The Perfect 3D-Printed Ball Joint

Hi friends! 

This ball joint is designed to fit itself in a variety of material types at small and huge scales. 

I am releasing it public domain so you may use and distribute it however you like. I hope it inspires you to make something! 

    I made this as part of another model that I was working on. I needed fully articulating legs and couldn't find anything I really liked. The complete model is going to be uploaded soon. 

However, this part of the model I wanted to release as public domain so anyone can have it! 

    I have had a lot of fun with this one. This is the vertical orientation of the model. I am considering doing a horizontal one if someone is looking for something with a little more toughness. 

They hold their weight at 100% scale and then about 50-100 grams depending on the shape you have them in. 

I print them at 200 micron (.2mm) layer height with 3 perimeters. Infill does not matter. 

It is recommended to use a brim, I use 3mm with a .15mm separation gap. 

    I have printed them with Silk and Matte PLA, as well as standard PLA. All work great. I went through many test prints trying to get them to snap fit without breaking. PETG will work a lot better, but I understand not everyone can print PETG so my focus was PLA. 

I hope you have fun, and be sure to share what you create!