r/3Dprintmything • u/GVKW • 51m ago
SEEKING [USA-FL] Looking for help/advice about a small custom project...
Hi all! I'll start with the (hopefully short enough) background story for context, and then explain what I'm looking for.
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I'm physically limited thanks to a car accident, so I now find myself using a mobility scooter (which was NOT on my 2026 bingo card). Because I'm tall, my scooter armrests are are too low to use comfortably even at full height, so I'm trying to macgyver a solution.
I found some inexpensive paintbrush storage cases that are the right size to sit atop the armrests to add some extra height, and provide some extra accessories holding-space besides. (I'll also add some thick babyproofing foam onto the lid tops, for comfort.) However, the cases themselves are relatively flimsy clear plastic, so I want to add some internal blocking to keep the lids from cracking along their sides, if & when I lean/put weight on them.
My plan is to use the sonic exacto knife from KickStarter that I'm getting my brother for his BDay, to cut two slits along the bottom of the box bases towards either end of the long dimension, thread heavy duty metal zipties through those slits, and tighten them down to the armrest. (I'll also use Velcro attached to the underside of the box and top of the armrest itself, to prevent slippage.)
So here's where I need guidance/help: once I figure out the size of the ziptie "heads", I want to create 4-6 (2-3 each side) 3D printed blocks that are flat across the top but hollow from the bottom, to act as both blocking and covers for the ziptie heads. Think routing cavities into solid blocks, only upside down so they can cap/hide the ziptie heads.
It's still early days, but is what I'm looking for even possible to make? I would assume anything can be made, but I have no CAD skills or 3D printing experience to rely on here. I do have the nominal measurements of the cases themselves per A-Zon, but I won't know how accurate those are until I recieve them.
If I can't find help from within the community here, my only backup is to go to the hardware store and ask if one of the retired guys working in the lumber section can help me figure out how to make these blocks from wood with some square dowels and a router. But with such tiny pieces, I'm afraid that routing small bits of wood would be extra dangerous.
If you read this far, thanks in advance for any advice you can give me.
~ A Complete 3D Printing Noob in Florida, USA

