3D printed case

[Maplesteel 97]

On 10/9/2020 at 2:46 AM, LIMA said:

Hello, again. I also made a bumper case 🙂

It helps me to avoid touching screen edges by accident. I also noticed that I could hold Pro1 securely because FDM printed layer lines work to prevent slipping.

You can download the data from here:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4618945

You are a saint @LIMA! I've ordered this through craftcloud since I don't own a 3D printer; I matched the PLA material you used  at 40% infill (since they only offered 20 or 40, not 30 like you used). Will post pics here once it arrives.

[Maplesteel 97]

Okay it finally came in!

TL;DR: I'm finally going to move this phone into daily driver status. I've been too afraid to carry it till now (hope the Pro2 has a non-curved screen), but I now have the best screen case for the Fxtec Pro1 available as of now.

In the beginning, there was an @EskeRahn flip case special.

Then there was a hacked together Huawei case I got from some particular user's recommendation (maybe also an Eskie? Amazon US link) that worked except that I could not fully close the screen enough to be comfortable that I wasn't gonna somehow damage it in my pocket. No number row access for my sausage fingers either.

And now, there's something new! And may I say, much better on the fingers-reaching-the-number-row than the Huawei case; not perfect, but I can now strain n reach the number row, which is more than I could do for the Huawei.

Special thanks to @LIMA for uploading the STL files earlier in the thread. This arrived today and snugly snapped right on. Pro-tip for installing the case, the short end that is thin goes over the front-facing camera.

So it works for me. Only con was that there is some leftover 3d-print material that I will have to take a small scraper too on the inside of the case (pictured below) as otherwise when I drop this phone I will worry that the bottom left screen will be the place that gets the old star crack 😐 , but the case design fits like a glove and feels very strong.

One more photo because I can 🙂

[ermghoti 88]

That is great news! It's been a long time without an adequate case option.

[GameboyRMH 18]

I received one I ordered to be printed yesterday, but I think it came out a tiny bit too small...the front bumper doesn't quite fit and the rear cover isn't close to fitting.

[Bruce Wayne 65]

I got my print today, i just printed the bottom cover only. A lot of thanks @LIMA
for sharing .stl files. It fits perfect i ordered PLA with 100% filling. Looks grate..thanks agin to lima.

[Saguro 12]

6 hours ago, Bruce Wayne said:

I got my print today, i just printed the bottom cover only. A lot of thanks @LIMA
for sharing .stl files. It fits perfect i ordered PLA with 100% filling. Looks grate..thanks agin to lima.

This looks like a really nice solution for the case!
How well do you think this would protect the phone from fall damage?
For people who like flipbook-type cases I think glueing just the leather part of another case to the back of this would work quite well, or am I forgetting something important for this to work?

[EskeRahn 5,464]

5 hours ago, Saguro said:

For people who like flipbook-type cases I think glueing just the leather part of another case to the back of this would work quite well

Indeed, this is basically what we do with a P20 Pro shell. So yes that would certainly work.
I think the reason some of us 'like' the flip-case, is more like in lack of a better option. But the case @LIMA presented, certainly looks like a fine alternative.

[KingOfTerrible 69]

On 10/23/2020 at 9:00 PM, Maplesteel said:

Okay it finally came in!

TL;DR: I'm finally going to move this phone into daily driver status. I've been too afraid to carry it till now (hope the Pro2 has a non-curved screen), but I now have the best screen case for the Fxtec Pro1 available as of now.

Special thanks to @LIMA for uploading the STL files earlier in the thread. This arrived today and snugly snapped right on. Pro-tip for installing the case, the short end that is thin goes over the front-facing camera.

So it works for me. Only con was that there is some leftover 3d-print material that I will have to take a small scraper too on the inside of the case (pictured below) as otherwise when I drop this phone I will worry that the bottom left screen will be the place that gets the old star crack 😐 , but the case design fits like a glove and feels very strong.

 

@Maplesteel who did your 3d printing?  Was it Hudson Creative Group?  They did mine attempt (see below), but it didn't fit right.

On 10/9/2020 at 2:46 AM, LIMA said:

Hello, again. I also made a bumper case 🙂

It helps me to avoid touching screen edges by accident. I also noticed that I could hold Pro1 securely because FDM printed layer lines work to prevent slipping.

