A box with a hinged lid, in a few clicks

[marcus040473]

A box with a hinged lid, in a few clicks

The Lid tool can now put a hinge along the back of a box, so the lid swings open instead of coming off. Try it in my preview: https://marcus040473.github.io/?editor=1 (the pull request to Stefan is open: [PR-LINK]).

1. Put a Box on the plate and Hollow it with the top open (wall 2 mm is fine).
2. With the box selected, click Lid (Edges & walls). Choose Push in or Flat as the kind.
3. Tick Hinge at the back.
   • Pin diameter 1.75 mm: a piece of filament is the pin.
   • Print the pin too adds a thicker printed pin as its own part (from about 3 mm).
   • Knuckles (0 = automatic) gives about one knuckle per 10 mm.
   • Hinge clearance (under Advanced) is the play between the knuckles, 0.3 mm to start.
4. Click Apply. The lid comes out beside the box, turned over, ready to print. The box's knuckles are grouped with the box.
5. Print both as they lie: the box's knuckles stand on a 45° slope and the lid's are flush with its top, so neither needs support. Push a piece of filament through the knuckles, and the lid swings from closed to fully open.

The knuckles from behind: two on the box, one on the lid between them.

It works with a lid that pushes in or a flat one; a cap (rim round the outside) would hit the back wall as it opens. The back of the box needs a straight edge for the knuckles.

[henmedia]

@marcus040473 the hinge for the lid is out in layerling 1.135.0: https://github.com/henmedia/layerling/releases/tag/v1.135.0. Thank you.

[dlguess]

the offset was what I was getting way wrong. Actually wasn't even thinking of it but you get the gist of what I mean. Thanks a to.

[dlguess]

Was sitting here working on a hinged lid for my smaller telescope and up pops some changes with a hinge at the back as one of them. Only for flat surfaces. Oh well, guess I'll go back to twisting a hinge to fit.

[luftpumpe83]

Nice work!
Just one suggestion: you should either add the information that the hinge will be placed on the wide side, not on the long side or add the possibility to select on which side the hinge will be created.
Yes, I know, switching the measurements of length and width is also an option ;)

[makinglayerschannel]

And just like that, a printable 3d hinge that can be printed for a box. Nicely done!

[makinglayerschannel]

I think we're missing something though. Shouldn't we have the teardrop hole instead of a round hole? Won't the inside of the top of the knuckle still droop?

[henmedia]

@luftpumpe83 @makinglayerschannel thanks, both good points.

@marcus040473 the hinge is yours, could you please have a look at these two?

[makinglayerschannel]

I did print one with a 3mm pin and the pin needed coaxing to go in, but the bigger hammer prevailed :). We all know what the next request is going to be, so I'll just say it out loud. It needs a latch. Y'all are awesome!

[henmedia]

@luftpumpe83 @makinglayerschannel the hinge now lets you pick its side (back, right, front or left), its pin holes have a teardrop point on top so they do not droop, and round pots take a hinge too, all thanks to @marcus040473. It's in layerling 1.138.0.

[smussadi]

I also printed one with a 3mm pin. Agree took a little coaxing but got it in. A clip would be great as my lid stays open about 1mm. But anyway, can't complain about such a great product! Good job on creating this!

[henmedia]

@makinglayerschannel @smussadi thanks for printing it and for the feedback.

@marcus040473 the hinge is yours, could you please have a look at the new points here, the tight 3 mm pin and the wish for a latch?

[marcus040473]

Sorry it didn't fit your telescope! The hinge goes on round bodies now, too: on a pot or a tube it runs where the wall stays close to the hinge's line, the knuckles on the body stand on a small block that grows out of the curved wall, and the lid's knuckle reaches in to its round edge. Pick the side under Hinge side.

One limit: it works with a lid that pushes in or a flat one. A cap that goes over the outside of the tube would hit the wall as it opens – if your cover is like that, tell me how it looks and I'll see what we can do.

It's in layerling 1.138.0 now – thanks, Stefan! https://layerling.com/

[dlguess]

Can’t wait to try that when I get home, thanks Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPhone On Wednesday, November 4, 2026, 1:43 PM, marcus040473 ***@***.***> wrote: Sorry it didn't fit your telescope! The hinge goes on round bodies now, too: on a pot or a tube it runs where the wall stays close to the hinge's line, the knuckles on the body stand on a small block that grows out of the curved wall, and the lid's knuckle reaches in to its round edge. Pick the side under Hinge side. One limit: it works with a lid that pushes in or a flat one. A cap that goes over the outside of the tube would hit the wall as it opens – if your cover is like that, tell me how it looks and I'll see what we can do. It's in layerling 1.138.0 now – thanks, Stefan! https://layerling.com/ — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub, or unsubscribe. Triage notifications, keep track of coding agent tasks and review pull requests on the go with GitHub Mobile for iOS and Android. Download it today! You are receiving this because you commented.Message ID: ***@***.***>

[smussadi]

I'm also trying it out now. Looks great in Layerling. Now printing...

You definitely nailed it! Printed teardrop and 3mm pin. Worked perfectly and the lid closed perfectly too!

[henmedia]

@smussadi glad the teardrop and the 3 mm pin worked out and the lid closes right. For the lid that wants to stay shut, Marcus has just added click bumps to the lid tool: small bumps on the lid's lip snap into dimples in the box's wall. That is merged and will be in the next version. If you'd like to support the project, a small donation is very welcome.

[henmedia]

@smussadi @makinglayerschannel @dlguess this is out now in layerling 1.141.0: the pin's play is a setting under Hinge (0.2 mm to begin with, 0.05 to 0.5 mm), so a 3 mm pin can go in more easily. There is also a Hinge type: Flush puts the knuckles into the back wall so the box keeps its size, and Pivot pins lets the lid turn on two pins through the side walls. And the click bumps are in too, so the lid snaps shut.

[smussadi]

Very clever with the click bumps and especially with the hinge. Looks good in layerling. Will print it up in the morning.

[smussadi]

Print came out fine. I left the default pin size and printed it. For some reason the 1.75 pin that printed falls out of the hinge. The bumps seem a little tight but I only printed a 10mm high box but might be okay on a larger box. I'll keep playing with it. Thanks for your work on this!

[henmedia]

@smussadi thanks for printing it and for telling us how it came out. @marcus040473 could you have a look at the printed pin and the click bumps?

[marcus040473]

@henmedia @smussadi thanks for printing it and for the clear report. Both points are done in my demo: https://marcus040473.github.io/?editor=1

• The pin falling out: the pin hole had the same play everywhere, 0.2 mm per side, so a 1.75 mm filament pin was loose in every knuckle. Now the box's knuckles hold it tight (only 0.05 mm per side, a press fit once printed), and only the lid's knuckles have the play, so the lid still turns. Pin play (per side) now only changes the lid's side.
• Tight click bumps: how far the bumps stand out is now a setting, Bump height, under Click bumps: 0.2 to 0.8 mm, starting at 0.4 mm as before. For a small box like the 10 mm one, try 0.25 or 0.3 mm.

@smussadi if you print it again, I would like to hear whether the pin now stays in and which bump height feels right on your printer.

[henmedia]

@smussadi this is out now in layerling 1.146.0: the pin now sits tight in the box's knuckles, so a 1.75 mm filament pin stays in, and the lid still turns on it. Under Click bumps there is a new Bump height; for a small box like your 10 mm one, try 0.25 or 0.3 mm. Thanks to @marcus040473 for both.