Maker rules of thumb
The starting numbers and shop tricks worth memorising. 178 rules, each credited to the maker it came from. Search, or pick a discipline.
3D Printing
47 rulesWall thicknesses, tolerances and design moves for FDM parts that print right the first time.
- 3D Modeling / DFM16
- Printing & First Layer3
- Supports & Overhangs7
- Tolerances & Fit8
- Joining & Assembly4
- Mechanisms & Hinges9
Laser Cutting & Engraving
22 rulesSettings, safety and alignment for diode and CO2 lasers, plus the box-making basics.
All Laser Cutting & Engraving →
Get The Fuck Out
83 rulesShop and garage tricks so good you say it out loud. Zip ties, scribing, improvised tools and more.
- Zip Tie Tricks26
- Layout & Joinery10
- Tool Hacks & Improvised Tools11
- Garage & Automotive13
- Materials, Paint & Adhesives11
- Shop Setup, Storage & Rigging12
Measuring
14 rulesShop math, layout and reading your tools right. Angles from rise and run, squaring a site, calipers you can trust.
All Measuring →
Cutting, Not Hacking
6 rulesMarking and guiding moves that put the cut where you meant it, on pipe, tube, trim and paper.
All Cutting, Not Hacking →
Joinery
6 rulesWood and metal joints that go together square and stay that way. Bridles, hinges, tube corners, weld order.
All Joinery →New here? Start with these
Slant 3DWall thickness
Start FDM walls at 2–3 extrusion widths — with a 0.4 mm nozzle, that’s about 0.8–1.2 mm — and keep wall thickness a whole multiple of your line width.
Make or Break ShopSpeed / power test
For a new material, run a speed-vs-power test grid on a scrap of the real stock, fastest speeds first, and read the best cell straight off the sheet.
Tuan CTLash a crossed joint
Run the tie diagonally across the X — over one member and under the other — then cinch, so the diagonal wrap clamps the crossing and stops it pivoting.
Angle from rise and run
Use a level to make a right triangle under the sloped part, measure the rise (vertical) and the run (horizontal), then take the inverse tangent: angle = arctan(rise ÷ run). That's the angle from horizontal, in degrees. Subtract it from 90° for the angle from vertical.
Mark an angle on a pipe
Turn the angle into a distance around the pipe: arc length = outside diameter × π × degrees ÷ 360. Mark that distance on a thin paper strip, wrap the strip around the pipe from a 0° reference line, and transfer the mark. On a 2 in (50.8 mm) OD pipe, 25° is 0.436 in (11.1 mm).
TWCDesign (@takuwoodcraft)Doweled bridle corner
Cut a through bridle at the corner: an open slot in the rail and a centre tenon on the leg, each a third of the stock width. Glue it, then drive glued dowels through it from two perpendicular faces, down through the slot cheeks and in through the side. Pinned both ways, it can't rack or pull apart.