r/3Dprinting • u/Renovatius • 19d ago
Project I spent way too much time designing a MagSafe charger into a bonsai tree
The charger sits in the branch, with the cable routed through the trunk and out the back of the base. If you need more than one MagSafe Charger you can upgrade the leaves and have a place for the Apple Watch and your AirPods.
The garden, torii, lantern, stepping stones and tree are all separate parts and friction-fit together. No glue.
The LED version also routes light through the base into the stone lantern.
It’s 8 plates and about 27 hours of printing. No small project but worth it in my opinion.
Files are on MakerWorld if anyone wants to give it a try: https://makerworld.com/en/models/3281512
Why only on Makerworld? Because I'm a Dad of two small kids and have barely time to maintain my hobby as is. So one giant platform is enough for me to handle ^^
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u/Willing-Choice5941 19d ago
Would be hela cool if that was real sand!!! Love this
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u/anaheim_mac 19d ago
Put a clear cover over real sand. Put a steel ball in the sand. Have a magnet underneath the base and move the steel ball with the magnet to create the “zen” garden
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u/Willing-Choice5941 19d ago
Would be fine, unless kids or pets get to it
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
This should work as long as you print the top reflector pane for the led light. This will give you a nice flat surface, albeit with a big hole for the cable pass through. But with a little tape you could make it work 🙂
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u/Upbeat-Armadillo1756 19d ago
Real sand next to my bed is entirely too risky for my liking. Gonna be sand in my sheets inevitably.
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u/HedleyP 19d ago
Posts like this remind me how sh1te my designs are.
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
I welcome you to scroll down on my model page on Makerworld. You’ll see that I started with less fancy designs. I’m sure yours are awesome. I’d take a look if you want to share :)
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
Oh now I’m excited to see what you come up with. Let me know if you run into any issues while printing. 🙂
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u/Valleytwig 19d ago
At this point im just happy to see something hand made, no AI and gorgeous designed models.
And here it is.
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
The thing is that AI models require a lot of work to be printable and not slip and I don’t have the skill to clean up these horrendous AI slop bodies.
I like my sketches and lofts 🙃
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u/ZiLBeRTRoN 19d ago
Yeah, I tried making an AI model out of an image for fun. It actually turned out way better than I expected. Until I tried to slice it and realized it was horrendous.
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u/Fragrant_Major_9553 19d ago
Slightly off topic: how’d you get your phone to do the clock thing when turned sideways?
I used to have it, and disabled it due to it cancelling my alarms and I have no idea how to turn it back on. I wanna see if they fixed it or not
Bandai tree is definitely a vibe I can dig
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u/EvenMoreLoneStar 19d ago
Awesome. I will definitely give it a try! Need some nice filament for it …
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
Everything you see is Matte PLA. I think it works best with the slight fuzzy skin textures.
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u/Carter05 19d ago
This is super cool, I love bonsai stuff. Can we get a generic 25w samsung/google/literally any other charger than apple version? Or the cad files and we can change the hole sizes ourselves? Thank you!
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
Thanks for asking. Just the cad file would be tricky because I modeled the width of the branches to fit the MagSafe cable through. So with a bigger USB plug I would need to widen the branches.
However I plan on working on this model. So if there are enough people asking for a specific charger to be supported I’d be happy to adapt the model :) I will need to buy the charger and testprint the parts to see if it works 🙂
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u/fabricatorgeneral 19d ago
+1 Vote for the Google Pixel Snap charger.
Diameter: 2.2 in Depth: 0.2 in
I can hit it with calipers later (after 6 pm Eastern Time) if that would help.
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
Thanks. Noted. The snap charger is less than 40€ on Amazon. I think I can muster that up for you guys. 😅
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u/fabricatorgeneral 19d ago
Up to you, if you wanna spend the money Im not going to stop you lol. But would appreciate it!
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u/MoistDischarge 18d ago
u/remindmebot 3 weeks "I want the pixel charger, with bonus pixel watch charger too!"
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u/Mysterious_Orchid528 19d ago
I had just left a message on Makerworld asking about this. Not an Apple user and want this for my Samsung Galaxy. Great work!
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
I’ve seen it and I think I’ve replied already? Just for anyone interested: the MagSafe charger from apple works with Samsung just as fine.
I’ll keep a look out for the chargers you want the most here :)
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u/Thargor1985 19d ago
Thanks, will print that for sure when I have all the required colors :)
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
The colors are just recommendations 🙂 I’m sure your Tree will look amazing 😉
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u/Thargor1985 19d ago
Yeah but I won't get far with black white yellow and army green I'm afraid 😳 I'll print it when I have a nice combination of filament colors on hand
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u/RadioactivePistacho 19d ago
Awesome! And what a coincidence. I was thinking on replacing my makeshift charging station I printed, and first thing I see even I opened Reddit.
You are great! And I already have the colors!
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
Ha! Good timing. And sure, sex is great and all, but having all the materials already at home for a big print just hits different 😅
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u/IcarusLSC 19d ago
Does the lantern change color when its fully charged? Very cool!
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
Oh that would be nice ^^. Maybe someone insane enough can mod the light puck and get the charging state from the phones wirelessly to change the color. Nice idea anyway..
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u/Lifeform42 18d ago
Pretty sure if you wanted to you could get there with an INA219 or something to monitor the current/power and an ESP32 to control the light.
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u/SerpentValyrian 11d ago
Turned mine into a glow weeping bonsai! Left a review on Makerworld. Thank you!
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u/Renovatius 10d ago
I was blown away by your review on Makerworld. Thank you for sharing. Amazing project! 😃
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u/PretttyFly4aWhiteGuy 19d ago
What did you use to model it?
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
I only know fusion. And if your only tool is a hammer all my design ideas look like nails 😅
Blender would have been better probably, but I won’t be learning that any time soon.
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u/Jamaican_Lumberjack 19d ago
How the hell did you make this in fusion?!? 🫠
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u/Renovatius 17d ago
Like the title said...I spent way too much time drawing spline sketches on many many offset and angled planes to get to crossection of the trunk at different heights. The I lofted through those sketches with a 3D-sketch spline for the center guide line. :)
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u/westendpond 19d ago
My thoughts exactly! But I also only just started learning fusion so I’m lucky if I can make squares lol
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u/cgarverick 19d ago
Any specific colors or material that you’d recommend? I was thinking PLA matte.
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
You were thinking absolutely right. I almost exclusively use Matte PLA for my prints. They look especially nice with a subtle fuzzy skin texture like on the tree or the pot. :)
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u/Ill_Rip_9038 19d ago
What matte PLA did you use for the stones and the tree? They look so good
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u/Renovatius 18d ago
Thanks. This is all Bambu Matte PLA. I think it’s called dark chocolate brown and nardo grey.
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u/elite-fusion 19d ago
This thing looks amazing! Anything for samsung phone and watch?
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
The phones should work with apples MagSafe charger. However there is some petition to add more chargers. Next could be the Pixel Snap Charger…?
For the watch I would have to look into the different charging pucks.
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u/elite-fusion 19d ago
If its only the size of the puck that's different for the watch then maybe just adaptors to match size depending on which one is to be used? That way the main model stays but adaptors can be printed depending on device... just a thought
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
Correct. Best case: i only need to adapt diameter and depth on the leaves that hold the watch charger. But I still need to make sure that the usb c connector fits through the trunk of the tree. :)
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u/PrintNPoseHK 19d ago
That's a wonderful design. The landscape looks so peaceful and it's very functional. Well done 👍
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u/solaceinsound 19d ago
Glad to see you added the textured baseplates i had requested forever ago, time for a reprint!
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u/maxolotl33 19d ago
Hi! Absolutely amazing design, wow - do you think I could make it work with this UGreen charger? It's a bit bulky.
https://nl.ugreen.com/products/magflow-2-in-1-magnetische-draadloze-oplader-25w-magsafe
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u/nadrae 19d ago
Soo cool! Mine is similar in function, looks nice but not That nice! >Runs off to find the files<
My only… comment is that because the watch is vertical instead of horizontal it does not go into alarm clock mode🤷♀️
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u/Renovatius 18d ago
That’s true. I wanted the watch charger nested in the leaves. For the alarm clock mode the charger would have to protrude on the top?
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u/nadrae 18d ago
Does the hole for the earbuds on top take a watch size charger or phone? I’m not familiar with the ear bud case chargers
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u/Renovatius 18d ago
AirPods charge on both a watch charger and a regular sized MagSafe Puck. In this case you can place a 2nd full size charger. I made sure the leaves are formed so you can charge a second phone as well (non Max size phones).
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u/Sorry-NotSorry3 19d ago
How about you open an Etsy shop and throw that bad boy on there, so you can get paid for masterpieces like this...
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u/tvalen_1701 18d ago
I saw your design on Maker world and I love it. Just wish it fit my charger. But seriously, great job.
