What to measure
Metric copper tube of this size is 28.0 mm outside. The one inch copper tube of inch-based plumbing is 28.6 mm, close enough to be mistaken for it and wide enough to make this clip grip far too hard. Wooden broom and mop handles sold as 28 mm vary by half a millimetre along their length and are often slightly oval, so measure in two directions at the spot where the clip goes and use the larger reading. Steel wardrobe rail is usually 25 mm; a rail that looks like 28 mm deserves a caliper before you print.
Clearance, wall and material
This page uses 0.3 mm of clearance, a bore of 28.3 mm, with a 2.8 mm wall and a 100 degree opening. The gap between the arm tips is then about 21.7 mm, roughly three quarters of the diameter, which is a firm snap for something that stays put. For a tool handle that is taken out every day, widen the opening to 115 degrees and raise the clearance to 0.5 mm so the arms flex less on each use. PETG tolerates that repeated flexing much better than PLA.
Printing
Lay the clip on a C-shaped face with both tabs flat across the bed. The footprint is about 70 by 28 mm and the height 18 mm. No supports are needed. With a 0.4 mm nozzle, four perimeters fill the 2.8 mm wall almost completely; set the slicer to fill thin gaps so the last 0.4 mm is not left hollow. A hollow seam inside the arm is where a clip of this size splits.
Fixing it
Each tab is 18 mm long and 3.5 mm thick with a 4.5 mm hole. Two tabs stop the clip twisting when a handle is pulled out sideways. On plasterboard use proper cavity fixings: the pull on a tool clip is straight out of the wall, which is the direction a plain plug holds worst.
Outline drawing
Schematic, not to scale. The clip is 18 mm wide along the pipe and about 28.2 mm high.
Parameters the generator will use
| Setting | Link parameter | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Model | model | pipe_clip |
| Pipe diameter | diameter | 28 |
| Fit clearance | fit_clearance | 0.3 |
| Clip wall thickness | wall | 2.8 |
| Clip width along the pipe | width | 18 |
| Opening angle, degrees | opening | 100 |
| Screw tab length | tab_length | 18 |
| Screw tab thickness | tab_thickness | 3.5 |
| Screw hole diameter | screw_diameter | 4.5 |
| Number of screw tabs | tabs | 2 |
All lengths are in millimetres. Outer size from these values: about 69.9 x 18 x 28.25 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.