Printing standoffs with the Standoffs / Spacers Generator

Difficulty: easy. Time: 5 minutes to design, minutes to print. Method: 3D printing only.

Standoffs and spacers are the quiet heroes of every mounting job: they float a PCB off its enclosure floor, hold an acrylic panel proud of the wall, and set exact gaps in stacked assemblies. Off-the-shelf standoffs come in a handful of lengths; this generator makes the exact one your assembly needs, in plain-bore spacer form or with an internal thread matched to a metric screw.

The Inner Bore toggle is the key control: off, you get a smooth through-hole spacer a screw passes through; on, you get an internally threaded standoff that a metric machine screw threads directly into, with M-size presets setting the thread for you.

Open the 3D Print Standoffs / Spacers Generator

What You'll Need

Any FDM 3D printer
PETG or PLA; PETG holds screw threads better over repeated assembly
The screws you plan to use, for a thread test fit

Step 1 - Choose spacer or standoff

Open the tool and set the Inner Bore switch. Off gives a plain spacer with a smooth Inner Diameter you size for screw clearance. On gives an internal thread; pick an M Size Preset to set the Thread Diameter and pitch in one click.

Step 2 - Size the cylinder

Length is the gap your assembly needs, exactly; this is the whole reason to print rather than buy.
Outer Diameter: roughly 2x the bore is sturdy; go wider when the standoff also acts as a foot or visible design element.
Printing threads below M3 is unreliable on a 0.4 mm nozzle; for tiny screws, use a plain bore and let the screw self-tap.

Step 3 - Export

Download STL or 3MF and duplicate in the slicer for however many mounting points the job has.

Choose Your Build Method

Print and install

Print standing up, as exported; the thread needs to be a vertical helix and the ends come out parallel and flat.
Use 0.12-0.16 mm layers for threaded versions; plain spacers are fine coarse.
4 perimeters, 25 percent or more infill; standoffs are loaded in compression and screw torque.
Chase the printed thread with a real screw before installation to burnish the fit.
Printed standoffs work great for PCBs and panels; for anything carrying real torque or heat, step up to anodized metal standoff spacers.

Make It Yours

PCB mounting posts for Raspberry Pi and Arduino projects, threaded M2.5 or M3.
Float a laser-engraved acrylic sign off the wall with four matching wide-body standoffs.
Exact-height spacers to level a shelf bracket or align two enclosure halves.
Mixed-length set to tilt a control panel toward the operator.
Feet for project boxes: wide standoffs with a TPU washer underneath for grip.
Cable management: short fat spacers as routing posts on a pegboard.
Combine with the Machine Screws + Nuts Generator for an all-printed mounting kit.

Open the 3D Print Standoffs / Spacers Generator

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