Introduction: Robotic Christmas Teapot Multi-Color With Single Extrusion

By Greg Zumwalt
About: Our grandkids keep me busy!

I have received quite a few inquiries as to how to make the teapot in "https://www.instructables.com/id/Robotic-Christmas-Teapot/" on a single extrusion printer. This Instructable borrows techniques from Penolopy Bulnick's Instructable "https://www.instructables.com/id/Jack-o-Lantern-Face-Pieces/" to accomplish this feat.

I've included two files "Vessel.stl" and "Tree.stl" in this Instructable. These files are for single extrusion 3D printing and may be printed in the colors of your choice. To make the multi-color vessel using single extrusion 3D printing, I performed the following steps:

  • Printed one "Vessel.stl" in white PLA and one "Tree.stl" in green PLA at .15mm layer height, 20% infill with no supports.
  • Used a heat gun to gently warm up the tree (I recommend Penolopy's warming procedure as it is much safer) until it was pliable enough to form to the vessel.
  • Once pliable, I formed the tree to the surface of the vessel at the desired location.
  • I held the tree in place on the vessel for about ten seconds until the PLA cooled enough to hold its shape.
  • Finally, I glued the tree to the vessel using thick cyanoacrylate glue.

As can be seen in the comparison photograph, the results are quite good! Thanks Penolopy!

Designed using Autodesk Fusion 360, sliced using Cura 4.4.0, and printed in PLA on an Ultimaker S5.

Attachments