The Grinch's Christmas Tree.

Based on an idea from a family friend, this Grinch's Christmas tree is somewhat unreliable and as such he must continue to tap on it to make it work. Thanks Maggie!

As usual I probably forgot a file or two or who knows what else, so if you have any questions, please do not hesitate to comment as I do make plenty of mistakes. 

Designed using Autodesk Fusion 360, sliced using Ultimaker Cura 4.12.1, and 3D printed in PLA on Ultimaker S5s.

1. Soldering iron and solder.
2. Thick cyanoacrylate glue and accelerator.
3. Thick yarn.
4. Black indelible ink pen.

I acquired the following parts:

1. One 12 Pack Fairy Lights Battery Operated, 7 ft 20 LED Mini String Lights for Bedroom Table Party Birthday Decorations (Multi-Colored).
2. One micro roller switch (metal Roller Lever Micro Switch AC 5A 125 250V SPDT 3 Pins (Pack of 20) CYT1096) (S1).
3. One N20 6VDC 35rpm gear motor (M1).
4. One twin AA cell battery pack with switch.
5. Two M2 by 16mm cap head screws with washers and nuts.
6. One 47ohm resistor (R1).

I 3D printed the following parts at .15mm layer height, 20% infill and no supports:

1. One "Axle, Grinch.stl".
2. One "Bag.stl".
3. One "Base.stl".
4. One "Cam, Grinch.stl".
5. One "Cam, Lights.stl".
6. One "Green, Face.stl".
7. One "Green, Left Arm.stl".
8. One "Green, Left Leg.stl".
9. One "Green, Rear.stl".
10. One "Green, Right Arm.stl".
11. One "Green, Right Leg.stl".
12. One "Red, Hat.stl".
13. One "Red, Left Leg.stl".
14. One "Red, Right Leg.stl".
15. One "Red, Torso.stl".
16. One "Star.stl".
17. One "Tree.stl".
18. One "White, Collar.stl".
19. One "White, Hat.stl".
20. One "White, Left Arm.stl".
21. One "White, Left Leg.stl".
22. One "White, Right Arm.stl".
23. One "White, Right Leg.stl".
24. One "White, Waist.stl".
25. One "Yellow, Face.stl".

This mechanism is a precision print and assembly using at times very small precision 3D printed parts in confined spaces with precise alignment. I 3D printed all parts using the Ultimaker Cura 4.12.1 "Engineering Profile" on my Ultimaker S5s, which provides a highly accurate tolerance requiring minimal if any trimming, filing, drilling or sanding. However, prior to assembly, I still test fitted and trimmed, filed, drilled, sanded, etc. all parts as necessary for smooth movement of moving surfaces, and tight fit for non moving surfaces. Depending on your slicer, printer, printer settings and the colors you chose, more or less trimming, filing, drilling and/or sanding may be required to successfully recreate this model. I carefully filed all edges that contacted the build plate to make absolutely certain that all build plate "ooze" is removed and that all edges are smooth using small jewelers files and plenty of patience.

The Grinch is assembled in three components; the body, the left leg and the right leg. Using the diagrams as a template, I used small dots of thick cyanoacrylate glue and accelerator to assemble each component on a flat surface covered with wax paper.

After assembly, I placed a small black dot on the yellow eye using the indelible ink pen for the pupil.

To assemble the tree, I carefully glued each of the twenty LED bulbs on the light string to the back of "Tree.stl" facing toward the front. Once complete, I snipped off the wires from the light string battery back.

Finally, I glued "Start.stl" to the top of the tree assembly.

To assemble the base, I performed the following steps:

1. Positioned "Cam, Lights.stl" into "Base.stl" as shown.
2. Pressed "Cam, Grinch.stl" into the lights cam making certain the bump on the grinch cam aligned with the valley on the lights cam.
3. Pressed the gear motor into the base assembly then into the motor shaft hole on the grinch cam.
4. Secured the roller switch to the base assembly using M2 hardware, then aligned the switch such that it activated when the cam profile was high and deactivated when the cam profile was low.
5. Pressed "Bag.stl" into the base assembly making certain it was parallel with the roller switch tower.
6. Slid "Axle, Grinch.stl" through the hole in the bag.
7. Slid the right leg assembly over the grinch axle then pressed the right shoe into the base assembly.
8. Pressed the grinch assembly onto the axle and glued in place with small dots of glue.
9. Slid the left leg assembly onto the axle then pressed the left shoe into the base assembly.
10. After making certain that the grinch rotated with ease, glued the bag, left and right shoes to the base assembly.

I wired the model as per the included schematic.

For final assembly, I performed the following steps:

1. Pressed the tree assembly into the slot in the base assembly.
2. With the model operating, adjusted the tree position such that the grinch's right hand barely contacted the tree, then glued the tree to the base assembly.

And that is how I 3D printed and assembled "The Grinch's Christmas Tree".

I hope you enjoyed it and Merry Christmas!