp
	translate([(Latch[1]/cos(180/EntrySides))cos(EntryAngle)/2,0,(Latch[1]/cos(180/EntrySides))sin(EntryAngle)/2])
	rotate([0,-EntryAngle,0])
	intersection() {
	rotate(180/EntrySides)
	PolyCyl(Latch[1],Latch[0],EntrySides);
	translate([-(2*Latch[0])/2,0,-Protrusion])
	cube(2*Latch[0],center=true);
	}
	}
	}

	//——————-
	// Refrigerator evaporator coil wand

	module CoilWand() {

	union() {
	translate([0,0,50.0])
	rotate([180,0,0])
	difference() {
	cylinder(d1=EndStop[OD1],d2=42.0,h=50.0);
	translate([0,0,-Protrusion])
	cylinder(d1=35.0,d2=35.8,h=100);
	}
	translate([0,0,50.0 – Protrusion])
	MaleFitting();
	}
	}


	//——————-
	// Refrigerator evaporator coil wand

	module FloorBrush() {

	union() {
	translate([0,0,60.0])
	rotate([180,0,0])
	difference() {
	union() {
	cylinder(d1=EndStop[OD1],d2=32.4,h=10.0);
	translate([0,0,10.0 – Protrusion])
	cylinder(d1=32.4,d2=30.7,h=50.0 + Protrusion);
	}
	translate([0,0,-Protrusion])
	cylinder(d1=28.0,d2=24.0,h=100);
	}
	translate([0,0,60.0 – Protrusion])
	MaleFitting();
	}
	}


	//——————-
	// Crevice tool

	module CreviceTool() {

	union() {
	translate([0,0,60.0])
	rotate([180,0,0])
	difference() {
	union() {
	cylinder(d1=EndStop[OD1],d2=32.0,h=10.0);
	translate([0,0,10.0 – Protrusion])
	cylinder(d1=32.0,d2=30.4,h=50.0 + Protrusion);
	}
	translate([0,0,-Protrusion])
	cylinder(d1=28.0,d2=24.0,h=100);
	}
	translate([0,0,60.0 – Protrusion])
	MaleFitting();
	}
	}

	//——————-
	// Mystery brush

	module ScrubbyTool() {

	union() {
	translate([0,0,60.0])
	rotate([180,0,0])
	difference() {
	union() {
	cylinder(d1=EndStop[OD1],d2=31.8,h=10.0);
	translate([0,0,10.0 – Protrusion])
	cylinder(d1=31.8,d2=31.0,h=50.0 + Protrusion);
	}
	translate([0,0,-Protrusion])
	cylinder(d1=26.0,d2=24.0,h=100);
	}
	translate([0,0,60.0 – Protrusion])
	MaleFitting();
	}
	}


	//——————-
	// Electrolux brush ball

	module LuxBrush() {

	union() {
	translate([0,0,30.0])
	rotate([180,0,0])
	difference() {
	union() {
	cylinder(d1=EndStop[OD1],d2=30.8,h=10.0);
	translate([0,0,10.0 – Protrusion])
	cylinder(d1=30.8,d2=30.0,h=20.0 + Protrusion);
	}
	translate([0,0,-Protrusion])
	cylinder(d1=25.0,d2=23.0,h=30 + 2*Protrusion);
	}
	translate([0,0,30.0 – Protrusion])
	MaleFitting();
	}
	}



	//———————-
	// Build it!

	if (Layout == "MaleFitting")
	MaleFitting();

	if (Layout == "CoilWand")
	CoilWand();

	if (Layout == "FloorBrush")
	FloorBrush();

	if (Layout == "CreviceTool")
	CreviceTool();

	if (Layout == "ScrubbyTool")
	ScrubbyTool();

	if (Layout == "LuxBrush")
	LuxBrush();

view raw Kenmore Wand Bushings.scad hosted with ❤ by GitHub

That’s supposed to prevent the WordPress post editors from destroying the formatting…

2015-12-23

Whirlpool Refrigerator Drawer Strut Tab Replacement

The tab supporting the strut with the center slides for the lower drawers in our Whirlpool refrigerator broke of its own accord. This is a problem of long standing, somewhat exacerbated by the fact that lifting the strut will break the tab without much effort at all, but this time the drawers pulled the strut downward hard enough to not only break the tab, but also tear the small tabs that align the bracket right out of the frame.

