Whenever I look online, there are always awesome ideas and plans for projects which look epic, but they all seem to require an extensive amount of materials in order to make them. Personally, I am a lazy person, so I like to spare going to the store to get additional items when necessary. This project stems from that, as I've wanted a dedicated 3D printer filament holder for some time now, so that my filament would be out and usable instead of hidden away in its box. Of course, I looked online, but the simple ones all seemed to be made out of PVC, something that I never have in my house. Determined to make my own, I scrounged around my house and found a way to make an easy filament holder, which should functionally work to feed the printer as well. This is how to make that simple holder. Enjoy!

Step 1: Materials!

I hate gathering materials because I never seem to have them all at home, but for this project its likely you will. To start, I had a cabinet space in my house that was just storing junk, but I saw they had little holders that attach on the side in order to support the middle divider. I knew this would be the way to make the filament holder.

1 Wood Saw - Easy to make a smooth cut

2 Clamps - These work well at holding the rod in place

1 Drill - Used to make the holes

1 Wooden Dowel/Rod - I had one lying around in the garage; you likely do too

1 Cabinet with inserts that stick out to hold dividers

Step 2: Mark Your Dowel

One of the first things that you have to do is measure the width of your cabinet. Mine was about 27.5 cm from side to side. Now, this is important. Measure Twice, Cut Once. This has to be one of the oldest adages around, but extremely effective in order to save time in the long run.

Once you have your measurement, take a pen and mark where that measurement is on your dowel. Using a ruler for this makes it easy to have an exact placement.

After the dowel is marked, using the clamps, clamp it down onto a stable surface (table, bench, etc.).

Step 3: CUT

This is the fun part, because you get to use a saw to cut stuff. Basically, use the wood saw to cut along the measurement line, keeping the cut as straight as possible. Once cleanly cut through, check to see if the new cut piece of the dowel fits cleanly into the cubby. If it does, perfect, moving on.

Otherwise either use a Dremel to cut it down a little, or just the wood saw, either works.

Step 4: Holes

The design I had in mind, as shown above, is how the rod would actually stay in the cubby. The stubs which attach into the sides of the cubby and usually hold up the divider is how we will make this happen. On both sides of the rod, we drill a hole in the center equivalent to the width of the stub. Additionally, on one end we make a notch in order for the stub to slide through. This notch is the mechanism which allows us to insert it or remove it in the cubby.

Step 5: Put It Together

Now that the rod is modified to fulfill our standards for the project, it is time to put it all together. First, we insert one stub into the side with only the hole. Attach this stub to the side of the cubby.

Next attach the other stub to the side of the cubby. The dowel should be almost flush with the sides of the cubby now, with one end attached and the other end free in the air. We will solve that other end now.

Maneuver the rod so that the notch is face down. Then, slide the rod down over the stub, and so that the stub is now in the center of the rod. This makes for a steady holder, which is easy to access. Additionally, adding rolls of filament is as easy as lifting the rod up until it is off the stub and adding your roll, then placing it back in by using the notch as your guide.

Let me know if you made it in the comments down below, and how yours turned out!