When I was a kid, our extended family would get together for game nights where gladiators fought fierce battles lasting hours on end (over bragging rights) in the names of Canasta, Rummy, Yahtzee, Zilch etc. Some of the most memorable moments I had were of everyone laughing and talking and accusing whoever was winning of cheating in some ridiculous manner. Over the last 3-4 years we've tried to make it a habit to travel at least once a year back to the Colorado Rockies and rekindle that sense of togetherness and rivalry. One of our favorite games (which I had long since forgotten all about) was Shanghai Rummy, which I was reintroduced to a few years back on one of those trips. Personally, I hadn't played Rummy since my teens and my 50+ year old brain struggled to keep up with all of the requirements per round. My younger sister showed me a paper spinner where you could spin a little cardboard wheel and it would show you the relevant details and asked if I could model something similar and 3D print something like it. I loved the idea and started work on it but quickly realized my skills just weren't there yet and set it aside to worked on in idle moments when inspiration struck.

I just finished printing out 5 sets of 4 spinners each to take to a family reunion and give out as gifts to the family members who reintroduced me to the game. I also wanted this little projects to be available to anyone as a way to rekindle some of that ‘Family Game Night’ vibe and included a ‘Learn to Play’ QR code that will take you to the rummyrulebook.com website where a person can learn all about contract rummy and Shanghai rummy in particular.

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did making it!