While pondering the problem, I glued the broken chunk back into the frame:

Refrigerator Drawer Strut - clamping front plate — Refrigerator Drawer Strut – clamping front plate

We agreed that, after nigh onto two decades, it would be OK to swap the position of the two drawers, so as to let the strut use the undamaged part of the frame seen below. Presumably, we’ll eventually get used to having the apples on the right and the veggies on the left.

But it was obvious Something Serious Had To Be Done about the tab.

The tab should align like this inside the frame:

Refrigerator Drawer Strut Tab - alignment — Refrigerator Drawer Strut Tab – alignment

The rightmost part of the tab rests atop a U-shaped metal bar that also supports and stiffens the entire front of the frame, but cantilevering the weight of both drawers on that extended tab overpowered my last attempt at making a glue joint. Soooo, I decided to build a (wait for it …) 3D printed part that screws firmly to the front of the strut.

The first step involved introducing the strut to Mr Belt Sander to strip the wreckage of the OEM tab from the front end (visible through the opening) and smooth things out, then measuring the remainder. The locating flange inside the frame almost defeated me, but eventually I found a tool that fit inside the strut opening and around the flange:

Refrigerator Drawer - measuring flange — Refrigerator Drawer – measuring flange

Which produced a sketch of the key dimensions:

Refrigerator Drawer Strut - Dimension Doodles — Refrigerator Drawer Strut – Dimension Doodles

Which became an extruded polygon with a few holes punched in the side:

Refrigerator Shelf Strut Tab - solid model — Refrigerator Shelf Strut Tab – solid model

Building it standing up wraps the plastic threads around the entire tab and stacks the layers along the length of the tab. Doing it lying down in the obvious hump-up orientation would put the layers parallel to the bottom surface, where they can pull apart under load.

The key innovation here involves being willing to assemble the tab to the strut in situ, without insisting it fit through the frame opening and be more-or-less easily removable. That let me bulk up the tab to match the end of the strut, fill the entire frame opening with plastic, and get enough bulk for a pair of 4-40 screws that, being loaded in shear, should withstand the weight of all those fruits & veggies in the drawers.

The screws simply thread into the holes in the tab, without benefit of tapping. The OpenSCAD code now includes a pair of nut traps, but I’m hoping they won’t be needed.

The new tab really does fill the space available:

Refrigerator Drawer Strut - new tab in place — Refrigerator Drawer Strut – new tab in place

The OpenSCAD code now moves the notch half a millimeter further away from the strut to center it over the ridge. What’s not obvious is how the frame slants toward the tab over the U-bar: the tab just barely clears and probably should have a tapered nose. You may add that if you like.

The U-shaped bar constrains the tab pretty firmly and supports the end, which should now be plump enough to withstand the forces involved. The screws sit horizontally with the frame installed and can’t pull out, which is why I think they can get along without nut traps.

It’s built in cyan PETG with three perimeter threads and 40% 3D Honeycomb fill, making it essentially a solid block of plastic; it’ll be interesting to see what fails next.

The OpenSCAD source code, which I hammered out in a white-hot fury:

// Refrigerator Shelf Strut Tab
// Ed Nisley KE4ZNU December 2015

//- Extrusion parameters must match reality!

ThreadThick = 0.25;
ThreadWidth = 0.40;

HoleWindage = 0.2;

Protrusion = 0.1;			// make holes end cleanly

inch = 25.4;

function IntegerMultiple(Size,Unit) = Unit * ceil(Size / Unit);

//----------------------
// Dimensions

TabSize = [20.0,12.0,35.0];							// length from bracket, height, width along front

SlotSize = [3.0,7.0];
SlotX = 7.0;

TabProfile = [
	[0,0],
	[12,0],	[12,7.0],
	[TabSize[0],7.0], [TabSize[0],TabSize[1]],
	[SlotX + SlotSize[0]/2,TabSize[1]],
	[SlotX + SlotSize[0]/2,5.0], [SlotX - SlotSize[0]/2,5.0],
	[SlotX - SlotSize[0]/2,TabSize[1]],
	[0,TabSize[1]]
];

ScrewY = 7.0;
ScrewOC = 25.0;
ScrewOD = 2.5;

NutOD = 6.6;					// across flats
NutThick = 2.5;

//----------------------
// Useful routines

module PolyCyl(Dia,Height,ForceSides=0) {			// based on nophead's polyholes

  Sides = (ForceSides != 0) ? ForceSides : (ceil(Dia) + 2);

