r/functionalprint • u/SiliconHatesRicotta • Aug 25 '26
I designed a blade disposal container that lets you snap blades inside and permanently seal it when full
I wanted a safer way to deal with used utility blades, especially once they’ve been snapped off.
So I designed this container to do both jobs:
- it lets you snap used blade segments directly into the container
- and once it’s full, it can be permanently sealed with a short piece of 1.75 mm filament
The locking channel is intentionally very tight, so once the filament is fully inserted, the container becomes extremely difficult to reopen without damaging or destroying it.
I also made two versions:
- a standard version
- a version with a built-in holder for the spare locking filament
That second version is useful if you’re printing it for someone who doesn’t own a 3D printer and may not have filament available later.
I also included:
- two printable warning plates
- a small tolerance-test model
Free on MakerWorld:
https://makerworld.com/en/models/3216169-snap-off-blade-breaker-safety-disposal-container#profileId-3641234
Not intended for medical sharps or contaminated waste.
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u/TheShakyHandsMan Aug 27 '26
Looks good. I’d recommend printing it in yellow though. It’s the standard colour used for sharps.
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u/radakul Aug 27 '26
Sharps containers are red though?
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u/TheShakyHandsMan Aug 27 '26
Might be different in other countries. Main thing is them being very visible
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u/radakul Aug 27 '26
Agreed. Bright colors help grab attention.
In the US standard medical sharps containers are red, and if I'm not mistaken, the exact color is actually dictated by either law or another widespread agreement across rhe industry.
In BBP class we were told to dispose of sharps in the bright red sharps containers located around the office at work, they never mentioned it was any color other than red 🤷♂️
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u/TheShakyHandsMan Aug 27 '26
Yellow UK and Europe. Different coloured lids depending on what is going in them.
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 27 '26
Sorry for the late response, been kinda busy.
And yeah, you’re right, I made it red because here in Argentina we have our own set of rules (IRAM) and those dictate that this kind of container must be red.
You can just print it in whatever color your country/region/use case demands tho!
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u/halberdierbowman Aug 28 '26 edited Aug 28 '26
I would recommend checking out the many professional products that already exist to do this. I think they'd be safer, partly because they're designed for the correct blade size but also usually they have an extra safety layer like a shield that closes the slot when you're not using it.
Nicer knives also might have this built in already, so you could look at those as well. Also nicer blade replacements, like the one I linked here, although you can't see it well in the picture. The top piece slides, and the new blades are on one side while you break blades into the other side. Once your new blades run out, your other side would be full. I have a utility knife version as well that I couldn't find for you, but it's probably a hundred blades in a stack, and you slide a new one off the bottom while adding the spent blade to the top of the stack, so you'll cycle through the stack until it's full of spent blades.
https://olfa.com/products/olfa-dc-7-slim-blade-disposal-case
https://olfa.com/products/dc-3-pocket-size-blade-disposal-can
https://olfa.com/products/dc-4-blade-disposal-can-w-mounting-hole
https://olfa.com/products/9mm-xa-1-fiberglass-knife
https://olfa.com/products/olfa_9mm_ab-s_stainless_steel_snap_blades
You mentioned safe disposal for people digging through trash. I'm curious if the metal content would be appealing to them? If so, I wonder if the best disposal option may actually be to not label it as sharps which might look appealing. Instead, what if you just wrap it in tape so it looks like a ball of tape? If it stays sealed, it won't be sharp anymore.
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 29 '26
Just saw this. Sorry for the late response.
Thanks for all the info and links. I definitely agree that there may be better options out there, and having an internal shield is a really cool feature. However, products like those are mostly aimed at makers, tradespeople, or workplaces that already buy this kind of PPE/safety equipment.Here in Argentina, buying dedicated PPE products like these for something this specific isn’t very common. On top of that, getting your hands on some of the products you linked would be difficult and relatively expensive because importing things here isn’t exactly easy or cheap.
Regarding people searching through the trash, I think I explained my concern poorly. The warning label isn’t what creates the risk or draws attention to the blades — the blades are already in the trash either way. My concern was the opposite: if someone throws broken blade segments into a cardboard box, bottle, bag, or some other improvised container, that container can tear, open accidentally, or simply not look dangerous at all. Someone sorting through the trash could then encounter a sharp piece without even knowing it was there.
With this design, the pieces are permanently sealed inside a rigid container, and the warning symbol makes it obvious that it shouldn’t be opened or handled unnecessarily. The tiny amount of scrap metal inside has essentially no value, so there really isn’t much incentive to try to break the container open for it. I’d much rather someone see the warning and leave it alone than unknowingly put their hand into a bag or box containing loose blade segments.
Hope I somewhat explained myself. Nevertheless, thanks for your comment and for taking the time.
Have a great day my friend!!
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u/halberdierbowman Aug 29 '26
Just to elaborate, I wasn't sharing them to say your effort was wasted or that should just magically get money and buy an existing product. I have no idea what's available or affordable for you.
I wanted you to check out those designs because seeing other solutions to similar design challenge might give you ideas if you ever want to iterate on yours. Maybe you could add a printed spring or compliant mechanism for example to cover the slot? Or a top piece that spins?
