From the Loftsmith Workshop
Gumball Machine with Click Dial for 10–30 mm Gumballs
A countertop gumball machine: each click of the fluted dial delivers one ball or round candy to the front tray, sized for balls from 10 to 30 mm. The ball-size slider resizes the pockets, chute, tray and globe together. At the 16 mm default the six-pocket wheel holds one ball per pocket and the globe holds about 120 balls; the machine is 96 × 123 × 165 mm and fits a 180 mm bed. The other sliders set 4 to 8 pockets, hopper height (60 to 140 mm) and running clearance (0.2 to 0.5 mm). It prints as six parts with no supports, about 181 g and 4 h 38 min at 2 walls / 15 % infill. It was checked in t
6 parts · 176 g · 96 × 123 × 165 mm
Ask for the sizes you want to tweak, e.g. “make the width adjustable”.
How to print it
Parts
- base · PLA · Upright, plinth on the bed
Flared pedestal with a hub, a 45-degree chute tunnel and the front tray. 64 g, about 93 min. No supports.
- dial · PLA · Flat, dimpled face down
The pocket wheel and the knob in one piece, with a fluted grip rim and one detent dimple per pocket. 25 g, about 38 min.
- hopper · PETG (clear recommended) · Upright, floor on the bed
Globe with a 22-degree funnel floor that slopes down to the inlet. The flare and shoulder are 45-degree slopes, so no supports are needed. 73 g, about 106 min.
- spindle · PETG · Lying on its flat side (rotated for you on export)
Keyed shaft with two snap fingers. Printed lying down so the fingers bend along the layers. 2 g, about 8 min.
- click-spring · PETG · On its side (rotated for you on export)
A 25 mm leaf spring with a 0.5 mm bump, giving one click per pocket. Under 1 g, about 5 min.
- lid · PLA · Upright, plug down
Seats on a 45-degree countersink in the neck, with a ball finial on top. 12 g, about 22 min.
Print settings
- Layer height
- 0.2 mm
- Walls
- 2
- Infill
- 15%
- Supports
- None
- Notes
- At 2 walls and 15 % infill the whole set is about 181 g and 4 h 38 min (engine estimate, default sliders). PLA for the base, dial and lid. PETG for the hopper, so you can see the candy if you use clear filament, and for the spindle and click spring, which have to flex without cracking. With 3 walls
Assembly
- Press the click spring's square anchor into the socket at the back of the base plate, bump facing up, until its top is flush with the plate.
- Drop the dial over the hub, dimpled face down. It should spin freely and click as it turns.
- Set the hopper on top of the hub. Turn it until the D-shaped hole and its two side grooves line up with the bore in the hub; the inlet hole ends up at the back.
- Drop the spindle in through the hopper neck, flat side matching the D-shaped hole. Push its head down until the two hooks click out under the base, about 5 mm of snap travel. The head ends up flush with the funnel floor.
- Fill the globe with gumballs or round wrapped candy and set the lid in the neck.
- Turn the dial in one direction. The first ball reaches the tray after 3 clicks at the default 6 pockets; after that, each click drops one ball.
- To take it apart, squeeze the two hook tips together from under the base (fingernails or small pliers), push the spindle up and out, then lift off the hopper and dial.
Good to know
- Measure your candy and set the ball-diameter slider to it. Balls larger than the setting won't fit the pockets. Balls much smaller than the setting can come out two at a time.
- Made for round candy. Flat or oval candy such as chocolate lentils or jelly beans may jam.
- Printed parts are not certified food-safe. Use wrapped candy, or accept that loose candy touches the printed plastic.
- Gumballs are a choking hazard for small children; this is a candy dispenser, not a toy.
- The design was checked in the Loftsmith engine, not printed. Test the click force, the 0.3 mm running fit and the spindle snap on your printer. If the dial binds, raise the clearance slider.
- Lift the machine by the base when it is full. The snap is sized to hold the base when lifted by the globe, but the globe is the weaker handle.
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