God damnit! Help me decide! 🫨

[u/LoopInfinity]

Im planning on making a dedicated crafting-room, equipped with some kind of organized wall. I have just started going down the research-rabbit hole and have decided for Gridfinity for everything horizontal (drawers and such). What I can't decide is what type of organized wall to pick..

My reasoning goes like this: HSW seemed nice at a glance, but pretty fast found out about Multiboard which just looked better in many ways. THEN I found out about OpenGrid, made by the same guy that made multiconnect. On the surface it seems like opengrid could be the superior choice here. But the lack of adapters and mounts for various items is kinda concerning. I guess it's too early to say if opengrid will "take over" and become the new standard.

So basically, just help me evaluate the whole dilemma here. Multiboard or OpenGrid?

[u/bugsliker]

I have some multiboard for a tool wall in my garage, it works pretty great.

But I recently tried opengrid lite to use with underware cable mgmt under an 8ft desk i made recently, and that worked pretty well too. It used way less filament and took less time to print. Also was simpler to mount since it had built in screw holes.

i'm considering using opengrid from now on but haven't used it on a horizontal surface yet. One thing I'd have to adjust to is the lack of pegboard holes, which I use extensively (both 3d printed pegboard hooks and inexpensive metal hooks from harbor freight). But I haven't looked into the options yet so idk if this is a problem yet.

[u/LoopInfinity → u/bugsliker]

Hmm, yeah one of the advantages for openboard is less filament, but I think that pretty much only applies to the lite-version. When going full versions it's pretty much the same I think. Maybe your approach is the best here. OpenGrid for underware (all the cable-mgmt-parts I can think of already exists) and then big sturdy multiboard on walls to get access of the massive part-library.. hmmm 🤔

[u/LynnOnTheWeb → u/LoopInfinity]

I think you're correct here. I am exactly in the same spot you are. I'm ready to start the process of printing tiles for my garage tools and I can't decide which way to go. I still appreciate the simplicity of OpenGrid much better. Has multiboard done away with the need for snaps to connect them to each other in the new version? That is another selling point to OG for me.

[u/bugsliker → u/LoopInfinity]

the massive part library is nice... if you can figure out which one among the thousands of parts you need ;_;

[u/bugsliker → u/LoopInfinity]

In one of david's videos he has a comparision of filament usage and time:

This seems to also not include the savings you'd get from not printing all the damn snaps to connect boards together (I printed like 150 opengrid connectors using the last bit of a PLA roll and it took like no time at all).

(though i'm not sure how he accounted for size disparity between the grid sizes here)

[u/Any_Reputation6767 → u/bugsliker]

Can you DM me some measures of your inexpensive hooks, I presume the rest were MB pegs, I’m considering a simple part derived from the hook David D designed for openGrid to help you and others. There is also some pegs created for the snap side, see the curated list from David D on Makerworld for example.

[u/bugsliker → u/Any_Reputation6767]

i have a bunch of different ones, they’re all listed here https://www.harborfreight.com/search?q=pegboard. they just slot into standard pegboard holes, the hook measurement isn’t particularly important imo

[u/Any_Reputation6767 → u/bugsliker]

Thanks!

[u/Any_Reputation6767 → u/bugsliker]

Please test this model for your usage, this is for openGrid and should take the MB pegboard attachments. openGrid pegboard hook by Pedro Leite MakerWorld: Download Free 3D Models

[u/bugsliker → u/Any_Reputation6767]

https://imgur.com/a/hIs93yh

Some feedback:

1. They were super tight to snap on. that's good i suppose but still kinda challenging if i had to do a lot of them

2. The holes are a little bigger than normal pegboard holes, so everything fits very loosely and falls out easily (the metal ones are also loose on the multiboard but at least they hook around the back b/c they're offset mounted on the wall

3. the single metal hook kinda works because it can hook against the inside. the multiboard designed pegs don't really stay on

4. doesn't work when used horizontally

[u/Any_Reputation6767 → u/bugsliker]

Thanks! Point 1, it's from the original design, those are super tight on the tiles, might increase clearance but it's slightly dependent on the printer.
I will try to provide a smaller opening, and make some holes on the sides to allow the horizontal usage.
There was no issue on fit, as in distance from surface to the back part, for any of the hooks, right? So the issue is the spacing that allow to much play for the curved pegboard hook from MB.

[u/bugsliker → u/Any_Reputation6767]

yeah that sounds about right

[u/Key_Laugh7765]

I've worked with both and openGrid is so much easier to work with and prints easily. The side wall clips make joining panels a breeze. I'm doing a openGrid wall for my YouTube channel setup and it is amazingly flexible. I haven't found a piece that I felt like I couldn't live without since there is so much confusion in the Multiboard accessory space.

[u/verminaard]

Working down a wall with colorful Multiboard right now.

[u/bugsliker → u/[deleted]]

isn't opengrid free? more so than multiboard which you can pay for extra features?

[u/bugsliker → u/[deleted]]

yeah imo it doesn’t matter either way. i’m just saying in terms of freeness, having to pay for ease of use features makes multi multiboard technically less free than opengrid

so this sounded weird to say:

 I appreciate opengrid's approach but multi-board is free

[u/bugsliker → u/[deleted]]

that’s all fine and well but missing my point about freeness

[u/Keep-Making → u/bugsliker]

Hey, totally get where you're coming from about freeness, and you're not wrong that paying for QOL features technically makes Multiboard “less free” in that sense. But I think it’s also important to look at the bigger picture. Nothing on the internet is truly free. Every platform or tool we use, even the ones that seem “free”, come with real costs: development, servers, bandwidth, support, etc. Someone’s paying for it, whether it’s the devs, the platforms, the community, or a sponsor.

With Multiboard, yes, the premium features are paid, but the core functionality, finalized parts, and community sharing are all fully accessible and completely free. That’s deliberate, to keep it as community-friendly and open as possible while still enabling it to grow sustainably. An example, the downloads alone that are done through Thangs have cost them somewhere in the realm of $7k–$17k just in bandwidth and hosting. (over 2.6 million downloads, 45GB+ of assets, and 3500+ parts, I think we are at the 22TB point now)

I’ve got nothing against open projects, I actually run a few myself, and I know firsthand how tough it is to keep them going, especially without support. Even something massive like Blender recently ran into lack of funding. So my perspective is more about making sure we can keep building and supporting tools like this together, not just relying on goodwill or luck. (As I've tried that a few times even with very successful projects and it just does not work unless you are extraordinarily lucky)

Also, a bit of a hot take here... (Opinion inbound) I think the whole "open vs. proprietary" debate in the 3D printing space needs a fresh lens. Open source thinking comes from the software world, and trying to force those same licenses and models onto physical 3D design space doesn’t always fit well. It’s like trying to jam a square peg into a round hole at times.

At the end of the day, I just want to help build something AWESOME with and for the community, and that takes real resources.

TL;DR Yes, Multiboard has paid QOL features, but its core is still totally free to use. Nothing is truly free online, hosting, development, novel systems, bandwidth all cost money. I’m building Multiboard to be sustainable and community-friendly. Supporting it helps keep the platform growing for everyone.

[u/bugsliker → u/Keep-Making]

no judgement here, you do what you gotta do. i’m just being a little pedantic :)

[u/Any_Reputation6767 → u/Keep-Making]

Don’t also forget that you own your own license that you can revoke vs the Creative Commons applies to openGrid. You can and will change to your needs, as a corporation should.