AuxNov 16, 2023

Working 12mm Allen bit, successfully tested to 5Nm

https://lemmy.world/post/8347608

Working 12mm Allen bit, successfully tested to 5Nm - Lemmy.World

I was doing some bike maintenance today and wanted to disassemble my rear hub. It turned out that I needed a 12mm Allen bit for that, which I don’t have. So I 3D printed one! And it worked! Torques safely to 5Nm and I only needed 4Nm for the job. Haven’t tested higher torques.

Show threadImgonnatrythisNov 16, 2023
Nice! This got me thinking, is there a telescoping Allen key or socket wrench size determination tool? You slide down the increments until you achieve fit and this tells you what size wrench to fit? I’m guessing the tolerances would be way too tight for 3d printing. I’d keep a tool like this in my garage, I always run and get three socket wrenches from the basement to use in garage and half the time I still misjudge the size.
Show threadlemmymanNov 17, 2023
I think you are looking for a caliper
Show threadImgonnatrythis
A 3d printed caliper is not a bad idea, but the shape isn’t always great for working on cars and bikes. A vertical telescope mimics the approach of the tool. Its something trivial enough I would probably never buy it, but might print it.
Nov 17, 2023 at 12:41amWeb
Show threadGlemekNov 20, 2023
You could use a divider caliper to be able to translate the size of a fastener to a spot that is easier to measure, if you don’t have to swap between inches and metric it would probably be easy to be accurate enough with it without much practice.