Uzebox 3D printed enclosure!

[D3thAdd3r]

Checked my mail today..best Christmas gift I will get this year by far, beats the hell out of more socks! The build quality is much more sturdy than I imagined and the look is awesome as I expected. Thanks Alec!!

I also ran into an issue shutting the case as it hung up on the reset button. That is definitely the tough place where all the tolerances meet up(leg,PCB maybe slightly,button,top thickness, so at least 3x min tolerance of printer)I ended up sanding the "rough cut" part underneath the visible top slightly which helped but still pushing on the button with screws tight. I slightly machined out the plastic inside where it contacts the button and then layered it back up with very small cuts of tape until it was just right(feels exactly like the non-shimmed one).

I originally thought I would want to change the resistor value on the LED to make it brighter, but I first tried this little hack:

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I very neatly and tightly wrapped a piece of aluminum foil around the light pipe, cut to size, and taped it. It really worked out nice and I doubt I will change the resistor on it now. The light bar being 3d printed gives a more diffused LED look than you usually see, it is hard to explain but pleasing to the eye.

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The case looks cooler than anything else sitting on my shelf so I am very happy When I get to feeling like doing it, I might even take some very fine sand paper then platic polish compound to the red and make it look like a mirror. Having a case for Uzebox was really a big project of design and engineering and I'm impressed how nicely everything came together.

[uze6666]

I also ran into an issue shutting the case as it hung up on the reset button. That is definitely the tough place where all the tolerances meet up(leg,PCB maybe slightly,button,top thickness, so at least 3x min tolerance of printer)I ended up sanding the "rough cut" part underneath the visible top slightly which helped but still pushing on the button with screws tight. I slightly machined out the plastic inside where it contacts the button and then layered it back up with very small cuts of tape until it was just right(feels exactly like the non-shimmed one).

Yeah I had mentioned that in the assembly guide posted previously, though I could have done a bit more fitting tests before sending it to you guys. I printed a lots of case and buttons, probably some buttons would have fitted perfectly with a specific enclosure.

For the led, if you're happy with the brightness given with the aluminium foil, keep it like that. The new resistor give about 20-30% more light I'd say.

Happy you like it. I may try it in ABS some time. This material can be smoothed using Acetone vapour. IT guives a smooth and shiny finish, but you loose some details. Will have to wait next spring because printing inside, the fumes an unberable. PLA, being made out of corn, actually smells like a bit like waffles. Yummy!

Btw, what did you thought of the other cover I sent you, the one with the Uzebox text made with a sticker?

Thanks for sharing the pics!

For all, if you're interested to have an enclosure, all the design files are now available on Thingiverse. If you don't have a printer, it can be printed at Shapeways, and the quality is excellent. Probably will cost you around 50$.

[D3thAdd3r]

The new resistor give about 20-30% more light I'd say.

Well now I have to do it

This material can be smoothed using Acetone vapour. IT guives a smooth and shiny finish, but you loose some details.

That is interesting but I think I would be too scared I would mess that up. I'm very comfortable with sand paper/polish it is of course a PITA, but you can get extreme detail if you are careful. On the "fins" or whatever you might call the 10x2 channeled section I would definitely want to keep the textured in the low parts for the aesthetics.

Btw, what did you thought of the other cover I sent you, the one with the Uzebox text made with a sticker?

I actually like that one too and I spent some time looking over each one(yes that logo is very cool ) and to be honest I have not totally decided yet and haven't glued it down yet. I am about 80% sure on the raised lettering though.

I would recommend anyone who loves Uzebox to get a case at shapeway, I will probably do that when I give another Uzebox as a gift.

[uze6666]

That is interesting but I think I would be too scared I would mess that up. I'm very comfortable with sand paper/polish it is of course a PITA, but you can get extreme detail if you are careful. On the "fins" or whatever you might call the 10x2 channeled section I would definitely want to keep the textured in the low parts for the aesthetics.

Oh, I wasn't clear, teh acetone thing is only for ABS plastic. That does not work with PLA plastic, the one I used for your enclosure. Also, I'd do some tests on the inside of enclosure for sanding. PLA has a very low melting point and sanding it tends to melt the plastic pretty fast!

Speaking of Shapeways, the parts are up. I've had them made and received them last week. I'll post a review and comparison soon. All parts add up to 80$ for the basic materials.

[jhhoward]

Very cool! I'm even more eager for mine to arrive now

Do you know what the international shipping times are like? I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it arrives in time for Christmas

I see that on shapeways you can even order a logo in solid gold!

[uze6666]

Very cool! I'm even more eager for mine to arrive now

Do you know what the international shipping times are like? I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it arrives in time for Christmas

I've sent it via air mail on Dec 5th and they say it should take around 10 business weeks, so probably by this week's end. Hopefully its not being held at customs.

I see that on shapeways you can even order a logo in solid gold!

Yeah, insane eh!? I was thinking about making a Uzebox ring or belt buckle design someday!

[jhhoward]

Arrived just in time for Christmas, thanks!

This should keep me busy over the holiday period!

[kivan117]

So, after leaving my Uzebox naked in the breeze for a few months, I finally got some cash and bought the pieces for the enclosure off of shapeways. Went with a very basic black and white scheme to give it a classic "retro" look. I like how it turned out, though the plastic they use for their "strong and flexible" has an odd feeling. Reminds me of cardboard/recycled paper almost, even the polished variant. Kind of odd. Also, unfortunately for the top white portion of the shell it came in contact with a blue model of some kind during production and gave it just the slightest blue discoloration. They offered to reprint it for free but it would've taken longer than I wanted to wait so instead I got a free upgrade on shipping. Would probably go with something a bit shinier like their "acrylic plastic" material choice in the future.

[uze6666]

The roughness is due to the SLS process where plastic powder is fused together. There isn't much we can do right now since the plastic particles are still relatively big. If you look at the material pictures and description they say it's a bit rough. Other materials using photolithography would look much smoother but they are also insanely expensive!

[kivan117]

The roughness is due to the SLS process where plastic powder is fused together. There isn't much we can do right now since the plastic particles are still relatively big. If you look at the material pictures and description they say it's a bit rough. Other materials using photolithography would look much smoother but they are also insanely expensive!

I actually don't mind the texture of it. It's pretty smooth overall, just has a unique feel to it. Based on their description from the site I was expecting it to have more "grainy" feel almost like sandpaper, but it's actually pretty smooth, just.. soft? It's kind of like suede for plastic haha. A wee bit of super fine grain sand paper and it shines right up though.