You can download the data from here:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4618945

@LIMA so I downloaded your files on Oct 13th and ordered them to be printed though Craft Cloud after @Maplesteel mentioned it.  I sent the 3 files you had at the time (rear: fxtecpro1case_v10; front: fxtecpro1bumper_v3; front: fxtecpro1bumper_notch_v7_WIP) and had them produced by Hudson Creative Group in PLA (black, 40% infill) and PETG (translucent blue, Infill 40%).  None of the PLA ones fit my pro1; I might be able to snap them on for a second but they come right off.

For the PETG ones (apparently this material is more flexible:
- the rear case fits but it's not very secure
- the front bumper without notches comes off too easily
- the front bumper with notch wip is good until you close the keyboard and it flies right off

I see you've now got a newer version 10 with mentions a thin band.  Did you experience the same issues I've mentioned and does the new thin band help?  One thing I'm noticing is that both the top and bottom edges (where the keyboard opening is) have a slight edge that curves back in.  I am thinking any case that is going to stay put needs to be able to grab on this edge.

[LIMA 35]

Thank you for the many compliments. 
I feel sorry and regret a little that I was only thinking of the ones who can print home and adjust offsets etc. by themselves. We don't have such a 3D printing service for personal use where I live... I should have tested well before I share it.

I intentionally made this case tight-fit to hold the Pro1 body (it should be slightly tight). Unlike other smartphones, I can't wrap whole dimensions for Pro1's case because I need to open/close the keyboard. Inner sides need to be open for both front and rear parts. When I printed the case in larger dimensions, it came off from the Pro1 body when I raise.

Every printer/filament has a little different printing result, and I calibrate my printer. But from this thread posts, it seems that my printer is printing in a larger size than other printers 😞
I thought of making TPU (stretchable material) version model as a solution and had a test, but I felt that I need to make the case very thick and bulky to avoid peeling off from the body.

@KingOfTerrible
>- the front bumper with notch wip is good until you close the keyboard and it flies right off
It didn't happen when I quietly open/close the keyboard with both hands (I prefer to do so), but I experienced this when I opened the keyboard with one hand, making a slapping sound. After I came up with an idea to add a thin band on the front cover, I made it a little larger (W 76.6mm -> 77mm) because I don't need to make it tight when I can help to hold the bumper with a band. I am not having this issue while I am using [fxtecpro1bumper_notch_v10]. 

[netman 1,424]

2 minutes ago, LIMA said:

I feel sorry and regret a little that I was only thinking of the ones who can print home and adjust offsets etc. by themselves. We don't have such a 3D printing service for personal use where I live... I should have tested well before I share it.

There's no need to be sorry for sharing work, as community we can improve this together now :).

[KingOfTerrible 69]

1 hour ago, LIMA said:

Thank you for the many compliments. 
I feel sorry and regret a little that I was only thinking of the ones who can print home and adjust offsets etc. by themselves. We don't have such a 3D printing service for personal use where I live... I should have tested well before I share it.

I intentionally made this case tight-fit to hold the Pro1 body (it should be slightly tight). Unlike other smartphones, I can't wrap whole dimensions for Pro1's case because I need to open/close the keyboard. Inner sides need to be open for both front and rear parts. When I printed the case in larger dimensions, it came off from the Pro1 body when I raise.

Every printer/filament has a little different printing result, and I calibrate my printer. But from this thread posts, it seems that my printer is printing in a larger size than other printers 😞
I thought of making TPU (stretchable material) version model as a solution and had a test, but I felt that I need to make the case very thick and bulky to avoid peeling off from the body.

@KingOfTerrible
>- the front bumper with notch wip is good until you close the keyboard and it flies right off
It didn't happen when I quietly open/close the keyboard with both hands (I prefer to do so), but I experienced this when I opened the keyboard with one hand, making a slapping sound. After I came up with an idea to add a thin band on the front cover, I made it a little larger (W 76.6mm -> 77mm) because I don't need to make it tight when I can help to hold the bumper with a band. I am not having this issue while I am using [fxtecpro1bumper_notch_v10]. 

@LIMA thanks for the work you have done.  So far your work seems to be the closest to a working custom case that's not a hack job of something off the shelf.  I will try ordering a print of the "fxtecpro1bumper_notch_v10" version.

