Lice or Flea Comb

Important: this model is designed for printing with a 0.2 mm nozzle! With the default 0.4 mm nozzle the teeth will fuse together.

Using a nit comb is crucial for effectively removing both head lice and their eggs. The close arrangement of the teeth on a nit comb allows for the extraction of nits from the hair, which may not be possible with a regular comb. The accuracy of today's 3D printers makes it possible to print this useful tool yourself!

Note: this comb can also be used to detect similar parasites like flea or ticks on your pets.

Useful links:

• Lice treatment - CDC
• How to Check for Lice - wikiHow
• How to Detect Fleas - wikiHow

I designed this to be the best 3D printable lice comb:

• the teeth are very close together, as recommended for lice and flea combs (≤ 0.2 mm or < 0.09 inch)
• the comb profile is rounded which makes the item easier to use on the head
• the teeth are medium to long which
• despite the thin teeth, the comb is relatively robust
• the comb is relatively short so that it can be used well in tight spots like behind the ears
• there is a size-chart on the front to give you an idea what you are looking for

Note: you need to use the side with the thin teeth for best results!

Print Profiles

Two print profiles are available:

• Teeth spacing 0.2 mm - this should be a reliable print for most users with a 0.2 nozzle.
• Teeth spacing 0.17 mm (85% scale) - this could be challenging depending on your filament (my print was successful, though).

Even tighter teeth spacing might be possible but I did not want to push this as it should be printable with a variety of filaments and printers; feel free to experiment with this by scaling down the model yourself. For example if you scale down the original model with its 0.2 teeth spacing to 75% you would get 0.15 mm teeth spacing.

Printing recommendations

• choose a bright color - the nits are easier to spot this way
• remember: this is a functional print - you do not want a single tooth to come loose from the bed, so play it safe …
• do not go fast, the teeth are really delicate
• clean your bed well
• use a 0.2 mm nozzle
• I had good results with the smooth plate
• I did test prints with Bambu PLA basic, Sunlu PLA+, Jayo PLA matte

Commercial Use

The model on this website is only available for non-commercial use. This means you can print it for yourself or as a gift for others, but you may not sell or alter the model. If you are interested in obtaining a commercial license, please contact me.