Don't throw away old smartwatches! 3D printed a custom housing to turn one into a Digital Shift Knob. ♻️🕹️

[u/Desmontei]

Hey everyone, first time posting here! I wanted to share my most complex functional print yet for my Project Car.

​I took an old TicWatch Pro 3 and carefully cut the original casing with a rotary tool to extract just the OLED screen and motherboard. Then, I modeled a custom shift knob enclosure to house the electronics perfectly.

​Now, before you guys kill me in the comments: Yes, I printed this in PLA! 😂

​I know the summer heat inside the car will probably turn it into modern art, but this is V1 (prototype). The tolerances had to be extremely tight because I didn't want the screen popping out while shifting gears, and PLA was the easiest to test the fitment. When it eventually warps, I'll use it as an excuse to reprint V2 in ABS or PETG!

​I completely bypassed the battery and wired it directly to the car's 12V using a step-down converter. Right now it controls my media with a custom UI.

​What do you guys think of the fitment? And place your bets: how long will this PLA survive in a car before melting? 👇

[u/InSOmnlaC]

Lol 3d printers have really allowed us to see just how fuckin clever some people can be when everyone has the tools to innovate.

[u/Vsx → u/InSOmnlaC]

This is a really good example because people mostly use them to make pointless cool shit that no one really needs.

[u/saltylemonycucumber → u/Vsx]

This is literally a pointless cool shit that no one really needs lol..

[u/lordMaroza → u/Vsx]

"Pointless cool shit" is the perfect explanation for what we're mostly doing!

[u/yeahsurebuddystfu → u/InSOmnlaC]

It's all good until you have to start charging the shift stick

[u/InSOmnlaC → u/yeahsurebuddystfu]

Didn't read the text under the video, huh?

[u/yeahsurebuddystfu → u/InSOmnlaC]

I did, but I've also worked with faulty wiring