Any thoughts on the differing "infill" amounts?  As a non 3d printing enthusiast (I've been avoiding it as I could see myself wasting a lot of money), my understanding is that infill percentage is how much you fill the gaps/voids in the design.  However, with this being a phone case molded to the phone, I can't see there begin much void space.  So maybe the infill % doesn't matter and really 20% vs 100% is going to come out the same regarding material used, durability, fitting the device?

Any chance you are willing to "mass produce" case components on your calibrated printer?  FYI, using this CraftCloud service and printing the 3 designs cost me ~20 for PLA and ~30 for PETG + 6 shipping (all USD).  I'm in the USA.  So you may be able to cover your costs + profit.  If it made sense to produce a bunch, ship to me, and then I distribute to others in the US @ cost, I'd be open to it.  Still cheaper then spending hundreds on buying a printer + newbie learning curve...etc.

[Maplesteel 97]

8 hours ago, KingOfTerrible said:

@Maplesteel who did your 3d printing?  Was it Hudson Creative Group?  They did mine attempt (see below), but it didn't fit right.

@LIMA so I downloaded your files on Oct 13th and ordered them to be printed though Craft Cloud after @Maplesteel mentioned it.  I sent the 3 files you had at the time (rear: fxtecpro1case_v10; front: fxtecpro1bumper_v3; front: fxtecpro1bumper_notch_v7_WIP) and had them produced by Hudson Creative Group in PLA (black, 40% infill) and PETG (translucent blue, Infill 40%).  None of the PLA ones fit my pro1; I might be able to snap them on for a second but they come right off.

For the PETG ones (apparently this material is more flexible:
- the rear case fits but it's not very secure
- the front bumper without notches comes off too easily
- the front bumper with notch wip is good until you close the keyboard and it flies right off

I see you've now got a newer version 10 with mentions a thin band.  Did you experience the same issues I've mentioned and does the new thin band help?  One thing I'm noticing is that both the top and bottom edges (where the keyboard opening is) have a slight edge that curves back in.  I am thinking any case that is going to stay put needs to be able to grab on this edge.

I had Hudson Creative group do it, same as you. I also would be willing to purchase a LIMA case, whether flexy TPU or same-same as what I've got now. I'd want to buy a set of front and back at that point as well.

 

Etsy store for JIT orders? Heck, there's no Fxtec Pro1 case on Amazon, if ya'll opened up one of those and put the case on there, I suspect you'd get good business, at least until some random copycat store opens up with an injection-molded plastic competitor. ... Which might solve our 'lack of a mass produced case option' quite nicely 😛

[benoitjeffrey 66]

Hi! I'm sharing my results, I got a SLA 3D printer, and printed front and rear,

On the front cover, the thin band didn't survived the printing support removal but even without them it hold pretty well and as a safety I added 4 little point of slim double face tape so it wont fly away when using the keyboard.

For the rear part it nearly hold in place but not enough for me, following your idea I wraped the back side and again used small piece of double face tape.

It all ended with something I really do like,

I started thinking to remove it and shooting the exterior part of the case with rubber paint. It could end up pretty rugged like this

Edited October 28, 2020 by benoitjeffrey

[3zet 100]

6 hours ago, benoitjeffrey said:

I started thinking to remove it and shooting the exterior part of the case with rubber paint. It could end up pretty rugged like this

 

Plasti-dip, its damn great. 

[EskeRahn 5,464]

I would be interesting in buying a case too, but got ZERO experience with 3D-printing, and does not have the faintest idea what material to look for finding someone to print it...
So if some of you can do it and ship to Europe (That is Denmark) then please name a price.

[lameboyadvance 98]

While I (supposedly) have a 3D printer on my way to me (eventually), I have zero experience with using them and would also be interested in purchasing a premade case, especially if its made in a commercial manner using quality material (preferably one that has some flexibility for absorbing impacts when dropped).

Aussie here, so if the printer is not Aussie it would likely mean a shipping cost more than that of the actual case,.. but I'm still interested.

[benoitjeffrey 66]

I would print one for you but I would wait for someone less far than me to cut in shipping price, otherwise I'll take a look for it.

BTW I'm in Canada

[Wheeljack 212]

A friend of mine printed the case and the first version of the bumper for me with 20% infill using PLA+.

The bottom fits like a glove. The bumper is a bit too tight and the tension constantly makes it jump off. But you already knew that. 😉 I'll try to shave a bit of material off before I ask him to print one of the updated versions.

