Camping Gas Canister Rack — Under-Shelf & Wall (Parametric, 110g / 230g)

A rack for camping gas canisters (MSR, Jetboil, Coleman, Snow Peak, Primus-type 110g and 230g). Each can hangs from its base rim, the rolled steel lip at the bottom. The rim is wider than the can body, so it rests on two rails while the body drops through the gap between them. Nothing clamps or straps the can; it just sits on its rim.

One file, two ways to mount it.

Option A: under a shelf

Cans hang base-up, like wine glasses under a cabinet. Slide a can into the open front of a channel and it lines up behind the others. A small bump at the mouth stops the row sliding back out, and gravity does the rest. To reach a can at the back, slide the front ones out like a vending machine.

Option B: vertical wall

Cans stick straight out from the wall, base against the surface. Drop one into the top of a track and it slides down and stacks on the cans below. The rim sits trapped between the back-plate and the front lips, so a can can't pull off the wall.

The default layout is two columns of three, for six cans, but it's modular. Print fewer or more pieces.

Read this first: size it to your cans

Canister diameters vary by brand (around 90 mm for most 110g cans, 108 to 110 mm for 230g). This model is parametric, and the included STLs are cut for a 110g can with a 90 mm base rim. Check the fit before you print the whole rack. It's a 15-minute test:

1. Print tol_test.stl. It's four short channel sections at rail clearances of 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5 mm, with the number engraved on each. Print it flat-face-down, no supports.

2. Slide your can's rim into each slot. Pick the one that's snug but still slides without any slop.

3. If that's not the default 1.5, open isobutane_rack.scad, set body_clear to your number (it's at the top of the file), and re-render.

That's the only measurement that affects fit. Everything else should have fairly sensible defaults.

What to print

Print tol_test.stl first, for the fit check above.

You can also print a coupon, a 1-can test piece. Print it, screw it up, and hang a full can on it before you commit to all six:

• Option A: A_undershelf_coupon.stl

• Option B: B_wall_coupon.stl

Then the real columns. A 3-can column prints as a 2-can piece plus a 1-can piece, because a full 3-can run is longer than most beds. The two pieces join with a flat tongue-and-slot built into the mount plate. It prints flat with no supports, butts up flush, and leaves a wide flat face for glue. Each piece also screws down on its own, so you can start with four cans and add two later.

For all six cans:

• Option A: 2x A_undershelf_front_2can.stl and 2x A_undershelf_back_1can.stl

• Option B: 2x B_wall_bottom_2can.stl and 2x B_wall_top_1can.stl

Files are named option_end_countcan.stl, where count is how many cans that piece holds.

Print settings

PETG is what I'd use. It's holding heavy-ish fuel, and it takes heat and long-term load better than PLA. PLA works fine (the weight sits on the rim, it isn't flexing anything) but skip it anywhere warm. Use ASA or PC if the spot gets hot.

Drop the STLs in as they are. They're already oriented flat-face-down on the bed.

No supports anywhere. The one overhang is the rim-rest ledge, and its free edge is cut back at a steep angle, about 70 degrees, so it should print fine on its own. For the cleanest edge in PETG, turn the bridge and overhang fan up near 100% and slow the overhang perimeters down. That surface is where the steel rim sits, so a little roughness there doesn't matter. I printed this with very stringy PETG and the cans fit fine, just had to run them back and forth a bit.

Around four perimeters, 30 to 40% infill, 0.2 mm layers.

This was designed for a 250 by 210 bed. The longest pieces, the 2can ones, are about 200 mm. On a smaller bed, lower seg_cans in the SCAD file and print more, shorter pieces.

Assembly and mounting

1. Slot a 2can and a 1can piece together end to end. The tongue-and-slot keeps the rails lined up across the seam, and a drop of CA glue in the slot locks it.

2. Use screws as the real mount. Hanging under a shelf or sticking off a wall, the load pulls in the exact direction tape is worst at, so drive screws (#8 or M4) through the countersunk holes (Option A) or the side ears (Option B) into something solid. Pre-drill, especially in particleboard. Double-sided or VHB tape is fine as a backup, but not the only thing holding it up. It's a fuel canister.

3. Loading: Option A, slide cans in from the front. Option B, drop them in the top and let them stack.

Customize it (OpenSCAD source included)

isobutane_rack.scad is fully parametric, written in OpenSCAD 2021.01 (nothing bleeding-edge). The four values you're most likely to touch sit at the top of the file:

• body_diameter: your can's body cylinder (must be smaller than the rim OD)

• body_clear: the rail clearance you found with the comb

• rim_fit_clear: the slip gap around the rim

• detent_height: the front retaining bump (Option A)

• seat_chamfer / seat_chamfer_v: the steep relief on the rim-seat overhang for cleaner PETG printing (0 for a flat seat)

For 230g cans, measure the rim_od and body_diameter and render with overrides, like -D rim_od=110 -D body_diameter=104. There's a commented example line in build.ps1. A different body diameter just means a size-specific track; the rim profile is usually the same across sizes.

Reference dimensions (the 110g defaults)

• Base rim outer Ø 90 mm, inner Ø 84.6 mm, rim height 4 mm

• Rail clearance 1.5 mm, for a rail gap of 86.5 mm (the tested fit for a 90 mm-rim 110g can)

• Layout: two columns of three, about 102 mm between columns