LED Cube Maker Mashup
This 3D Printed LED Cube is quick and easy to make. These are fun for all ages and can be incredibly useful for accent lighting. Originally designed as a toy the more I printed these the more fun I had. In fact I printed an entire set just for myself. I had to buy more filament because I used everything I had making all the fun cubes.
This article will show you how to make these and how to mix them up for your specific needs. This project will take you less than an hour to have your first cube lit up and ready to use. The project mashes up two maker skills, electronics and 3D Printing. In fairness though you don't need to know anything about electronics to make these.
Bill of Materials
Color Changing LED Tea lights available from Amazon (although almost any should work)
Once you have everything you will want to print the model using the clear PLA. I have printed these on PETG as well however the PLA seems to work a little better.
Cura Print Settings
3 perimeter walls (for added strength)
5% infill using Triangles (gives it the star look on top)
.3 mm layer height (prints it very fast)
Print without supports.
Rotate the model or ensure that the hole in the cube is facing up.
Depending on your printer you may be able to increase the print speed. I was able to print these up to 100mm/s on my modded Ender 3 with S Curve enabled in the firmware. You may however get different results with your printer.
Once you print these the rest is very easy. Simply insert the tea light into the base of the cube. The print is designed to handle the entire tea light including the pseudo flame at the top. Given these tea lights are incredibly cheap I test the light before putting it into the cube. It will require some pressure to push the tea light in. This is by design so it stays in place. If you find it is too tight I suggest using some sandpaper to widen the hole slightly. If you find it is too loose I suggest a dab from a glue gun to hold it in. This really should not be necessary if you have the tea lights I purchased.
You can use these in a number of ways. They make great toys for younger kids. You can also use them for ambient lighting anywhere. Here is one in my car. If you don't want rotating colors you can find many solid colors on Amazon or even your local store.
If you print these please post a comment below or your make on the Thingiverse page for others to see.