Stackable & Fully Customizable Spice Rack

A spice rack built from identical shelf modules that clip together horizontally and vertically.

• Completely stable with easy and snug fits. No wobble!

• No glue, screws or inserts!

• All parts printable without supports or brim.

• Optimized for and tested with PETG for most parts, and TPU 95A for shoes.

The photos show the rack I printed for my own kitchen, and you can find the STL and 3MF files in the sample_stls folder.

However, I strongly encourage you to download the spice_rack.scad file and customize it for your use case with OpenSCAD.

Customizing Your Rack

First, download spice_rack.scad and open it. Here's what you'll see:

On the sidebar, Part is currently set to rack. You can switch that to lid, foot, and shoe. Ignore thread_test and dt_bar  for now.

In the Size section, configure the dimensions of a single rack unit. Note that the printed height will be 4mm taller than the number you enter.

The Options section is for everything else:

- feet - enable only for the bottom row modules
- lid_open - when you select lid as the current Part, this determines if it has an open or closed top
- dt_groove - uncheck for the rightmost module for a smooth outer wall
- dt_tail - same thing, but for the leftmost module

Once you are happy with your configuration, for each part:

- Hit F6 to render the model
- Click File > Export > Export as STL (ascii) and save it as rack.stl etc.

Finally, launch Orca Slicer and import all STLs you created. Make sure the orientation of each match the screenshot above, or check spice_rack.3mf for my plates.

There are many more variables in the SCAD file, but these cover the basics.

Fit Test (recommended)

The STL files I uploaded are calibrated for my rack, with tolerances for my filament (Sunlu PETG) and printer (Qidi Q2).

If you are not printing in PETG or you changed any of the default dimensions, I recommend generating and printing a fit test first.

I used a simple Bash script to create test fit STLs from spice_rack.scad. Unfortunately, Printables doesn't let me upload it, so here's how to use it:

Make a fit_tests directory next to spice_rack.scad and create a file named generate.sh with these contents:

#!/usr/bin/env bash
# Regenerate the fit-test STLs from spice_rack.scad.
# Run this after changing ANY clearance parameter.
set -e
cd "$(dirname "$0")/.."
S=spice_rack.scad
O=fit_tests
Minimum viable coupon dimensions to test dovetail relief.
Depth must be >=42.4mm or the front boss hits the pilaster.
C="-D width=44 -D depth=46 -D height=40 -D lip_h=8 -D feet=false 
-D back_open=false -D side_open=false"
The coupon and its lid derive pin positions from width/depth.
Build them with identical overrides or they won't fit.
openscad --export-format binstl -o $O/joint_coupon.stl -D 'part="rack"' $C $S
openscad --export-format binstl -o $O/lid_coupon.stl   -D 'part="lid"'  $C $S
openscad --export-format binstl -o $O/thread_test.stl  -D 'part="thread_test"' $S
Full height, so we can test length-dependent fit.
openscad --export-format binstl -o $O/dt_bar.stl       -D 'part="dt_bar"' $S
echo "fit test STLs regenerated in $O/"

After customizing spice_rack.scad, generate the fit test parts with sh generate.sh.

Import the generated STLs into your slicer and print the following:

- 1x thread_test.stl
- 1x lid_coupon.stl
- 2x joint_coupon.stl
- 2x dt_bar.stl
- 1x foot.stl

dt_bar.stl MUST be printed vertically and with brim. It is the only way to do a proper fit test.

Once all parts are printed, try these and see if they fit:

- Stack the joint coupons horizontally (with dovetails) and vertically (with pins).
- Put the lid on both joint coupons.
- Screw the foot onto both holes of the thread test piece.

All parts should join easily but firmly. If they're not, go back to spice_rack.scad and customize the dimensions in the code. Alternatively, you can try adjusting your slicer settings - particularly hole compensation and shrinkage.

If you're struggling, leave a comment and I'll help :)

Notes

I used AI only to optimize the cover images. The model is mine, the photos are from my kitchen :)