Whirligig, Noah's Ark

Inspired by the BBC television series "The Repair Shop", I designed "Whirligig, Noah's Ark" based on a restoration project that appeared on the show.

The original model appearing on the show was made of wood, steel and ball bearings. I 3D printed this model in Tough PLA. While not designed for a major storm, this model will operate in light to moderate wind speeds with ease.

As usual I probably forgot a file or two or who knows what else, so if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask as I do make plenty of mistakes.

Designed using Autodesk Fusion 360, sliced using Ultimaker Cura 4.12.1, and 3D printed in Tough PLA on Ultimaker S5s.

Silicon Glue.

I acquired the following parts:

1. One 16mm diameter ball bearing.
2. One 6" length of M8 by 1.25 threaded rod with matching nut.

I 3D printed the following parts at .15mm layer height, 20% infill and no supports in Tough PLA:

1. One "Axle, Cams.stl".
2. Six "Axle, Lifter.stl".
3. One "Axle, Propeller, Bushing.stl".
4. One "Axle, Propeller.stl".
5. One "Base.stl".
6. One "Bolt (M6 by 1 by 6mm).stl".
7. Twenty Two "Bolt (M8 by 1.25 by 8mm).stl".
8. Two "Bolt (M8 by 1.25 by 16mm).stl".
9. Six "Bolt (M8 by 1.25 by 40mm).stl".
10. Six "Cam.stl".
11. One "Deck, Aft.stl".
12. One "Deck, Forward.stl".
13. One "Elephant.stl".
14. Two "End.stl".
15. One "Gear (2m, 8t).stl".
16. One "Gear (2m, 32t).stl".
17. One "Giraffe.stl".
18. One "Horse.stl".
19. One "Hull.stl".
20. One "Joiner.stl".
21. Six "Lifter.stl".
22. One "Mount.stl".
23. One "Propeller.stl".
24. One "Rhinoceros.stl".
25. One "Roof.stl".
26. One "Rudder Mount.stl".
27. One "Rudder.stl".
28. One "Sheep.stl".
29. Two "Side.stl".
30. One "Tiger.stl".

This mechanism is a high precision print and assembly using at times very small precision parts in confined spaces with highly precise alignment. Prior to assembly, I test fitted and trimmed, filed, drilled, sanded, etc. all parts as necessary for smooth movement of moving surfaces, and tight fit for non moving surfaces. Depending on your slicer, printer, printer settings and the colors you chose, more or less trimming, filing, drilling and/or sanding may be required to successfully recreate this model. I carefully filed all edges that contacted the build plate to make absolutely certain that all build plate "ooze" is removed and that all edges are smooth using small jewelers files and plenty of patience.

This mechanism also uses threaded assembly, so I used a tap and die set (M8 by 1.25 and M6 by 1) as required for thread cleaning.

To assemble the Base, I performed the following steps:

1. Positioned "Axle, Cams.stl" into the aft hole in "Base.stl".
2. Slid one "Cam.stl" onto the axle, tower end first, then slid the cam tower into the aft base hole.
3. Slid the remaining cams onto the axle rotating each 60 degrees from the previous.
4. Pressed "Gear (2m, 32t).stl" onto the forward end of the axle while sliding the tower into the forward base hole.
5. Positioned one "Axle, Lifter.stl" into the axle hole in one "Lifter.stl", slid the lifter opening onto the cam shaft, then attached the lifter to the base by threading the axle into an axle mount hole.
6. Repeated the previous step for the remaining lifters and lifter axles.
7. At this point I made certain the mechanism rotated with ease.
8. Glued "Axle, Propeller.stl" into "Propeller.stl".
9. Glued "Axle, Propeller, Bushing.stl" onto the propeller axle 8.4mm from the free end of the propeller axle.
10. Place a few drops of glue in the hexagonal hole in "Gear (2m, 8t).stl".
11. Positioned this gear beneath the 32 tooth gear.
12. Slid the propeller assembly into the base assembly and pressed the propeller axle into the 8 tooth gear.
13. Threaded "Bolt (M6 by 1 by 6mm).stl" into the rear of the axle assembly.

To assemble the Cabin, I performed the following steps:

1. Attached one "End.stl" to one "Side.stl" using two "Bolt (M8 by 1.25 by 8mm).stl" making certain the threaded holes in the side are on the bottom of the assembly.
2. Attached the remaining side to the cabin assembly using two M8 by 1.25 by 8mm bolts.
3. Attached the remaining end to the cabin assembly using four M8 by 1.25 by 8mm bolts.
4. Attached the roof to the cabin assembly using six M8 by 1.25 by 8mm bolts.

To assemble the Ark, I performed the following steps:

1. Positioned the base assembly onto the cabin assembly.
2. Positioned "Hull.stl" onto the base assembly.
3. Secured these three components together using six "Bolt (M8 by 1.25 by 40mm).stl".
4. Attached "Deck, Aft.stl" to the assembly using two M8 by 1.25 by 8mm bolts.
5. Attached "Deck, Forward.stl" to the assembly using two M8 by 1.25 by 8mm bolts.

To assemble and attach the rudder and mount, I performed the following steps:

1. Secured "Rudder Mount.stl" to "Rudder.stl" using two "Bolt (M8 by 1.25 by 16mm).stl".
2. Secured the rudder assembly to the Ark assembly using two M8 by 1.25 by 8mm bolts.
3. Secured "Mount.stl" to the ark assembly using two M8 by 1.25 by 8mm bolts.
4. Threaded the 8mm threaded rod into "Joiner.stl" and locked the rod to the joiner using the 8mm nut.
5. Glued the 16mm ball bearing into the joiner ball bearing cavity.
6. Carefully slid the jointer assembly into the mount.

For final assembly, I performed the following steps:

1. Placed a small dot of glue into the "Rhinoceros.stl" mounting hole then pressed the rhinoceros onto a lifter mounting pin.
2. Repeated the previous steps for the remaining figures.

With assembly complete, I threaded the joiner assembly to the pole I've previously used for my whirligig designs, then placed the Ark onto the joiner and let the wind do its work!

And that is how I 3D printed and assembled "Whirligig, Noah's Ark".

I hope you enjoyed it!