Kernel Bob 
Holy moly, that's a lot of Gridfinity base plates!
The enormity of this project is beginning to sink in.
New build thread, I guess, hashtag #IkeaGrid
🧵 1/N
I lined the drawers of this IKEA ALEX with 30 gauge* galvanized steel, as one does. Then I dropped in magnetized Gridfinity base plates. Each drawer is 14 by 10 Gridfinity units, though the back couple of rows are hard to access.
* 30 gauge = 0.305mm
🧵 2/N
Spousey has requested Gridfinity in one of her IKEA ALEX units now, too. She hasn't requested steel drawer liner.
🧵 3/N
Dymo label maker and its tapes are now engridded.
The IKEA ALEX drawers are now 58% filled but only 9% gridfinitized. Need more bins! But the good news is, I only need to design and print three or four more holders to completely organize and store the pile of tools that's been sitting in the middle of the room since we moved in in 2022. Almost there...
🧵 4/N
Now the small ALEX has steel-bottomed drawers too. These drawers are 9×9 Gridfinities.
🧵 6/N
Yesterday and today I threw a couple more Gridfinity bins onto Printables. One is for my new-ish Wera hex driver set, and the other is for superglue bottles.
I really think I put about 10x more effort into my bins than the average poster. I downloaded a dozen Wera driver bins and printed a couple, and none of them simultaneously fit the drivers, stacked, and had magnet holes.
https://www.printables.com/model/1321723-gridfinity-bin-for-kraftform-hex-driver-set
https://www.printables.com/model/1322920-gridfinity-zap-a-gap-bin
🧵 7/N
Heck, I think I spend more time on the photos than most people spend designing their bins.
There's just so much low-quality crap to wade through.
Who's got two thumbs* and one ALEX drawer that opens 100%? Thanks to @pixelpusher for the brilliant idea; I just refined it a little.
I will put the files up on Printables eventually, after I modify the other five drawers.
🧵 8/N
* Rhetorical question. I know that the opposable thumb "theory" is woke nonsense.
@pixelpusher Here's the "final"* iteration of the support block design. It has spring-loaded wings that clamp it in place against the part it supports. Before the wings, the blocks slid around and the hole perimeters misaligned.
The space between the wings is 0.4mm too small. I have to bend it pretty hard to clip it on, but nothing's come off the bed yet.
* final in that I've used them to print 6 of the 12 pieces I need.
🧵 9/N
@pixelpusher This is an IKEA ALEX disassembly tool. I destroyed the side pieces of the first two drawers I took apart. (That's okay, I was throwing those parts away. But I like to be able to undo.) So I made these.
These purple blocks distribute force across the whole width of the board so that it's less likely to split when I pry them apart. The nylon nails are a lot stronger than the boards. The clamp shaft makes a handy pry bar.
🧵 10/N
@pixelpusher I replaced IKEA's nylon nails with these expanding plugs. I had a clearance issue where the head was hitting the enclosure side, so I redesigned the plug and the drawer wall so they sit flush. The hole down the plug is countersunk for the screw head, so I had to use skinny screws (M2.5).
🧵 11/N
@pixelpusher This project is officially finished now. I published the files to Printables.
Share and enjoy!
https://www.printables.com/model/1407250-full-extension-ikea-alex-drawer-mod
(Pssst! Check out the last photo in the listing.)
🧵 12/N
Øyvind Ellingsen@kbob are you printing new sides? I looked at that option, but only having an A1 mini I figured out that wouldn’t work for me
@pixelpusher Yes I am. They barely fit, spit in half, on an MK4. On a Mini, you'd probably have to split them into three pieces.
Jon A. Cruz@kbob @pixelpusher nice cauls!
@joncruz @pixelpusher That's the word!
Vlastimil Babka 🇨🇿🇪🇺🇺🇦@kbob @pixelpusher * better embrace the alternate theory, that opposable thumbs were a mistake! Cc @lkundrak @ljs
MisterMaker@kbob @pixelpusher This is awesome, I have 2 of these. But not being able to do this makes them pretty annoying.
Clayton O'Neill@kbob @pixelpusher I’m very much looking forward to seeing more. I’ve got two of these and this is a big pet peeve.
@clayton_oneill @MisterMaker @pixelpusher Thanks. I'm still tweaking the design, because it prints with some big bridges and I'm not happy with the quality I'm getting with supports in my chosen filament.
@clayton_oneill @MisterMaker @pixelpusher This one worked amazingly well! I printed a PETG support, paused the print and dropped it in, then printed over it. Happiness!
Thanks to @mrintergalactickeyboard for suggesting this a few days ago in another context.
Francis 🏴☠️ Gulotta@kbob @clayton_oneill @MisterMaker @pixelpusher @mrintergalactickeyboard what?! That’s awesome but why not flip the print?
@reconbot @clayton_oneill @MisterMaker @pixelpusher @mrintergalactickeyboard Excellent question! Here's the other side.
And before you ask, I didn't print it standing on end because (a) the narrower channel on the other side would be unsupported, and (b) the actual piece (as opposed to this test block) is longer than my printer's build height.
Edit: oops, yeah, I trimmed that top channel away in the even smaller test piece above.
Mr Intergalactic Keyboard@kbob @reconbot @clayton_oneill @MisterMaker @pixelpusher nice!! I just used this trick on my most recent project, easy peasy and works good 🤙
@kbob I was just considering building or buying a workbench/storage solution and was coveting this https://www.harborfreight.com/tool-storage-organization/workbenches/large/46-in-9-drawer-mobile-storage-cabinet-with-solid-wood-top-black-56613.html
But I thought "it needs some gridfinity"
@reconbot I keep heavy, dirty, sharp tools in my rolling toolbox. I don't think Gridfinity would survive long there. (Plus, many tools are bigger than my print bed.) Horr'ble Fright sells some nice organizers, though.
Chris Huck 
@kbob I like that you included a slot for the manual. I’d wager a lot of people never think to consider it. If a manual is particularly large, there’s always the option to put it flat under the object you’re storing.
@chrishuck Yeah, I still have to refer to the book because the printer has so many special modes. And with the lever on the side, the printer was 3.1 grid units wide, and I wanted to use the space.
@chrishuck Now this bin has one remix on Printables. They removed the manual slot. 🤷
https://www.printables.com/model/1280542-rhino-4200-holder-for-gridfinity
