25+ Useful 3D Printed Tools You Can Print Today (For Free!)
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Tools are the pride of creators of all kinds. From a handyman’s hardware to a painter’s brush, anyone who makes things with their hands knows the value of quality tools. 3D printed tools bring a new, practical element to these creations, and provide a cheaper and more convenient way to keep a workshop stocked with the right parts for any job.
3D printed tools come in many forms, from larger pieces to nuts and bolts, and are quickly becoming a popular go-to for builders and engineers as a way to cut out the middle man in both time and cost. And by 3D printing tools and parts on-demand saves money and space — you can just print your desired tool whenever you need it for a particular job or project.
From must-have 3D printed tools to convenient additions to any workstation, we’re going to look at some of the most useful 3D printable tools and accessories for all types of creators, most of which come at zero cost!
3D Printed Wrenches
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: yucelll
- Price: Free
3D printed toolkits don’t come much simpler and handier than this set of wrenches of various sizes to suit most jobs. While wrenches are included in many store-bought tool kits, adjustable ones can be a pain for inexperienced builders to deal with.
Even many veteran engineers like to use specifically sized non-adjustable wrenches to ensure they don’t clamp too tight, which can apply too much pressure for delicate builds. These 3D printed wrenches serve an important role in smaller jobs and can be stored alongside each other for quick access.
There’s also this design for a 3D printed double ended 10mm wrench, created by the designer after getting sick of the too-familiar issue of constantly losing tools right when we need them.
For storage, there’s also this design for a 3D printed pegboard-mounted wrench holder so you never lose your tools again.
3D Printed Screwdriver Accessories
Ratchet Screwdriver
- Download: Pinshape
- Designer: JOHLINK
- Price: Free
Screwdrivers are an essential part of any toolkit, but they can often be unwieldy and uncomfortable to use. This designer decided to make it easier with this ratchet screwdriver, a 3D printed tool that requires no post processing or assembly.
The ratchet screwdriver has a large grip handle for comfort and ease of use that makes it a unique 3D printed tool that will prove useful to anyone who finds screwing and unscrewing to be a chore.
As the name suggests, this tool also acts as a ratchet simply by swapping the bit placement.
Pocket-size Bit Handles
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: Refic
- Price: Free
Mini screwdrivers are common as keychains for handy people on the go. And these 3D printed tool handles are designed for screwdriver bits of 2 and 4mm.
Since the original upload, the designer has updated them to include inserts for magnets to hold the bits in place. They have also included instructions on how to tweak the infills and sizes to make sure the screwdriver bits fit just right in these pocket-size screwdriver handles.
Screwdriver Bits
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: guppyk
- Price: Free
While PLA filaments don’t lend themselves well to tougher jobs, these 3D printed screwdriver bits designed for a standard ¼’’ handle can come in handy for tasks that don’t need too much tension.
Smaller, less torque-heavy jobs sometimes require a lighter touch, and these 3D printed tool parts are a good way to ensure that standard metal screwdrivers don’t damage or crack plastic screws in more delicate building projects.
Nuts and Bolts
- Download: Cults3D
- Designer: AJORY
- Price: Free
Many a time, during both constructions and repairs, we need just one final nut, bolt, and/or washer to finish the job and simply can’t find the correct size. Since these little bits and pieces are often bought in bulk, many of them end up shelved and never used again.
3D printing nuts and bolts as needed saves money as well as reducing waste. While getting the measurements just right may take some trial and error, being able to print your own odds and ends can end up being a lifesaver.
There are many free 3D printer files available for making 3D printing tools to different sizes and specifications. Like these standard nuts, bolts, and washers, or these mechanical parts designed for use in electrical engineering.
Here you can find an all-in-one link for standard pieces that can be printed in both PLAs and metal filaments depending on your building needs and available hardware.
Read more: 3D printed gears files you can download and print
3D Printed Vice
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: misubisu
- Price: Free
Vices are commonly found in workshops and garages and are instrumental in many engineering projects. Due to the pressure they need to work properly, they are prone to breaking and need to be replaced more often than most other tools.
3D printed vices need to be as strong and sturdy as their store-bought counterparts, so finding a reliable build that will do the job is very important.
Below are some of the more tried and tested 3D printed vices of various sizes and materials for use in your workspace.
For a more varied range of 3D printer vices, you can find more options such as this miniature vice, this drill press vice, and this Electronics vice.
3D Printed Tools for Woodworking
Woodworking is as old as time, and is still as popular today as it has been for centuries. Many people who work with their hands choose woodworking for their craft due it its reliability, variety, and satisfaction it brings.
Carpentry requires a slightly different toolset, and many of these woodworking components can be 3D printed.
3D Printed Taper Pin
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: TheHeadlessSourceFan
- Price: Free
Modern day taper pins are used today in both carpentry and mechanical engineering to ensure parts and pieces align correctly to ensure steadfast fits.
This design for a taper pin is designed as a 3D printed woodworking tool to help carpenters ensure that builds such as furniture and shelving fits correctly to ensure safety of use.
The design is customizable, though it requires extra parts to work, example links to which can be found alongside the files found here.
Wood Clamps
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: BraedenYoung
- Price: Free
Due to how fragile wood is compared to metals, many woodworkers prefer wood clamps over standard mechanical vices when building.
These 3D printed wood clamps are designed to hold planks still while measuring and cutting to increase both accuracy and safety.
This design has been updated by the creator to ensure the product is a light and accurate. While it is still a work in progress, the clamps are an easy print that could prove to be an inexpensive and important 3D printed woodworking tool.
