Nostalgic "Ceramic" Christmas Trees

IP Report

Nostalgic "Ceramic" Christmas Trees

Boost
102
186
40

Print Profile(4)

All
A1
P1S
P1P
X1 Carbon
X1E
X1
H2D
A1 mini

Big Tree with bulbs and bases
Big Tree with bulbs and bases
Designer
43.9 h
5 plates
4.7(3)

Medium Tree with bulbs and bases
Medium Tree with bulbs and bases
Designer
18 h
5 plates
5.0(2)

Baby Tree with bulbs
Baby Tree with bulbs
Designer
3.5 h
2 plates
5.0(1)

Little Tree with bulbs and bases
Little Tree with bulbs and bases
Designer
12.2 h
5 plates

Open in Bambu Studio
Boost
102
186
40
33
132
46
Released

Description

I wanted to create one of those light-up traditional ceramic style Christmas tree and after way too much Tinkercad time later, I have this to offer.

 

The Trees

There are four tree sizes. Each profile has the tree set-up to print with fuzzy skin. I tried to add minimal supports, so there may be some branches that will have some filament sagging. With the fuzzy skin, it can look a bit like real pine trees. To fix them after the print, I simply heated the saggy threads with a lighter for a few seconds and pressed the saggy threads back into the body of the tree. You could turn on more support, but it will dramatically increase print times, and as I didn't print with them, I can't speak to how well or easily the supports will remove or scar the tree. It is really easy to heat up the small bit of saggy threads and press them back into the body of the tree. See photos.

 

The four sizes to choose from:

  • The baby tree is 75mm tall and holds 20 ‘bulbs’ plus the star.
  • The little tree once assembled, measures around 128mm tall. It is assembled from two pieces, the tree and base, and holds 35 ‘bulbs’ plus the star.
  • The medium tree is made to maximize the A1-mini bed, the tree itself measures 177mm tall, and all widths are under 180mm. Combined with the base, it measures 200mm. It is assembled from two pieces, the tree and base, and holds 50 'bulbs, plus the star.
  • The large tree measures 305mm tall with the base. It is assembled from three pieces, the base, the large tree bottom, and the large tree top. It holds 65 ‘bulbs’ plus the star.

The Bases

The baby tree has no separate base and is intended to sit over an LED votive candle.

The other trees have three bases options, depending on your lighting choice:

  • a battery-operated LED Puck light
  • the IKEA Kapplake led light (this base can also hold a standard led votive candle, only applicable for the little tree)
  • and a base for the BambuLab LED Light 001

The IKEA Kapplake light was my first choice and the inspiration to begin this project. I saw it when we were out shopping for a new dresser for my daughter, and because it was only $3.50, I brought it home. Because it is so small, all three versions of the Ikea light version have an external ‘switch’ on the side of the base that operate the “push to operate” light inside. In order to make the trees useful for as many people as possible, I then made the other two versions.

 

The base for the large tree had enough room that I created a similar ‘switching’ mechanism for the LED Puck light version. Because there are lots of pucks in different sizes, I added an adjustable screw on the switching arm to adjust between the larger puck lights I have (32mmx77m) and the smaller puck lights offered by BambuLabs (27.6mmx62.2mm). You will have to adjust the screw just right to get the switch to operate properly. It may be a bit finicky, but once set, it should work as intended. The LED puck lights usually have a cool color changing effect, so there's that.

 

The switch arms are designed to use a small scrap of 1.75mm filament as the hinge pin. See photos.

 

The ‘Bulbs’

I originally wanted to print my own plastic peg ‘bulbs’. I didn't have any translucent PETG, so went through several versions of the bulbs to eventually get a clear PLA bulb that works. I looked into getting the PETG in different transparent colors, but for the price, it was actually cheaper and faster (those PETG ice profiles take forever) to buy the plastic peg bulbs on Amazon. The were only $8 for 144 bulbs. If you decide to go that route, the trees are designed to hold bulbs with shafts that are 5mm x 10mm, and a total bulb height of 17mm. The bulbs profile I included do work with clear PLA, and with the color changing LED Puck Lights, it can look cool. The bought bulbs are definitely brighter colors, if that is what you want. See photos

 

No Lighting Option

You could also choose to not use a lighting option, in which case, you cold print the bulbs in multiple solid colors of your choosing and select the simplest base for the tree size you desire. 

 

I have used a several rolls of filament printing several versions of the trees and am pretty confident that if you use a decent dry filament and a clean build plate, you shouldn't have any major issues printing these. let me know if you run into some problems, and be sure to post pictures of your prints :)

 

24/12/1:

Updated the baby tree profile to remove the fuzzy skin that was erroneously applied to the bulbs and star. 
I also added an optional smaller sized bulb to match the scale of the baby tree 

Boost Me (for free)

I'm just a dad and husband whose wife wanted me to make one of these trees for her to use. I spent significant additional time making the various size models and used quite a bit of filament printing out the prototypes to confirm fit and finish. A boost would cost you nothing, but be greatly appreciated on my end, and go a long way to convince my wife that my additional effort and time was worth it. 

