(disclaimer) This is a soft-semi-beta release. The spool has been functioning well for me and has the basic features I want. I want to put it out there for others to use, enjoy, and maybe provide some additional feedback on. Keep that in mind, and explore with caution.

Description

A reusable spool for use with Bambu's filament refills!

I really like Bambu's refills, and mostly used their spools. they aren't perfect though, and can be a little tedious at times. Despite there being numerous designs out there for reusable spools, I thought perhaps I could do it a little better.

Being a heavy user of Bambu's refills, I did find them kind of tedious to work with after awhile. There's variations within the winding, and the overall width can be slightly different. To make sure you don't have jams, you really have to work the filament to get it to fill the gaps once in the reusable spool.

With mine, I use a screw type design so that the width of the spool has some variability. This helps a lot with the Bambu refills. You don't have to work the filament nearly as much because you can just clamp it down. Additionally, my spool includes a groove for the filament so no filament clip is needed.

Filaments

I recommend printing them in ABS, especially if you intend to use a filament dryer. I've been printing mine in Bambu ABS White!

Exclusively Yours

This model will be exclusive to the Bambu platform and Makerworld. It is targeted specifically at Bambu refills after all. I can offer no guarantee that it'll work with other manufacture's refills or whatever.

A work in progress

This model is a work in progress. I've been using it extensively, and have found it to work well for me. Despite using threads to attach the two halves together, things have stayed very snug and I haven't had any issues with the two halves coming loose. With that being said, there's some extra stuff I'd like to do, and would consider this “Version 1”. I wanted to get the model out there in the world though, get some more extensive testing going on, as I consider what Version 2 might look like. Rest assured though, when a version 2 does come, it'll be updated here.

What's to come

The basic feature set is there and should work! There are a couple of features I'd like to add though.

Shout Outs

The idea for how the filament clips into the side of the spool is inspired by Henlor's Bambu Lab A1 Mini Spool. Make sure you check out Henlor's work.

Use/Manual

There's not much to it really. Insert the refill onto the spool holder as you normally would. There's a notch that's key for the cardboard cores, just like the standard Bambu reusable spool. Screw the othert side in, but don't tighten it down too tight yet! First you want to remove the strips of plastic that keep the refill together, and then you want to tighten/clamp the whole thing down as much as you can.

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