3D Printed Heat-Set Insert Press

This is a 3D printed press for inerting heat-set threaded inserts. It utilizes a cheap soldering iron as the heat source, a rotary dimmer to allow the user to throttle the heat output to tailor to a variety of plastics, and a drawer slider as part of the plunger assembly that pushes down onto the part.

This project was designed out of necessity while working on another big project that utilizes quite a few of these heat-set inserts. Using this press rather than just a soldering iron itself ensures that the inserts get installed accurately, with the correct temperature and in far less time.

These presses go for hundreds or even thousands of dollars so they are beyond the price range of most hobbyist, yet they are very useful in the 3D printing and DIY hobby community. I wanted to design and build a high quality and affordable unit that can be 3D printed within a few days and built for well under $100.

Please take the time to read the print settings.



What you'll need: