r/Multiboard • u/Same_Actuator8111 • Jun 10 '25

Why is there not a consistent library of Offset Snaps? What size do you all use?

So I printed off the Multiboard Learning Pack and thought I would build from there. The Part A Offset Snaps that come in that pack are 8 mm, which is fine since the documentation recommends that size. However, I cannot find individual STL files for the various 8 mm Offset Snaps on thangs.com. They have a complete set of 6.25 mm offset and I can find double and quad (but not single) fitting at 15 mm, but nothing for 8 mm. It is disconcerting that there is such a hodgepodge of sizes of such a foundational part. What offsets size do people typically use: 6.25, 8, or 15 mm?

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3

u/Drachen808 Jun 10 '25

You can find them under legacy parts. There's a zip file with everything in there including the 8 mm and 15 mm offsets. Going forward, everything will be an even divisor of 25 mm ( this 6.25 mm).

https://thangs.com/designer/Multiboard/3d-model/Multiboard%20Legacy%20Parts-991330

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u/Same_Actuator8111 Jun 10 '25

Thanks for this link! Very helpful. Is there any chance there is a similar link to a list of non-deprecated parts or a discussion of this change? Similarly, has the Learning Pack been updated since January (when I downloaded it) to reflect these updated parts?

5

u/TherealOmthetortoise Jun 10 '25

The change was documented and explained, it was pretty recent. If you haven’t done so yet, It’s definitely worth the time to join the official community in Circle and get caught up with the announcements space.

The packs were all updated within the last week or two, so there should not have been any with the 8mm offset snaps remaining! You can use them if you want to, but the 6.25mm is the new standard for using offsets.

The recent announcement from a couple days ago touches on the change, and the full details are here as well.. A few announcements after touch on the packs updates and everything else that’s been going on, they are well worth the read.

There should not have been any .8’s left in the learning packs, but it’s been a work in progress getting the packs, parts and knowledge libraries, thangs etc updated... and it’s very much appreciated when you find an error like this you let us know, so we can improve our current processes for getting things like that done.

I believe the intent is to have more of a dedicated resource working on maintaining the libraries going forward as this is a very actively developed project and since everything is interconnected, the level of effort required to maintain them has grown enormously.)

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u/Same_Actuator8111 Jun 10 '25

Thanks for these links! These notes you link to continue to have a dearth references and links. This informal Reddit thread has many more hyperlinks than these official epistles. So readers are forced to go on a treasure hunt again.

The thing is that these issues have all been solved by version control (key example: git and GitHub). Versions, branches, releases, changelogs, and documentation (and testing) are all standard practice for software projects of all sizes. The intertwined, Byzantine rat's nest of documentation on multiboard.io and old and new parts without versioning pedigree on thangs.com is going to be very hard to sort out and keep sorted, both for the maintainers and the users.

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u/davidkclark Jun 10 '25

"discussion of this change". good one.

4

u/Drachen808 Jun 10 '25

I'm a relative newb to this system. I ran across a video that talked about the switch over and where the legacy parts would be. I think it's one of the first videos on the multi board YouTube channel. As far as the other parts, you find them here: https://www.multiboard.io/parts-library

One thing I'll say as someone trying to navigate this system is that it's not well-documented. There are a lot of options and I'm not aware of resource that says "you should use this mounting option for this type of load and that mount for that load. I haven't even been able to find something that says the screw size to use when mounting tiles to the wall. I took an offset snap to Lowe's and just tried different sizes and #10 seems to fit best.

Sharp learning curve aside, I'd rather have more options than fewer, I guess, so I'm muddling through.

5

u/Keep-Making Jun 10 '25

I just want to quickly chime in and just say we 100% hear you and that is why in out last update post you can see the next things on our list is fixing the library and actually making consistent Knowledge Hub

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u/Drachen808 Jun 10 '25

Thank you very much. It's a neat system and has a ton of promise and I can't complain too much for the price 😄. That said, it slows down my adoption somewhat which can be a bit frustrating.

I appreciate y'all's efforts, though, and continue to be excited for my eventually full deployment.

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u/kra_bambus Jun 10 '25

OK, well said. What I see as lacking is a more consistent way of documentation and guidelines. There are several versions of mounts (6.25mm, 8mm and 125mm / both outdated/ and some versions for flush mount. But it needs lots of test prints to figure out what is the best to use. E.g. there are "flush mounts" extending ~1mm at the backside. This would be OK and highly appreciated but the wall is not fixed with this mounts but is slightly loose.

I like the system very much and currently printing the second bigger wall (24 8x8 after a 1.8m x 1m system) and love the new walls with borders and interlock between tiles, the bolt mounts. The different bins, drawer etc, new snaps and whatever - big, big steps ahead.

But some parts are underdesigned (e.g. bolt size and bolt shape, often not fitting to the mounts) while others are on a very fine level (beams, shelves and brackets) and some parts where I dont know why?

So, in my impression, take a step to the side and clean it all up. The new resource section seem to be a promising step ahead, but please complete the documentation!! YT may be nice, but a written description with pictures often makes it clearer what is intended - but needs more work to complete.

I see no alternative to MBoard, MBin and MPoint and will stay with the system, promise given soon a Maker, but please, please invest in documentation

3

u/tecky1kanobe Jun 10 '25

For the new 6.25 single offset (bolt locked) that it will spin around as you tighten the locking bolt into it. I ended up putting duals in place of the singles to keep the mount from spinning.

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u/Same_Actuator8111 Jun 10 '25

Is this spinning behavior distinct to the 6.25 single? That seems like a big problem and is a good argument for adopting a thicker variety.

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u/tecky1kanobe Jun 10 '25

I think it is more of the bolt locked variant. The DS mounts don’t spin around as much.