Digital Designs and Scientific Hardware - Open-Source Lab: How to Build Your Own Hardware and Reduce Research Costs - page 247

FIGURE 6.91 An open-source printable adjustable volume pipette.
FIGURE 6.92 An open-source printable simplified adjustable volume pipette.
This version of Walus's pipete has bulkier top components and is easier to print than the
original, which extends the designs to a larger community of users. Aliekens' primary modi-
ication was to remove the threaded bolt from the plunger in Walus's design, and redesign the
plunger so that a 75 mm M4 bolt could be inserted through the length of the plunger replacing
the original thread. Because of this change, the thumb gears were also modified to accept the
M4 rod. To ensure a closed surface, you should seal the membrane chamber with a few coats
of ABS glue (ABS scraps mixed with acetone). In addition, this same ABS + acetone mixture
should be used to fit the straw where the straw enters the seals, which eliminates any possib-
ility of air escaping. Aliekens has successfully used a double membrane made of lab gloves
with 200 μl tips to obtain below 10 μl consistency. This potentially replaces the pipetes that