A stand for a USB microscope (approx 35mm in diameter). Easy to print, really accurate and does not need hardware made of unobtainium.It offers coarse height adjustment and a fine focus (height) adjustment by a big handwheel (0,5mm / turn). The fine adjustment is supported by a ball bearing so it is really smooth.
This allows to get a very accurate focus and take very good pictures.
The coarse adjustment is made with flexure clamps so the surface of the square tube is not scratched (for smooth motion).I hold everything together with super glue (permanent bond) and hot glue (if I need to dismantle some parts)All printed parts will come out nicely at 0,15mm layer without any support.The thumbwheels and the big handwheel are made this way: Print the models as they are, screw the threaded rod or the screws through the holes almost to the end (should be tight but not too much) and put a drop of super glue on the threads before screwing all the way in.The cavities around the bearing and the main nut are meant for hot glue, but you can use super glue everywhere if you are sure you will never need to disassemble.The microscope is clamped with a rubber band.I also share my source files (as in "open SOURCE"). These are for Solidworks 2014. I also put a Step file if you want to open and modify the design in any other 3d CAD program.I do not have any good pictures of the finished product but I already made and used it and it works like a charm! (design tested and approved, just go ahead!)If you have another size of microscope you will just need to make another "clamp" part that fits your microscope (or whatever you want to use it for).
Technical
Printed:
- 1x 34mm microscope clamp
- 1x Handwheel
- 1x Primary lower slide
- 1x Primary upper slide
- 1x Secondary slide
- 3x M3 thumbscrew
- 1x Tube support bracket (optional, depends on how you want to attach the support)
Other:
- 2x 10mm (OD) round tube, 80mm long (or any other length) for the columns
- 1x 10mm square (or round, works fine too) tube approx 250mm long, for the "mast"
- 1x M3 threaded rod, 100mm long
- 1x 625 bearing (5x16x5)
- 3x M3x25mm screws for the thumbscrews
- 8x M3 nuts
+ some super glue and some hot glue