[Maplesteel 97]

6 hours ago, Wheeljack said:

A friend of mine printed the case and the first version of the bumper for me with 20% infill using PLA+.

The bottom fits like a glove. The bumper is a bit too tight and the tension constantly makes it jump off. But you already knew that. 😉 I'll try to shave a bit of material off before I ask him to print one of the updated versions.

Apparently I got really really lucky with the amount of tension my bumper case resulted in. Not so tight that it's fidgeting off, not so loose that it's falling off.

 

I wonder how we can dial in on what the differences are to make these less variable? Is it all a case of 3D printer calibration?

[ermghoti 88]

I tried. 😄

Used Craftcloud, tried ABS with 40% infill, ordered two bumpers and two backs. The bumper went on, but falls off in my pocket. After a couple hours, it no longer stays on at all. The backs were both obviously warped. I broke one trying to straighten it, both were too short to attach even momentarily. Maybe PLA?

Edited November 1, 2020 by ermghoti

[Maplesteel 97]

Well peeps, guess who apparently volunteered their precious Pro1 & screen case to be tested? Me. Happy Cyber Monday?

4 foot drop from counter to tiled floor. 3D printed screen case is caput, broke in half due to the impact. But even though it cost it it's life, the case fulfilled its function of limiting damage to the screen to the bare minimum, which in this case is the bottom-left edge of the Pro1's screen fingerprint protector got peeled about 2 cm out of place. No other damage.

Since the bumper case is damaged beyond repair AFAIK, I'm ordering this universal bumper case to try out per this post from the main case thread by @mv, but if it doesn't fit as nicely as the 3D printed case, I'm going to only be using it long enough until I can get another @LIMA special on order.

[KingOfTerrible 69]

On 11/30/2020 at 8:52 AM, Maplesteel said:

Well peeps, guess who apparently volunteered their precious Pro1 & screen case to be tested? Me. Happy Cyber Monday?

4 foot drop from counter to tiled floor. 3D printed screen case is caput, broke in half due to the impact. But even though it cost it it's life, the case fulfilled its function of limiting damage to the screen to the bare minimum, which in this case is the bottom-left edge of the Pro1's screen fingerprint protector got peeled about 2 cm out of place. No other damage.

Since the bumper case is damaged beyond repair AFAIK, I'm ordering this universal bumper case to try out per this post from the main case thread by @mv, but if it doesn't fit as nicely as the 3D printed case, I'm going to only be using it long enough until I can get another @LIMA special on order.

Maybe a stupid idea, but can you superglue the broken corner back together?

I'm still working on getting a usable 3d printed case.  I'm working with one of the "manufacturers" (aka a guy with a 3d printer) on treatstock to edit the @LIMA design a bit to get it to fit my phone better and not pop off.  If I get something working I will share what I can with the community.

 

[ermghoti 88]

I tried again, this time with PLA, fulfilled by Hudson. the front went on pretty well, the back again, way too small. however, this time, the back printed with minimal warping, and the PLA being flexible, a few bits of automotive mounting tape keep it in place. Again, with the flexibility, the front was pretty floppy, so I added tape at the ends, opposite the charging port and headphone jack. It behaves pretty well now. The terrifying frictionless feel is gone, and the phone can be handled without continuously triggering unwanted actions. I haven't loaded any software to contend with the screen edges yet, and the only issue there is that it's hard to"grab" the Settings bar from the top in portrait configuration.

The downside is that the number row, already poorly positioned, is now nearly unusable from four to seven. It seems like if the edge of the case were rigid, I could get away with it, but then it would be harder to keep it on. I'm trying to figure if there's enough material here to relieve the corner/edge without destroying the case. Otherwise, I can jam my thumb against the case and move it enough to click numbers, albeit slowly.

[Maplesteel 97]

On 12/2/2020 at 2:20 PM, KingOfTerrible said:

Maybe a stupid idea, but can you superglue the broken corner back together?

I'm still working on getting a usable 3d printed case.  I'm working with one of the "manufacturers" (aka a guy with a 3d printer) on treatstock to edit the @LIMA design a bit to get it to fit my phone better and not pop off.  If I get something working I will share what I can with the community.

 

I tried it with Tacky wood glue, that did about as much as you'd imagine it would (nothing!) but I will try superglue sometime when I have some again.

[benoitjeffrey 66]

I'm on test printing some flex case, somehow I'm getting interesting results