K-raft

Let’s add the second main piece (1x2)

It looks as a pair of connected main squares (let’s name them 1x1).

It speeds up construction.

it lets build stronger parts using brick lock.

It can strengthen the large flat faces and corner edges with longerons and spaces.

Printed sample:

A pretty strong hook for backpack:

Uploaded here 2x2-1x2-plate.stl

Most parts take only 15 layers on my FDM printer. So printing of one set doesn't take long, but I want more parts to be printed in one session. Ideally hundreds of parts at once.

Parts are flat.  What if I stack them layer by layer with a thin gap?

Here is the stl: 1x1-32.stl

A gap of 0.3 mm makes one loose layer.

Here it's printed:

And cut with utility knife:

New parts work good. They are like the previous flat printed parts except for underside which has very rough surface due bridging.

I tried them in practical usage.

It works. If needed, I can make about 500 flat parts in one print.

It's time to add five types of decoration pieces.

Printed

A wheel made of six parts:

A small building:

A gun:

Set of 24 parts laid-out on a circular platform: 1x1-24.stl

The simplest cube from the previous log. This time printed. I intentionally skipped the parts deburring to check for +/-0.2mm tolerance promised. Despite some surface roughness, parts stick and click.

After cleanup.

Construction sets can be divided in three large groups:

• brick-based (Lego, MegaBlocks)
• stick-based (K-nex)
• plate-based (many screw-and-nuts construction sets)

I want to combine the simplicity of plastic interlocks with plate-base design.

This idea is not new, there are number of construction sets based on this idea. I just wan to give a try to my s-shaped interlock with convex-concave side surfaces.

The first and main part is a rectangular 1x1 plate having interlocks at each four sides. Interlock allows to attach parts in three right angles.

The simplest figure that can be assembled is a cube:

Here is its open view: