Gridfinity Ruler MKII [5 Unit Length For A1 Mini]

THE GRIDFINITY RULER MK. II
BUT SMALLER 🤏😎🎨📏

2025-01-25 UPDATE: All geometry for this model is now labeled & selectable for super easy customization! See the tips section below for details 👇🏻

Perhaps you saw the A1 Mini version of the 7-Unit Gridfinity Ruler MK. II and thought to yourself,
“Well, that's neat, but my A1 Mini only prints 5-unit bins on a good day, so I'd rather just have the smaller ruler” …

This adorable 5-Unit Gridfinity Ruler is a highly specialized doohickey created to help you select and design Gridfinity bins, plan layouts, and ultimately, self-actualize by wrangling the chaotic nebula of miscellaneous items that plagues your existence into a gallery-worthy spread of well-organized whatchamacallits. 

Gridfinity, for the uninitiated, is a free, 3D-printable organization system based on a 42mm grid, conceived of by visionary gigachad Zack Freedman, now with an ever-diversifying range of community-developed storage solutions for all types of items.
 

FEATURING:

• On one side, 42mm increments representing the X/Y axis. On the other, 7mm units representing the Z axis.

• Designed to fit the Bambu A1 Mini - and as a consequence will fit on almost any printer imaginable

• Super low filament waste: only 3 poops! Why poop more? 💩📉

• Clear, easy to read markings with a 0.4mm nozzle, thanks to thoughtfully chosen font face, radii, etc.

• Hanging hole – to keep your ruler from getting unruly

• Left-to-right reading direction, which I have been informed is the normal direction

• A number of different versions - something for everyone!

  • AMS Version

  • No-AMS Pause & Swap Version with all markings on the same plane. The profile is configured to pause your printer before the markings are printed, allowing you to swap filament and produce a 2-colour print even without an AMS!

  • Sharpie Version with extra-tall markings for easy colouring with a permanent marker

  • Debossed version has lettering and numbering inset into the body of the ruler (no colouring necessary)

PRINTING TIPS:

• As of 2025/01/25, all profiles for this model have been re-reoptimized for to make selecting colours & customizing easier than ever!
  • All geometry is now grouped together & named in the objects list in Bambu Studio. Just right click the elements you want to colour and select a filament. Want a different colour for the logo? Want a different colour for just the wide markings? The world is your oyster

  • But wait:  That's not all! This also allows you to hide elements of the geometry that you don't want. Feel like the Z axis is a little too crowded? Enable printing for only every 3rd number! Want to remove the logo on top? You're crazy! But you can do it!

     

• Allow the model to cool before removing it from the build plate to prevent it from getting bent - it doesn't have to be ice cold, just don't pull it off the second it finishes.
   
• This model is intended to be printed with a 0.4mm nozzle or smaller. 0.2mm will result in much higher quality, but ≥0.6mm will result in an unfortunate assortment of illegible blobs 🫠
   
• Please note that bed adhesion issues are not the fault of the model! In fact, it's pretty hard to mess this one up. If you are having issues with adhesion, try cleaning your build plate with dish soap 🧼💧and make sure to rinse 🚿 properly! 

GRIDFINITY BIN TIPS:

Occasionally I receive some confused feedback on this design telling me the measurements are incorrect…

Luckily for both of us, they are not! Please allow me to pre-empt future feedback of this nature with some unsolicited bin-splaining:
 

• 

  A stacking lip adds to the height of a bin beyond the stated Z Unit height. So, if you've measured a drawer that is 6U (42mm) deep, and you want to stack 3U bins on top of each other, you should only have a stacking lip on the bottom layer. In this reference photo 👉🏻, both bins are 2U tall, but only the bottom one has a lip. 
   

• Also important to note: different bin designs may have varying amounts of usable internal space.
  • According to the official spec,  given (for example) a 2U tall bin, 1U (7mm) is taken up by the base, with the remaining 7mm open for use.
  • In practice, you will find this is not exactly the case 100% of the time. For example, a 2U tall bin from the FusionGridfinityGenerator gives me 8mm of usable space instead.
     
• Different baseplates also have different heights.. so, measure twice, print once! 😄

Do you think this ruler… uh, rules? 📏
Don't forget to leave a rating & share a photo of your print--
and if you love it, send me a boost! 🚀 It's free!