Bill of Materials

Maker’s Supply Kits and Parts
Bambu Filaments
A00-G2-1.75-1000-SPLFREE
19.99 USD
 × 1
A08-Y1-1.75-1000-SPL
27.99 USD
 × 1
A01-R4-1.75-1000-SPLFREE
19.99 USD
 × 1
Buy Now
Download BOM

Comment & Rating (40)

(0/5000)

Print Profile
Big Tree with bulbs and bases
Had a little problem on the top portion two of the supports failed but overall is really good
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sorry to hear that, Any idea what led to the failure?
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Replying to @MillCasaMakes :
not sure, it failed twice in the same spots. I canceled the first print when I noticed it happening.
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Replying to @user_4031412115 :
Just to be sure I'm looking at the right print profile, you're printing the big tree, and this top piece prints inside the large bottom, right?
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Boosted
Print Profile
Big Tree with bulbs and bases
This turned out AMAZING! Thanks for all of your time and effort in making this.
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Fantastic! Looks great!
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Boosted
what support should I use to print this?
The designer has replied
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the profile have supports set up already. which tree are you planning to print?
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Boosted
Replying to @MillCasaMakes :
i tried the medium one from the app. and it failed. terribly
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Oh no. What printer, filament, plate are you using? Do you have a picture of the fail so I can sort out what to fix in the profile/model to address the issue?
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Boosted
I think this is an awesome idea!! Great work! The only thing that is keeping me from investing the time to print it is the spacing of the lights. On the large tree, the top section appears to just be a copy of the small tree which makes sense. But the spacing of the lights on the bottom part do not match up with the top part. Either the top part needs to have less lights or the bottom part needs to have more so that it is balanced across the entire tree. In other words, the top looks a bit congested compared to the bottom which is sparse in comparison. Just my $.02 worth. Still trying to decide if I want to print this.
(Edited)
The designer has replied
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thanks for the feedback. I had similar concerns too. I could increase the number of bulbs in the bottom portion. I took the model down for now, as I also am planning on making the small and medium tree share a common base. Will update and repost soon
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Boosted
Replying to @MillCasaMakes :
I look forward to the updated model. I went ahead and ordered the "lights" from Amazon!!!
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Replying to @GregR :
this is a preview of the revised large tree bulb placements. I reduced the density in the top part and increased a bit on the second tier of the bottom. I need to reprint and make sure nothing is off before posting.
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Great model - thanks! Is the LED Lamp kit as shown on Bambu Store actually the lamp with a 3D printed housing over it? Is the lamp a puck-style lamp? The puck I used (80 lumens) does not light up the bulbs. I just ordered the transparent bulbs from Amazon.
The designer has replied
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Thanks for the boost and for reaching out! Did you print the big tree? Which amazon bulbs did you order? The puck I used in my testing says it is 55 lumens (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07WWCDVHJ). It isn't the brightest during the day, but you can see it is lit and it does light up at night. The medium and small tree in the 1st image of the model are both illuminated by that amazon puck light. GregR posted here in the comments a picture of his Big tree that is also illuminated by a puck light. The plug in lamps sources are brighter though and don't take batteries. There is a tree base to hold the Bambu LED Light 001 (https://us.store.bambulab.com/products/led-lamp-kit-001?modelId=823328), and one to hold the IKEA Kapplake led light (https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/kapplake-led-spotlight-white-30543166/), and they are significantly brighter, and for me, they are about the same price with shipping. If you can get to an IKEA in person, you can't beat the price of the Kapplake.
(Edited)
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Replying to @MillCasaMakes :
I printed the large tree. I have not received the transparent bulbs from Amazon yet. I'll check in here once I receive the bulbs - THANKS!
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Boosted
Print Profile
Big Tree with bulbs and bases
this is incredible. hard to find the old ceramic ones anymore, this is a great replacement
1
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post your picture :)
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Print Profile
Medium Tree with bulbs and bases
I printed the medium model, it is too cute. My son was bummed when we took our chistmas tree down. I happened to find this and printed it for him and bought the pegs. Now he has a cute little tree for in his room and can change the peg colors to match holidays and seasons. Thank you :)
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awesome! That sounds really fun.
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Got the tokens for free and I hope my wife will appreciate the effort of this. Cheers
The designer has replied
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Thanks for the boost! Which one are you printing?
(Edited)
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Boosted
I love these! How does the tree attached to the base?
The designer has replied
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these trees just slide over and sit on the bases. I do have an ornament style baby tree model (https://makerworld.com/en/models/844165#profileId-790946) where the tree twist locks onto the base, so it could be hung. Since these trees are intended to be sitting on table tops, gravity holds them together.
(Edited)
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Cant wait to print this
The designer has replied
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Let me know when you do. Which one are you thinking of printing?
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License

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