Custom Möbius Strip Jewelry With Codeblocks

Welcome! In this instructable, you will learn what a Möbius strip is and how to make one, and the you will use that knowledge to create awesome Möbius themed jewelry using TinkerCAD’s Codeblock feature.

Supplies

3D Printer
TinkerCAD and any supporting device

Step 1: Background

Britannica defines a Möbius strip as: “A one-sided surface that can be constructed by affixing the ends of a rectangular strip after first having given one of the ends a one-half twist. This space exhibits interesting properties, such as having only one side and remaining in one piece when split down the middle.”

In other words, a Möbius strip is a band that only has one side, even though it is made with a piece of paper that has two. In order to create one, you must rotate a band an odd multiple of 180 degrees, and attach the end to the other end of the strip. Seen above is a simple Möbius strip rotated 180 degrees and made of paper.

Step 2: Setup

Open TinkeCAD’s codeblock feature, and add the create new object button. This starts our project!

Step 3: Loop

Add a “count with _” and set the blanks to 1, 180, and 1 respectively. This will allow use to have 180 separate sections of the strip to work with. It is also why codeblocks are so essential to this project. Imagine arranging 180 separate sections by hand!

Step 4: Base Shape

Add a cube that has a 3 by 3 by .5 volume. This will be the building block for our jewelry. It will be what we rotate to obtain the unique curve!

Step 5: Basic Rotation

Rotate the object 90 degrees as shown. This changes the shape to be thinner in the side to side direction.

Step 6: Fundamental Rotation

Add a rotate block and change the rotation to 1*_, _ being your variable that you count up with. It is important to add the green block, as it will be used later for customization. The purpose of this block is to provide the 180 (or more) degree rotation that defines a Möbius strip. Without it, the project would just be a tube.

Step 7: Creation of Circle

Add a move block with the numbers shown in it. Then, rotate around the Z axis by 2 times your variable. This is effective because it moves your shape 12mm away from 0,0,0 and then rotates it around that point, creating a circle. It uses intervals of 2 degrees because we are counting to 180, and 180*2=360, a perfect circle.

After this step you should have your basic Möbius strip completed in ring form.

Step 8: Modification 1: Rotations

By changing the multiple of the Y axis rotation, you can make the design more twisted and sophisticated while keeping the Möbius strip aspect. Try not to go higher than 9-11 though, or else the curves will start to disappear.

Step 9: Modification 2: Size/Item

By just changing some of the simple sizes and movements, as shown above, you can customize the size to fit your finger, or ever create a bracelet (numbers and picture shown above) or even a choker! For a choker, divide into two pieces in your slicing software!