Peg Tool
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: Pezantros
- Price: Free
To any woodworker, few things are more frustrating than mismatched drill holes. To combat this frustration, this designer created a 3D printed woodworking peg tool to ensure accurate drill hole alignments 6, 8, or 10mm in diameter.
Included in the files found here is a ruler that shows the exact measurements of the tool, which is both adjustable and customizable to suit your woodworking needs from tables to sofas.
3D Printed Toolboxes
While many people begin their journeys as builders with store-bought toolkits, though things like this don’t often stay organized for long. Tools need replacing and upgrading at separate times, and we end up with parts that no longer fit in the box, or we simply run out of space for all our new equipment.
3D printed toolkits and boxes are lighter than the average store-bought variants, making them easier to transport as well as add some much-needed storage space that can go practically anywhere.
Complete Wrench Toolbox
- Download: Cults3D
- Designer: ELBONAERENSE
- Price: $2.50
This very useful design for a 3D printed toolkit comes as 18 files including a lightweight, slim box and 16 differently sized wrenches. This is the only tool set on this list that comes with a cost, but it’s still a cheap and worthwhile project.
This complete toolbox can be kept as its own wrench storage and is light enough to attach to a tool belt for easy accessibility while working on a project.
Traditional Toolbox
- Download: Printables
- Designer: Lopatka
- Price: Free
Most modern toolboxes come in the form of briefcases that clamp shut for easy transportation, but this 3D printed toolbox mimics the rustic design that resembles more of a handled shelf than a carry-case.
The beauty of this design lies in its simplicity, as it contains only two files for the storage containers and handles. It can even be altered to have a personal image or business logo etched onto the side.
While this traditional design isn’t ideal for long-haul travel, it’s a good fit for at-home projects that require using tools across multiple spaces at once. It also acts well as a simple desktop storage piece for odds and ends that don’t have a place elsewhere.
3D Printed Tool Organizers
To help keep workspaces clutter free, there is also a plethora of 3D printed tool organizers available for all kinds of tools and pieces.
Screwdriver and Bit Organizers
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: ByteSlinger
- Price: Free
Screwdriver bits come in so many shapes and sizes, and you always need just the right one for the job. Many workstations end up as messes of bits, handles, screws, and bolts that become disorganized and more ramshackle over time.
These 3D printed tool holders include a miniature version for a small workspace, or a full-sized version for decluttering messy workspaces.
As well as storing bits, the larger tool tidy also includes slots for Swiss army knives, pliers, rolls of tape, and screwdriver handles.
For a simpler and more spatially conservative way of storing screwdrivers, there are also 3D printed tool organizers available as add-ons for your pegboard. These organizers are godsends for anyone who finds they need to search high and low every time they need to insert a new bit or swap handles.
Socket Organizer
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: Tstevens06
- Price: Free
No matter how careful we are, loose sockets always seem to end up rattling around our toolboxes or scattered around our workbenches. Because they come in such a large variety of sizes, each one fit to its own use, a lot of time can be wasted searching for the exact socket you need.
This 3D printed tool organizer is equipped to store each socket by size, making them much easier to find and saving a lot of time and frustration.
Compact Tool Organizer
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: Jipcutter
- Price: Free
Not all workbenches are created equal, and sometimes it’s very difficult to ensure everything has its own place without sacrificing some much needed available workspace.
This compact 3D printed tool organizer is similar to a pencil holder, and has slots for screwdrivers, bits, chisels, different sized pliers, wrenches, and even contains smaller drawers for nuts and bolts.
The design is a simple print, and can be a lifesaver for those of us with smaller workbenches than we’d like.
Dewalt Drawer Inserts
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: eric-anastas
- Price: Free
You can never be too organized with your tools, and these easy drawer inserts are designed to fit into standard Dewalt tool drawers.
Adding extra labels and inserts for various tools, sockets, and extra pieces, this 3D printed tool drawer insert is a must for anyone who spends too much time rifling through their workspaces looking for that one specific tool.
Small Items Organizer
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: cruzher
- Price: Free
The little bits and pieces are always the ones that get lost. Whether behind a workbench, pocketed and forgotten, or seemingly just vanishing into thin air.
This 3D printed small tool organizer is a set of miniature drawers designed to store nuts, bolts, washers, and other small pieces that otherwise may not have a convenient place.
With the use of a label maker, this organizer can make losing small parts a thing of the past.
The Ultimate Tool Organizer
- Download: Printables
- Designer: JeepingJohnny
- Price: Free
This designer was tired of having so many different places for the multitude of tools in their workstation, and so made several designs for the ultimate 3D printed tool organizer.
In the files found here, you’ll see a detailed description of this organizer, complete with a shelf for miscellaneous tools and parts. On this one design, you can fit screwdrivers, wrenches, tweezers, pliers, deburr tools, metal brushes, and many, many more.
Most of these tools have their own designated place on this 3D printed tool organizer, making them easy to find in this attractive and very convenient storage space that would be at home in any workspace.
Bonus: All-In-One 3D Printer Torture Test
- Download: Thingiverse
- Designer: LetsPrintIt
- Price: Free
3D printers are fickle machines at times. Sometimes your settings aren’t optimized, and sometimes the printer frame has become too loose. For one reason or another, prints don’t always come out the way we want them to.
Torture test prints are 3D printer tools used to make sure your printer is up to the task by trialing the printing process. Testing for stringing, overhangs, build plate adhesion, correct support material, hot end settings, and bridges among other things, this 3D printer torture test is one of many ways to make sure your next print is a sucessful one.
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