Staying Frosty
While trying to stay cool this summer, you might find yourself needing a new cup holder or tip-resistant koozie. That’s where this list comes in.
If you see something you like but don’t have the means to make it yourself, try Craftcloud. Apart from professional service and print quality, you’ll benefit from a wide range of available materials, some of which are particularly good at gripping and insulating.
In the meantime let’s take a look at the coolest koozies and handiest holders, so you can get to printing and drinking!
Car Vent
This cup holder is made to clip onto the air vents in your car. The ability to 3D print this cup holder and others is a great example of 3D printing enabling affordable custom parts and accessories. Instead of trying to find and buy the best cup holder for your car, you can just make it!
This model is made for use in car vents that are at least 80 mm (~3.15 in) wide. One maker mentioned having to file the clips down to make it fit his car’s vents. Be sure to measure yours and possibly adjust the model before printing.
By the way, to successfully fasten all the pieces together, you’ll need four 20-mm M3 bolts.
Who made it? Gryphe
Who printed it? 10 Thingiverse users have made this, and 5 have remixed it, so it’s safe to assume that it’s a reasonably straightforward print.
Where to get it? Thingiverse
With a Handle
This handy cup holder gives to-go cups an easy upgrade to a mug. Never again will you burn your hands on a hot cup because it doesn’t have a handle!
It’s a simple model to print and can easily be resized to suit your special cup.
Who made it? tonghuix
Who printed it? With about 3,500 downloads and 6 Makes, this model seems very handy!
Where to get it? Thingiverse
For a Can
This can koozie is designed with no inner shell, which is meant to better insulate beverage cans. Its simple design minimizes the contact area with the plastic, allowing the koozie to trap air better and keep your cans cool.
When the creator of this print tested it compared to a bare can after an hour, the can with the koozie was 8 degrees cooler than the one without!
This simple design should be somewhat easy to print, with the main concerns being shrinkage. If your first print was a bit too small, try scaling up a bit. It’s worth paying attention to the notes the creator gives, like turning off “detect thin walls” if you’re using Slic3r or PrusaSlicer.
Who made it? DrLex
Who printed it? This model has 11 Makes and 6 remixes.
Where to get it? Thingiverse
Rocket-Inspired
This can koozie is just plain cool. It’s designed to resist tipping, and it does so with fins reminiscent of a missile or rocket. This isn’t the only tip-resistant koozie on our list, but we think it’s likely the best one for showing off!
This koozie requires no rafts or supports to print, so it should be pretty easy to complete!
Who made it? cmar
Who printed it? Although it has almost 3,000 downloads, this model has just 2 Makes and 2 remixes.
Where to get it? Thingiverse
Tip-Resistant Pyramid
This tip-resistant cup holder is a stylish one that would go great in your office or on your coffee table. It looks somewhat futuristic and is an elegant example of utilitarian design and artistic simplicity. With the notch in the side, it goes beyond many on this list, accepting both cups and mugs for a versatile cup holding solution!
The creator of this model says no supports are needed, and that infill, material, and resolution don’t matter, so we think this should be a cinch to print.
Who made it? Devstroyer
Who printed it? 7 MyMiniFactory users have made this model, but it’s a simple design that should be easily printable even for beginners.
Where to get it? MyMiniFactory
Geometric
This is another tip-resistant cup holder with a neat design that can hold cans or cups without being too heavy or using too much material. We also like the holes in the base, which you could use to secure your cup holder to a table, counter, or desk with some simple hardware!
This model doesn’t require any supports and no special instructions are given, so we think this should be a low-difficulty print.
Who made it? easai
Who printed it? With 36 downloads, it’s likely a number of people have printed this, but no one has posted their makes yet.
Where to get it? MyMiniFactory
Disability-Friendly Clip
This excellent design is made for people with disabilities that have issues holding objects such as cups.
This simple cup holder clips onto your palm so that you don’t have to grasp a cup to hold it! We really love to see projects that offer accessibility at a low cost and we always urge readers to support makers that release free designs like this whenever possible.
This model should be an easy one to print and requires no supports! Beware that if you want to use it with hot drinks, you might not want to print it with low-melting-point plastics like PLA.
Who made it? Luca Parmegiani
Who printed it? With 472 downloads and over 7,000 views on MyMiniFactory, this simple design is a straightforward print.
Where to get it? MyMiniFactory
Pegboard Mount
Ever wanted to sing “99 Bottles of Beer on The Wall” with 99 bottles of beer on the wall? Well, now you can if you can find a large enough pegboard and print 99 of these beer holders!
Not everyone has a pegboard or needs to put their drink on the wall, but if you’re in a workshop, this is a brilliant way to keep from spilling your drink all over your work.
This model took 4 hours and 20 minutes to print on a Tevo Tarantula and used about 45 grams of PLA filament. The upper pegs are said to benefit from some adjustment to better anchor it, but it holds in place if you’re easy on it. It also requires supports.
Who made it? NerdAlert3D
Who printed it? Only 6 Thingiverse users have made this model, but we imagine that’s because not everyone has a pegboard!
Where to get it? Thingiverse
For a Wine Bottle
This one’s made for bottles, but you could always remix it into a can koozie. It’s got nine sides and uses infill settings to trap air between the two walls of the cooler. We’re curious how well it works compared to some of the ones above, but it looks so different that it’s sure to stand out no matter what kind of bottles or cans you make it for!
With the straightforward design, this model should be fairly easy to print, with no supports or special print instructions needed to complete it. The creator didn’t say what printer she used, but it took 16 hours to print with single extrusion PLA (320 grams of filament) and 20% infill.
Who made it? michaelaregan
Who printed it? With 422 downloads, we don’t know how many have made this model, but we don’t think that should deter you as no difficulties have been reported.
Where to get it? MyMiniFactory
Portable Clamp
This cup holder is made to clamp onto desks and tables and it’s portability makes it unique to our list. Created by a maker in South Korea, this model is great for temps or anyone who has multiple places that they work.
There’s no special instructions for this print and seems pretty straightforward, so we don’t think you should have any trouble printing it. If you’ve 3D printed tools or clamps, you’re in familiar territory, and if not, it’s a great print to try first!
Who made it? 3D_Parts
Who printed it? 1,185 users have downloaded this model with no reported difficulties in printing!
Where to get it? Cults
Lead image source: cmar via Thingiverse
License: The text of "3D Printed Cup Holders & Koozies: 10 Great 3D Models" by All3DP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.