Mk3S spool holder to GoPro mount adapter

Application

With this adapter you can mount all kind of cameras and also your old smartphone to the spool holder of your Prusa i3 Mk3S. Whatever mounts to the typical mechanic of a GoPro mount, can be fitted to your spool holder.

In my case, it will be an old 6 inch smartphone, which is a bit outdated for everyday use, but works perfectly to connect to OctoPrint, which runs on a RaspberryPi 3 with my Mk3S. It simply comes very handy to watch the temperature curve or the G-code viewer, to align the camera or control the axis of the printer via the OctoPrint App or via the web browser on the phone. No SIM card is required, as you need to connect to your home router via WLAN anyway. Most of us will have a number of old phones in a box somewhere. To use them as a thin client for OctoPrint can give them a new purpose without any extra cost. 

Printing

The adapter plate and the counter plate need to be printed on their small side, which simply is the uploaded orientation. I recommend to a brim to avoid the parts coming loose during the print. The parts can be printed without supports, but to add supports to the print plate will add a little to the print quality on the round parts of the GoPro mount. In my view 100% infill makes sense and PETG as material will make the parts a bit more flexible, while PLA will probably work as well.

If you want to use the attached thumb knob, you have to print it standing upright, which again is the uploaded orientation. Unless you trust a lot in your first layer adhesion, I strongly recommend to use a brim. I have printed this part from PLA on a Ender3Pro and from PETG on a Mk3S and a Mini, all with good results. 

Assembly

All you need to assemble the parts and mount them to your spool holder are 

• 4x M3x10 screws with any kind of round head
• 4x M3 nut (normal hex nut)
• 1x The typical M5 thumb screw for GoPro mounts … or you use the attached thumb knob with a M5x20 hex head screw
• 1x  M5 nut (normal hex nut)

Have fun everyone. I'd be curious to learn what you will mount to your spool holder, so please don't be shy to post a picture. Happy printing and take care!