PARADOX - Impossible Balance Sculptures
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Three desk sculptures that shouldn't stand. Steel balls hidden at a print pause keep them upright. No supports.
- Ocena
- 0 / 5
- Polubienia
- 3
- Pobrania
- 4
- Wydruki
- 0
- Wyświetlenia
- 52
- Oceny
- 0
Aktualizacja u źródła:
Informacje o modelu
- Źródło
- Printables
- Kategoria
- Sculptures
- Licencja
- Standard Digital File License
PARADOX is a set of three desk sculptures that should not be able to stand. A crane lifting a crate at the end of a giant jib, on a single thin post. A moon resting on the tip of its horn. A lightning bolt balanced on its point. Put them on your desk and watch people try to work out why they don't fall.
The secret is inside. Each piece has a hollow chamber shaped by a center-of-mass calculation, plus steel ball bearings dropped in during a print pause. You can't see them, and you can't feel them until you pick the piece up. The steel pulls the center of mass exactly over the foot. Print the same shape solid and it topples every time.
Everything prints flat, with no supports, on any 256 mm printer. Files: a ready Bambu Studio 3MF with the pauses already set, plus one STL per piece for PrusaSlicer, OrcaSlicer, Cura and others.
What's included
CRANE – 177 x 105 x 16 mm. A 128 mm truss jib carrying a crate, balanced by a small counterweight slung under the counter-jib, all on a 10 mm foot. Steel: 4 balls of 1/2 inch, hidden in the counterweight.
MOON – 104 x 99 x 16 mm. A crescent standing on its lower horn with a star hanging from the upper horn. Steel: 1 ball of 3/8 inch, hidden in the star.
BOLT – 77 x 110 x 16 mm. A lightning bolt standing on its tip, leaning the "wrong" way. Steel: 1 ball of 1/2 inch, hidden in the side barb.
The 3MF has the three pieces on one plate, plus one plate per piece. The pauses for the steel balls are already set.
What to buy (steel balls)
You need solid chrome steel bearing balls in two inch sizes. A full set of three pieces uses 5 balls of 1/2 inch and 1 ball of 3/8 inch. One pack of 25 of each size makes 5 complete sets.
1/2 inch (12.7 mm) – for CRANE (4) and BOLT (1)
BC Precision 1/2" Chrome Steel Bearing Balls G25, 25 pack (recommended)
PGN 1/2" Chrome Steel Bearing Ball G25, 100 pcs (if you print many sets)
3/8 inch (9.525 mm) – for MOON (1)
Check before you order
The size must be exact: 1/2 inch = 0.500 in = 12.7 mm, and 3/8 inch = 0.375 in = 9.525 mm. Do not buy 15/32 inch or 12 mm balls. They look the same but weigh less, and the piece will tip over.
Solid steel only. Chrome steel is best; stainless 304 or 440 also works. Do not use plastic airsoft BBs, glass marbles or hollow balls.
Any grade works (G25, G100). Outside the US, search your local store for "12.7 mm chrome steel ball" and "9.525 mm chrome steel ball".
How to print and add the steel
The pauses are already in the 3MF. The printer stops, you drop in the balls, and it prints a closed roof over them.
Print as supplied: flat on the plate, PLA, 0.2 mm layers. Do not rotate or scale the pieces.
First pause at 13.0 mm (MOON only). Drop one 3/8 inch ball into the pocket in the star.
Second pause at 14.6 mm (CRANE and BOLT). Drop four 1/2 inch balls into the crane's counterweight and one into the bolt's barb.
You will also see the open hollow chambers at the pause. That is normal; they get a roof too. Check that every ball sits fully below the top of the last layer, then resume. A ball that sticks up will hit the nozzle.
When the print is done, set each piece on its foot on a flat, level surface. It stands on its own, with no glue or magnets.
If you print one piece alone, its plate has only its own pause.
Using the STLs (PrusaSlicer, OrcaSlicer, Cura): the STLs already contain the hidden chambers and ball pockets. Slice with 0.2 mm layers (0.2 mm first layer), 100% infill, no supports, and add the same two pauses yourself: 13.0 mm (MOON) and 14.6 mm (CRANE and BOLT). In PrusaSlicer, right-click the layer slider at that height and choose Add pause print. In OrcaSlicer, right-click the layer in the preview slider and choose Add Pause. In Cura, use Extensions > Post Processing > Pause at height. Check in the preview that the pocket is still open on the layer before the pause.
Why the settings matter: the balance is calculated for solid walls around the hidden chamber. Keep the supplied wall and infill settings (100% infill on these objects). Changing them changes the weight, and the piece may tip.
Print profile and tips
Made on a Bambu Lab X2D. Fits any 256 mm class printer (X1, P1, A1, Prusa MK4 and similar).
PLA, 0.4 mm nozzle, 0.2 mm layers, 100% infill on the pieces, no supports, no brim.
Print time and filament (X2D, PLA Basic): full set 4h31m, 112 g. Crane 2h15m, 50 g. Moon 1h25m, 32 g. Bolt 1h01m, 29 g.
Matte PLA in light colors hides the layer lines and makes the illusion stronger.
The foot is a narrow strip, so it must be flat. Keep elephant-foot compensation on. If a piece rocks, rub the foot a few times on fine sandpaper laid on a flat table.
Use a level surface. Each piece tolerates a few degrees of tilt (about 4 degrees or more each way), which covers any normal desk or shelf.
Like and Make
PARADOX is free. If it made someone ask "how is that standing?", please leave a Like and post your Make. I'd love to see your colors and your best "impossible" photos.