What to measure
Measure the outside diameter of the pipe with a caliper at the spot where the clip will sit, and turn the pipe a quarter turn to measure again. Thin 16 mm conduit is often slightly oval after it has been coiled; if the two readings differ, type the larger one. Corrugated conduit is measured over the ridges, not in the grooves. The clip bore is the diameter plus the fit clearance, so with these values it comes out at 16.3 mm.
Clearance, wall and material
For PLA keep the clearance at 0.3 mm: PLA is stiff, and a small clip with no clearance tends to crack at the back the first time the pipe is pushed in. PETG bends further before it breaks, so 0.2 mm gives a firmer hold on the same pipe. A 2.0 mm wall is five passes of a 0.4 mm nozzle and is enough at this size; a thicker wall on a 16 mm clip makes the arms so stiff that they will not open. The 100 degree opening leaves a gap of roughly 12 mm for the pipe to snap through.
Printing
Stand the clip on one of its C-shaped side faces so every layer is a complete C. Layers that run around the pipe let the arms flex; a clip printed flat on its foot splits between layers. No supports are needed in this position: the screw hole becomes a short horizontal bore of 4.2 mm, which bridges cleanly. Use a 0.2 mm layer height and at least three perimeters so the wall is solid plastic with no infill inside it. At 12 mm wide the part takes little bed space, so a row of ten prints in one job.
Fixing it
The tab takes a 4 mm screw through a plain 4.2 mm hole. On a run of light conduit, place clips close enough that the pipe does not sag between them, and add one next to each bend.
Outline drawing
Schematic, not to scale. The clip is 12 mm wide along the pipe and about 17.1 mm high.
Parameters the generator will use
| Setting | Link parameter | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Model | model | pipe_clip |
| Pipe diameter | diameter | 16 |
| Fit clearance | fit_clearance | 0.3 |
| Clip wall thickness | wall | 2 |
| Clip width along the pipe | width | 12 |
| Opening angle, degrees | opening | 100 |
| Screw tab length | tab_length | 14 |
| Screw tab thickness | tab_thickness | 3 |
| Screw hole diameter | screw_diameter | 4.2 |
| Number of screw tabs | tabs | 1 |
All lengths are in millimetres. Outer size from these values: about 34.3 x 12 x 17.1 mm.
Open the generator with these values
This model needs the $7 licence key: one payment, one key, and it opens all five paid models. Get a licence key on Gumroad ($7)
The pipe and cable clip needs a licence key: without one the generator shows the model locked, lists the values from this link and fills them in as soon as you unlock. The fitted drawer organiser bin is the free model and downloads with no key.