Fully Printable Pokeball Set v3

PRINT PROFILES: 
The following are the only print profiles tested and approved by me. They are listed by the name I provided in the print profile description. I cannot guarantee the quality of any print profile that hasn’t been uploaded by me. The great ball, ultra ball, and master ball shells are currently designed for v2 and will be updated as soon as I can.

• Pokeball Upper
• Pokeball Lower
• Pokeball Top Shell
• Pokeball Bottom Shell
• Pokeball Button
• Pokeball v2
• Pokeball Stand
• Great ball
• Ultra ball
• Master ball
• Pokeball v3

SUMMARY: 
The latest revision (v3) is now easier to print, easier to assemble, has a more functional button, and a sleeker look with less filament usage. This is a simple pokeball that I designed to print without any additional hardware, and minimal supports. The intent was to make the pokeball as easy to print and assemble as possible, while remaining tough and functional. If you find any issues, please leave me some feedback.

VARIANTS:

There are (3) variants to the top that are included in the v3 print profile as separate plates; great ball, ultra ball, master ball. These take a significantly longer time to print than the standard red top due to color changes but can be reduced by increasing the layer height to 0.16mm or 0.20mm. Increasing the layer height will make the resolution a little worse, but 0.16mm will save approximately 2-3 hours and 0.20mm will save 4-6 hours.

Printing/Assembly:

If you decide not to use the print profiles, these are the settings I used.

• Global Settings:
  • 0.16mm Layer Height
  • 3 Walls
  • Gyroid 25% infill
• Black Internals:
  • 5 Wall Loops (Very important for the strength of the hinge.
  • Inner brim only
• Red and White Shell:
  • Outer brim only
  • Supports enabled
    • Normal (Auto)
    • Snug
    • Layer Height 0.12mm
    • Seam Position: Back

Assembly:

The assembly is done by first gluing the internal parts to the shells. Make sure to match the right internal to its' corresponding shell. To identify the top/bottom internal, look at the hinge. The section that has (2) holes is the upper and matches with the red shell. The section with just a single hole in the center is the lower half that matches with the white shell. Apply glue as circled in the model images.

The second part is gluing the button in place. The image that shows this part has glue on both the indents as well as the socket where the button sits. The only part that's necessary is the two little indents. If you decide to glue in the socket as I did, be careful not to put too much or the button may not work properly.

Once the pieces are glued and dry, you'll insert a small piece of filament into the hinge. To do this, I recommend that you first take an allen key or similar tool and run through the hinge to knock free any loose filament or defects. I use a 1/16th inch allen key (Roughly 1.5mm diameter as measured with calipers). Next, you'll shove the filament through the hinge and cut the ends flush. This can be a little difficult as the tolerances are very tight. I like to use needle nose pliers and grip the filament close to the hole then shove it through a little bit at a time. Once it's through, I use flush cuts to cut the ends as close to the ball as possible.

The last part I like to do, but isn't 100% necessary, is applying a small drop of glue to either end of the filament piece. Just a tiny bit or you'll glue the hinge together. This causes the filament piece to remain fixed in relation to the upper half, so the hinge will last longer and operate smoother.

That's all there is to it. Follow me on X (@Jazzeras) or Facebook (Layer Legend) for more models and updates.

CHANGELOG:

UPDATE 3/12/2025:

Added great ball, ultra ball, and master ball variants to the v3 print profile.

UPDATE 11/21/2024:

Model revision to v3. Now with less filament, cleaner look, more functional button, and minor tolerance fixes.

UPDATE 12/3/2023:

Added great ball, ultra ball, and master ball tops. I only added the top because everything else is the same, so I'll include 3 separate print profiles for these.

UPDATE 11/26/2023:

Added a guide post for the button, revised the connection to fit better, thickened the shells to prevent the banding, added alignment squares to align the shell and internals, added a stand.

INITIAL RELEASE (10/19/2023)

I created this model because the other Pokeball models I found either used external parts or didn't operate how I wanted. This one is designed to open and close using the button on the front. The button isn't 100% required to open the ball, but the intent was to make it functional so it just makes the ball pop open freely. The inside has a flat spot to aid in aligning the outer shell and make printing easier.