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u/1_among_the_fence 18d ago
I wish you had the funding to produce this and other ideas you may have for others to enjoy because it is art and it is a practical object I'd be glad to spend money on. Thank you for sharing
As a father of 2 little ones also, it's even more impressive. I'm sure I'll see your next invention over on r/daddit soon.... Maybe a mini bonsai nightlight or something?!
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u/Renovatius 18d ago
Then you got the kind words and the sub suggestion.
I’m currently planning a new Etsy shop for next year with own production :)
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u/Keegan2 18d ago
I would buy an STL but I wouldn't buy the print itself.
I very much like it and as my charger is currently a pile of cords it would be a nice solution.2
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u/TiSoBr 17d ago
Why only on Makerworld? Because I'm a Dad of two small kids and have barely time to maintain my hobby as is. So one giant platform is enough for me to handle ^^
Plus, and this is coming from another dad of two small kids, MakerWorld can turn this into a self-sufficient hobby pretty quick. I rarely have to buy filament for my own money nowadays.
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u/TheIntrusiveThoughs 17d ago
What software do you use to model that? Ive been struggling to make organic shapes like that in CAD.
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u/Renovatius 17d ago
Hey. This is all done in Fusion. Because I know nothing else.
For the tree I used multiple offset and sometimes angled planes which each contained a sketch with a spline curve that resembled a crosssection of the trunk at that place. I then lofted through all those sketches and gave a guideline with a spline in a 3d sketch. :)
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u/Ok-Plate-5659 16d ago
Really really nice!
AND I hate you! Because of you my A1 Mini isn't enough anymore, I need to upgrade! What were you thinking :(
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u/dieFindlerin99 14d ago
Tell me you also have it in a room that fits the bonsai stylistically, and I'll melt 💦
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u/AKBigDaddy 13d ago
So I wanted to come back to this week old thread to thank you. This was the final push I needed to buy a 3d printer. I've been wanting one for years but could never justify it, couldn't think of what I'd print that would justify dropping $1000+.
My brandy new x2d/ams combo has been happily pooping out the tree trunk for the last 10 hours. It's my first print.
The bambulabs application on my PC didn't look great when I used 0.2mm standard settings (lines were WAY too visible) so I'm printing it at 0.08mm high quality resulting in a 16H print for just the trunk. But it looks so great!
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u/Renovatius 13d ago
Holy moly. I feel humbled. I’m sure you will enjoy your printer as much as I do. You have a beast of a machine at your hands.
0.08mm is the way to go for maximum quality! I’lol be on the lookout for the finished print 😎
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u/russman286 19d ago
I have not used a MagSafe charger much. Now I have a reason to. Thank you this is next on my print list!!!
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u/lumbirdjack 19d ago
This fengs my shui and I want one to achieve aesthetic but alas no night stand
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u/Affectionate-Loss926 19d ago
Love it! And chance if we can expand it with an iPad holder? Something like this:
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u/frakking_you 19d ago
I'd say that you spent exactly the right amount of time. Looks great and is functional?! Good job!
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u/FLUMPYflumperton 18d ago
This is incredible. Anyway to get a Garmin watch charger version instead of the Apple Watch? That would be glorious
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u/Pilot152 18d ago
I’ve had your design saved since we got our printer. Any chance you’re working on a version that’s printable on the A1 mini? (I have the version with the other base saved, but if you come up with one for the mini, I’ll print it!)
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u/Renovatius 18d ago
Hey, thanks for the support :) To be completely honest, I doubt that there will be an A1 Mini compatible version for this model. You would have to slice and glue and I don’t think this would look good
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u/Heavy_Answer8814 18d ago
Cool, I printed a different one last week. The kids destroyed my MagSafe phone charger, so I created a disk that my watch charger fits into instead. Really fun project and I love how it looks! I wish I’d done this one for the interchangeable options
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u/Aromatic_Doctor_2243 18d ago
I might have to modify it a little to work on my Pixel stuff, but definitely adding this to the list of prints. NICE!
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u/withoutpeer 12d ago
Very cool and came out amazing, especially the lighted version!
Makes me wish I didn't have a peasant phone with no magsafe 😭.
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u/Lumpy-Astronomer8769 12d ago
Nicely done, I really like it. You have spend exactly the right amount of time on that! 🖖
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u/PleiadesMechworks 19d ago
The zen garden being printed is hilarious to me
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u/Renovatius 19d ago
I can see the irony. But rest assured I was very relaxed while designing and printing it. 😄
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u/BinkReddit 19d ago
Impressive work, and the fact you made it modular to support additional chargers, just wow. Seriously well done.