Tippe Top

I split this model into two parts to make the finished top sturdier, as well as printing without supports or brim. The Tippe Top versions with the screw-in stem are harder to print and more fragile.

Printing: Standard settings with 15% infill works fine.  By changing the infill, you can tweak the mass distribution, I have found the best model has the center of mass as low as possible.  The 3mf file shows these settings, where the infill is set to 100% below 4 mm on both halves. This FINAL version flips slightly faster, but you may have trouble detecting any difference.  The printing time for the FINAL version is 59 minutes, only 6 minutes slower than using 15% infill everywhere.

The small holes by default are printed too fast in the first layer, which often results in print failures.  A good way to fix this is shown in the 3mf file: set the first layer speed to 25% (not 25), which prints the small perimeters in the first layer at 6 mm/sec.

Assembly: The halves have small holes for inserting a short piece of filament for alignment. I sand the mating surfaces for a few seconds to give the glue a better grip.  Insert a short piece of filament (~8 mm) and test to make sure the halves fit together.  Then glue them together (I use super glue).

Spinning: You can either use the usual snap-the-fingers technique or print my Tippe Top launcher.  The best spinning surface is a hard floor, as large as possible.  You can also use a plate but if you spin the top too fast it tends to fly off. It is easy to break these, print extra! Dropping one on a hard floor can snap the axle right off.

Note: The “Rainbow” version shown in the photos was printed by changing colors 5 times.