  FixDia = Dia / cos(180/Sides);

  cylinder(r=(FixDia + HoleWindage)/2,
		h=Height,
	$fn=Sides);
}

//----------------------
// Build it

difference() {
	linear_extrude(height=TabSize[2],convexity=4)
		polygon(points=TabProfile);
	
	for (i=[-1,1]) {
		translate([-Protrusion,ScrewY,i*ScrewOC/2 + TabSize[2]/2])
			rotate([0,90,0])
				rotate(180/6)
					PolyCyl(ScrewOD,SlotX,6);
		translate([SlotX - SlotSize[0]/2 - NutThick - Protrusion,ScrewY,i*ScrewOC/2 + TabSize[2]/2])
			rotate([0,90,0])
				rotate(180/6)
					PolyCyl(NutOD,NutThick + SlotSize[0],6);
	}
}

Maybe that’ll last until we finally scrap out the refrigerator…

2015-12-09

Would You Pull the Tab?

So this device showed up in an envelope with a letter telling us we’d won a contest if, of course, the number on the device matched the number in the letter:

I wonder if anybody else had second thoughts about pulling what’s obviously an insulating sheet holding two contacts apart? In this day and age, getting the victim to blow his own fingers off probably counts as a win.

Maybe it comes from having read The White Plague at an impressionable age. Who could resist getting a Nice Thing in the mail?

The number matched, of course, but the letter’s finer print said the prize would be one of:

A new car of some sort
A flat screen TV
A cheap electronic trinket
A three-day / two night vacation

In order to claim your prize, you had to call an 800 number. The much finer print revealed the odds of winning the first three of those prizes was somewhere around 300,000:1. “Winning” the vacation was essentially a slam-dunk proposition, of course, and probably tells you everything you need to know about the course of the phone call.

It’s apparently economical to send out this much hardware to reel in new “customers”:

CodeKase device - parts — CodeKase device – parts

Using the metal disk from a membrane switch as a spring to push the coin cell against the contact wires is a nice touch. This is apparently the optimized version that uses a single lithium cell in place of two alkaline buttons; the cell “socket” on the other end consists of vestigial lumps.

I harvested the lithium cell and the blue LED, of course…

More about CodeKase, direct from the source. I like “Step Five: Recycle Your CodeKase”…

2015-12-05

Kenmore Vacuum Cleaner Tool Adapters

After donating the never–sufficiently-to-be-damned Samsung vacuum cleaner (and all its remaining bags & doodads) to a nonprofit’s tag sale, we picked up a Sears Kenmore Progressive vacuum cleaner that seemed to be the least awful of the current offerings. Unlike all previous vacuum cleaners, its tools & doodads have complex plastic fittings with latches and keyways and all manner of gimcrackery. The designers seem to have hands and legs of far-above-average size, but that’s another rant.

All this came to a head when I attempted to vacuum the fuzz out of the refrigerator’s evaporator coils, because the long snout that reaches the back of the refrigerator doesn’t fit the aperture in the giant handle.

Well, at least I can fix that…

The first step involved modeling the plastic fitting that snaps into the handle:

Kenmore Male Fitting - Solid model — Kenmore Male Fitting – Solid model

The latch on the handle snaps into an opening that took some tinkering to reproduce. Stand back, I’m going to use trigonometry:

            translate([0,-11.5/2,23.0 - 5.0])                                    // latch opening
                cube(Latch);
                
            translate([OEMTube[ID1]/2 + EntryHeight/tan(90-EntryAngle),0,0])    // latch ramp
                translate([(Latch[1]/cos(180/EntrySides))*cos(EntryAngle)/2,0,(Latch[1]/cos(180/EntrySides))*sin(EntryAngle)/2])
                    rotate([0,-EntryAngle,0])
                        intersection() {
                            rotate(180/EntrySides)
                                PolyCyl(Latch[1],Latch[0],EntrySides);
                            translate([-(2*Latch[0])/2,0,-Protrusion])
                                cube(2*Latch[0],center=true);
                        }

Which spits out two suitable shapes with the proper positions and alignments:

Kenmore Male Fitting - Latch detail - Solid model — Kenmore Male Fitting – Latch detail – Solid model

The magic wand for the refrigerator originally slid into the Samsung’s metal pipe, so I put a slightly tapered cylinder inside a somewhat more tapered exterior (which seems chunky enough to withstand my flailing around under the refrigerator), then topped it off with the male fitting:

The Kenmore crevice tool snaps under the gargantuan plastic handle, which limits it to being 6.5 inches long, totally unable to reach into any of the nontrivial crevices around here, and in the way when it’s not being used. Some rummaging turned up a longer crevice tool from the Electrolux That Came With The House™, an old-school tool that slipped over its pipe. Modeling a straight cylinder inside a tapered cylinder that fits the tool didn’t take long:

Flushed with success, I found a smaller floor brush than the new Kenmore, with dimensions similar to the Electrolux snout, so another module appeared:

All of them build with the latch end upward to avoid needing support structure, with a 5 mm brim for good platform adhesion:

Floor Brush Adapter - Slic3r preview — Floor Brush Adapter – Slic3r preview

I printed them during the PDS Mini Maker Faire as examples of Useful Things You Can Do With a 3D Printer:

Kenmore Vacuum Cleaner - Tool Adapters — Kenmore Vacuum Cleaner – Tool Adapters

As I pointed out to nearly everybody, the Big Lie about 3D printing is that you’ll just download somebody else’s model to solve your problem. In general, that won’t work, because nobody else has your problem; if you can’t do solid modeling, there’s no point in you having a 3D printer. There’s also no point in going to Kinko’s to get a standardized 3D printed doodad, because you can just order a better-looking injection-molded part directly from Sears (or an aftermarket source) and be done with it.

I loves me some good OpenSCAD action on my Makergear M2, though…

The OpenSCAD source code:

// Kenmore vacuum cleaner nozzle adapters
// Ed Nisley KE4ZNU November 2015

// Layout options

Layout = "CreviceTool";        // MaleFitting CoilWand FloorBrush CreviceTool

//- Extrusion parameters must match reality!
//  Print with +1 shells and 3 solid layers

ThreadThick = 0.25;
ThreadWidth = 0.40;

HoleWindage = 0.2;

function IntegerMultiple(Size,Unit) = Unit * ceil(Size / Unit);

Protrusion = 0.1;           // make holes end cleanly

//----------------------
// Dimensions

ID1 = 0;                                                // for tapered tubes
ID2 = 1;
OD1 = 2;
OD2 = 3;
LENGTH = 4;

OEMTube = [35.0,35.0,41.7,40.5,30.0];                    // main fitting tube
EndStop = [OEMTube[ID1],OEMTube[ID2],47.5,47.5,6.5];    // flange at end of main tube

FittingOAL = OEMTube[LENGTH] + EndStop[LENGTH];

$fn = 12*4;

//----------------------
// Useful routines

module PolyCyl(Dia,Height,ForceSides=0) {           // based on nophead's polyholes

Sides = (ForceSides != 0) ? ForceSides : (ceil(Dia) + 2);

FixDia = Dia / cos(180/Sides);

cylinder(r=(FixDia + HoleWindage)/2,
         h=Height,
         $fn=Sides);
}


//-------------------
// Male fitting on end of Kenmore tools
// This slides into the end of the handle or wand and latches firmly in place

module MaleFitting() {
    
Latch = [40,11.5,5.0];                    // rectangle latch opening
EntryAngle = 45;                        // latch entry ramp
EntrySides = 16;
EntryHeight = 15.0;                        // lower edge on *inside* of fitting

KeyRadius = 1.0;
        
    translate([0,0,6.5])
        difference() {
            union() {
                cylinder(d1=OEMTube[OD1],d2=OEMTube[OD2],h=OEMTube[LENGTH]);            // main tube
                
                hull()                                                                    // insertion guide
                    for (i=[-(6.0/2 - KeyRadius),(6.0/2 - KeyRadius)], 
                        j=[-(28.0/2 - KeyRadius),(28.0/2 - KeyRadius)], 
                        k=[-(26.0/2 - KeyRadius),(26.0/2 - KeyRadius)])
                        translate([(i - (OEMTube[ID1]/2 + OEMTube[OD1]/2)/2 + 6.0/2),j,(k + 26.0/2 - 1.0)])
                            sphere(r=KeyRadius,$fn=8);
                
                translate([0,0,-EndStop[LENGTH]])                                // wand tube butts against this
                    cylinder(d=EndStop[OD1],h=EndStop[LENGTH] + Protrusion);
            }
            