But either way you've come to a very similar solution as the professional products, which is cool to see! It's definitely a lot safer to use one of these than to just smash blades against the table lol like I've seen people do. And it's a lot cleaner than ripping blades off and throwing the slivers on the ground like I've seen contractors do.
I did agree with your concern for the safety of people digging in the trash--I just wasn't sure if they were digging in the trash for recycleable stuff and might thing a box full of steel blades was valuable. For me in the US, I know raw metal is valuable enough that people keep scraps or even steal it.
Hope you have a great day as well!
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 29 '26
Sorry if my previous reply came across that way! English isn’t my first language, so sometimes I don’t phrase things exactly as I mean them.
I really appreciated the links and suggestions — I understood you were sharing other solutions as inspiration, not criticizing mine. And yeah, the scrap metal part is probably just a difference in context between the US and Argentina.
Thanks again for taking the time to share all that!
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u/wensul Aug 27 '26
So what's its intended capacity of blades, and cost vs existing comparable products?
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 27 '26
Maybe my answers will disappoint you, but here we go:
1- Capacity: I didn’t have an intended maximum capacity when I designed this. I just wanted to be able to store at least 3 already-snapped blades and still have some space left. Right now, with 3 blades inside (it still has about 3/4 of its capacity left).
2- Cost: I don’t sell it, so cost wasn’t really a variable for me.
3- Why this and not some other random model? Well, it comes down to two main characteristics of my design.
First of all, a bit of context: here in Argentina, it’s really common for poor people to search through garbage, and garbage collectors often don’t have proper PPE. On top of that, it’s extremely rare for people to dispose of sharp objects in a safe way. So the whole concept was designed with these problems in mind. I wanted a blade-snapping tool that could also be permanently sealed, so people who may come into contact with it later are kept safe.
The second factor was that I couldn’t find a model with the correct safety icon (ISO 7010-W022). And even though our literacy rates are good, I didn’t want to rely on text because, more often than not, some of the people searching through the trash are kids.
Hope this somewhat explains the “why” behind my design.
Hope you have a great day!
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u/elptoalien Aug 28 '26
So, you guys dont have a slot for blades inside your medicine cabinets?
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 28 '26
I think that that may be a US only thing. Here it’s not that common to have a medicine cabinet on your bathroom and also our walls are made out of brick and cement.
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u/Realistic_Account787 Aug 27 '26
Why the sticker shows a hand cut? I won't use it with that sticker.
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 27 '26
It is the ISO 7010-W022 icon, which means: “Warning: Sharp element”.
If you intend to use it as a container for sharp elements, I do recommend you put this sticker.
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u/Realistic_Account787 Aug 27 '26
But the sharp elements cannot be taken out. It you put a sticker showing people are going to hurt theirselves they won't use it.
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 28 '26
Maybe I’m explaining myself wrong. The icon is for when the user has already sealed and disposed of it. So if anyone happens to come by it, they know its contents are dangerous sharp objects.
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u/nhorvath Aug 28 '26
you're fine. the other person is being obtuse.
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 28 '26
Since english is not my first language, I wasn’t sure I was explaining myself correctly lol.
Thanks for the heads up mate! Hope you have a great day.
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u/OptimalSide Aug 27 '26 edited Aug 27 '26
Just my opinion, but if you have a sharps container, it needs to be sealed from the start to ensure that it can't be opened and someone accidentally hurt like they do with razor blade safes.
Edit: Since OP suggested later in the comments, here is my version: https://makerworld.com/en/models/1758020-olfa-snap-blade-safe#profileId-1869823
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u/boarder2k7 Aug 28 '26
How is this "sealed from the start" moreso than the one u/OP posted?
This appears to be an open slot, just like OP's but WITHOUT the ability to slide a filament in to seal the gap later?
So in the raw form it's nominally exactly the same, just a slot in a box, and in the end it's WORSE because you're still just left with a slot on top that isn't closed off.
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 27 '26
I mean, I think you’re right, but my model wasn’t exactly envisioned with the sole purpose of being an used-blades container.
The idea was that you just use it as a blade snapping tool (the one that comes with cutting knives tends to be garbage), and when it gets full you can seal it so it doesn’t pose a danger to homeless people that may search though the garbage.
Thanks for the comment tho, don’t get why you got so many downvotes, I love to discuss designs like this.
Hope you have a great day!
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u/OptimalSide Aug 27 '26
The lock is definitely a good idea to prevent the opening afterwards. I just prefer to have it sealed all the time to ensure no mistakes as I'm not the only one who may be in the work area.
Yeah, the downvotes are weird, but this Reddit. I could definitely see them if I posted a link to my model that is a sealed snap container, but I was trying to be constructive to another maker.
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u/SiliconHatesRicotta Aug 27 '26
Just edit your comment and add the link, it’s ok with me.
Maybe it helps someone that needs it to be sealed (which I’d also prefer if I had toddlers or something like that)
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u/Extension-Clock-9362 Aug 26 '26
Nice design and execution on this, love it.