Simple 3D Printed Pen Stand

Often, I have difficulties in finding a pen when required and at other times I have a lot of them lying around on my table. To find a balance between these instances, I decided to 3D print a simple pen stand .

My requirements were simple:

1. There should be atleast 5 slots for holding pen.
2. It should be somewhat aesthetic.
3. It should be small - Not a fan of those gigantic pen holders.
4. It should not tip over (usually happens with small penholders).

Required Supplies:

1. 3D Printer
2. PLA Filament (1.75mm in my case)

Step 1: Measure the Diameter of Pen

I generally use 2-3 different types of pens. So I measured the diameter of each and found that none of them exceeded 9 mm. So I chose 10 mm (1mm margin, just in case) as the diameter of the slot. To overcome the tip over issue, I experimented with three different heights ( 10 mm,15 mm & 20 mm). Both 15 mm and 20 mm seemed stable, so I recommend height greater than or equal to 20 mm ( You can go for larger heights too, but I wanted the stand to be small)

Step 2: Design the Stand

Keeping in mind the diameter of the pen, design a slot and then place it around according to your needs. I made a circular design with 7 slots. Each circular slot has an internal diameter of 10mm.

Step 3: Print!!

I used a printer setting with 30% infill and default temperature settings for PLA (200° C for the hot end and 65° C for the bed ). The .stl file is attached below.

Step 4: It's Ready

Finally, it's done.

The pen stand has 7 slots and fits aesthetically well to my table. Also it is fairly small. So I can gladly say that this project met all my requirements.

Ah finally, I will be able to organize my table a bit and find a pen without any hassle 😂