Bicycle spoke decoration beads

I really liked Brett Casteels idea of press fit Bicycle spoke decorations so I decided to design my own. 

What started with a simple heart quickly became a template to create pixel art objects within Fusion 360. My partner used that template to generate a bunch of super cute models and she allowed me to publish them here. So props and thanks go to her!

How to print

The Beads are designed with a tight fit to snap right on the Spokes and stay in their place. Since different filaments behave differently you might want to scale the beads up or down a bit. Maybe print a single model to get the fit right, before printing a whole bed. 

If you want the beads to slide freely while you ride just scale the models up to around 110% in your slicer. Check if none of the wider prints collide with the bicycle frame, gears or chain when rotating the wheel.

All models are already oriented in a proper way, change accordingly to your needs. Only the pac-man ghost needs to be laying with its channel opening downwards for the eyes to be printed with a thinner layer. 

I used various PLAs and PET-Gs at the 0.2mm Quality Preset with a 0.4mm nozzle. Be aware that poor bed adhesion will lead to a bend channel in which case the beads will just break when trying to press them to the spokes (I'm looking at you PET-G…).

Happy printing!

p.s.: please check your local regulations for mandatory bicycle reflectors before removing those from your bike.

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edit: i liked highchurches cacti so I added a smaller one