            translate([0,0,-OEMTube[LENGTH]])                                    // main bore
                cylinder(d=OEMTube[ID1],h=2*OEMTube[LENGTH] + 2*Protrusion);
                
            translate([0,-11.5/2,23.0 - 5.0])                                    // latch opening
                cube(Latch);
                
            translate([OEMTube[ID1]/2 + EntryHeight/tan(90-EntryAngle),0,0])    // latch ramp
                translate([(Latch[1]/cos(180/EntrySides))*cos(EntryAngle)/2,0,(Latch[1]/cos(180/EntrySides))*sin(EntryAngle)/2])
                    rotate([0,-EntryAngle,0])
                        intersection() {
                            rotate(180/EntrySides)
                                PolyCyl(Latch[1],Latch[0],EntrySides);
                            translate([-(2*Latch[0])/2,0,-Protrusion])
                                cube(2*Latch[0],center=true);
                        }
        }
}

//-------------------
// Refrigerator evaporator coil wand

module CoilWand() {
    
    union() {
        translate([0,0,50.0])
            rotate([180,0,0])
                difference() {
                    cylinder(d1=EndStop[OD1],d2=42.0,h=50.0);
                    translate([0,0,-Protrusion])
                        cylinder(d1=35.0,d2=35.8,h=100);
                }
        translate([0,0,50.0 - Protrusion])
            MaleFitting();
    }
}


//-------------------
// Refrigerator evaporator coil wand

module FloorBrush() {
    
    union() {
        translate([0,0,60.0])
            rotate([180,0,0])
                difference() {
                    union() {
                        cylinder(d1=EndStop[OD1],d2=32.4,h=10.0);
                        translate([0,0,10.0 - Protrusion])
                            cylinder(d1=32.4,d2=30.7,h=50.0 + Protrusion);
                    }
                    translate([0,0,-Protrusion])
                        cylinder(d1=28.0,d2=24.0,h=100);
                }
        translate([0,0,60.0 - Protrusion])
            MaleFitting();
    }
}


//-------------------
// Crevice tool

module CreviceTool() {
    
    union() {
        translate([0,0,60.0])
            rotate([180,0,0])
                difference() {
                    union() {
                        cylinder(d1=EndStop[OD1],d2=32.0,h=10.0);
                        translate([0,0,10.0 - Protrusion])
                            cylinder(d1=32.0,d2=30.4,h=50.0 + Protrusion);
                    }
                    translate([0,0,-Protrusion])
                        cylinder(d1=28.0,d2=24.0,h=100);
                }
        translate([0,0,60.0 - Protrusion])
            MaleFitting();
    }
}




//----------------------
// Build it!

if (Layout == "MaleFitting")
    MaleFitting();

if (Layout == "CoilWand")
    CoilWand();

if (Layout == "FloorBrush")
    FloorBrush();

if (Layout == "CreviceTool")
    CreviceTool();

2015-11-23

Ed’s Fireball Hot Cocoa Recipe

The hot chocolate recipe on the back of the cocoa container tastes like bland liquid candy.

This tastes the way hot cocoa should:

Ingredients

1 generous cup milk (full-fat is where it’s at)
1 tbsp white sugar (just do it)
3 tbsp cocoa powder (not chocolate drink mix)
1/4 tsp Vietnamese cinnamon
1 tbsp milk for mixing
few drops peppermint extract
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
20 oz Starbucks City Mug (got ’em cheap at a tag sale)

Preparation

Microwave the generous cup o’ milk for 1 minute
Mix dry ingredients in the giant mug
Stir in just enough cold milk to make a thick mud (*)
Add peppermint drops using 1/4 tsp measure
Rinse 1/4 tsp measure with vanilla
Blend the extracts into the mud (*)
Stir in warm milk, scraping mud off the mug
Microwave for another 45 s or so
Stir to blend

What’s going on:

More cocoa = more flavor, pure & simple
Less sugar = more cocoa bite
Vietnamese cinnamon adds the aroma & zip of those old Atomic Fireballs
Vanilla smooths the taste
Peppermint reminds you it’s winter

Sipping a cup in the afternoon banishes the urge to power-nosh anything else until suppertime…

* Update: non-alkalized / non-Dutch-process cocoa doesn’t blend well. Mix up the mud, let it set for 15 minutes, blend again, pause for 5 minutes, then proceed. Wonderfully smooth with no powder bombs.

2015-11-17