The Ballerina Music: Fully 3D-Printed

I'm thrilled to share my latest creation: a fully 3D-printed music box inspired by the elegance of ballet and the recent John Wick spin-off: Ballerina movie! This piece isn't just a model; it's a functioning, hand-cranked mechanism that plays a custom-arranged tune from Swan Lake.

No motors, no metal parts—just the magic of FDM printing bringing this complex mechanism to life.

🎶 The Music and Mechanism

The heart of this music box is the hand-cranked mechanism. Turn the handle at a fixed tempo, and the precisely placed notes on the musical circle generate the rhythm for 32 bars of Swan Lake.

• Custom Melody Design: I was inspired by the brilliant Musical Fidget Generator by Kida and adapted the note dimension principles to create a circular comb for my custom tune.
• Modular and Adaptable: The design allows for easy replacement of the musical notes circle. Depending on the reception, I plan to create more tunes and will upload the Onshape document so you can easily customize the notes for your own melodies!
• Spinning Element: The mechanism is designed to accommodate any spinning model. Just create a hole that matchs the rectangular spinning rod (8mm×8mm×5mm height - don't forget to add some tolerance (0.1-0.2mm)).

💃 The Ballerina

For the dancer, I started with the lovely Ballet Girl model remix  and made several improvements to make it fit and look spectacular:

• Perfect Fit: I adjusted the base, which was initially too tight, and added a rectangular hole to fit perfectly on top of the spinning rod.
• Enhanced Look: I applied fuzzy skin modifiers for a beautiful, textured finish on the ballerina's tutu and body. I used a striking copper and black filament combination to give her a dramatic, bronze-like appearance.

🏗️ Printing and Assembly Options

a quick video for assembly:
 

You have a few ways to print and display this model:

1. The Basic Tuner: Print just the spinning mechanism and the musical notes circle. Place it against a wooden box or surface to naturally amplify the sound.

2.  

   The Full Music Box: Print the screw-on amplifier box for the bottom, the top cover to hide the mechanism layer, and, of course, the dancer model for a complete and beautiful display
   
   note that alignment marks for the base and the circle (to allow the bottom to screw all the way): 
   
    

Essential Printing Notes

Please use the settings provided in the profile for the best results:

• Base Mechanism: Print all parts on plates "basic box mechanism" and "melody circle". I use minimal infill since the model is mostly decorative with no significant loads.
• Melody Circle: This part works well on regular PLA. The 0.1mm tolerance means it should fit very snugly. If you try silk, matte, PETG, or other filaments, please let me know how it performs!
• Dancer Supports: Manually painted supports on the ballerina's right arm are CRITICAL for a successful print.
• Mechanism Fit:
  • The handle is a print-in-place part with 0.4mm tolerances.
  • When spinning the bottom amplifier box onto the base, keep it aligned to ensure it spins all the way to meet the top cover.
  • The top mechanism cover has small notches: once placed correctly, you can spin it clockwise by about 10 degrees to lock it in place.

Enjoy building this unique piece! I can't wait to see your prints and hear your music box in action.

What tune would you want to create next?