3D Printing A Giant Beyblade Arena

Beyblade spinning tops are pretty easy to find at toy shops, department stores, and even some supermarkets. However, the arenas in which the tops do battle? They’re much harder to come by, and the ones on sale in any given market often leave a lot to be desired. [LeftBurst] got around this problem by printing a grandiose Beyblade arena.

[LeftBurst]’s desire was to score a Beyblade stadium more similar to those featured in the anime, which are much larger than those sold as part of the official toy line. [Buddha] was enlisted to model the massive arena, but it then needed to be printed. Given its size, printing it in one piece wasn’t very practical. Instead, [LeftBurst] decided to print it in segments which would then have to be assembled. Super glue was used to put all the parts together, but there was more left to do. The surface finish and joins between the parts would cause issues for tops trying to move across the surface. Thus ensued a great deal of post-processing with primer, putty, and a power sander.

The final result is a massive stadium that plays well, and is ideal for larger multi-Beyblade battles that are more akin to what you’d see in the anime. If you’re playing at this scale, you might appreciate some upgraded launcher technology, too.

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Squishy Beyblades Made With 3D Printer Fail To Compete In The Arena

When Beyblades first came out a couple of decades ago, they quickly became a fad across Japan and several Western countries. There was a whole ecosystem of parts that you could buy and use to build competitive fighting spinning tops. These days, though — 3D printers are ubiquitous. There’s very little stopping you from printing whatever Beyblade-compatible parts your heart desires, as [JettKuso] demonstrates.

For [JettKuso], the rubber attack tips were a personal favorite. They had high grip on the plastic arena floor and would allow a top to make rapid, aggressive moves that would knock other tops out of the arena. Not desiring to import specific Beyblade parts at great expense, he decided to print some rubber tips and associated parts instead. The result? Squishy Beyblades!

[JettKuso] built various tops with official and custom TPU parts, and put them in battles to see what worked and what didn’t. In many cases, the TPU replacement parts didn’t make a big difference or proved worse than the standard parts. However, when [JettKuso] got crazy, he found one thing that kind of worked. A mega-heavy TPU top blade, which weighed as much as the standard metal rings, was able to successfully win battles against less competitive standard builds.

Ultimately, the video serves as a testament to the developers of the original toys themselves. It’s not so simple to just print up some parts and have them be competitive with the tried-and-tested gear that comes off the store shelves. The experience ultimately gave [JettKuso] a greater appreciation for all the thought that went into the commercial toys. Video after the break.

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BeyBlades Made Ever More Dangerous With 3D Printing

If you’re unfamiliar with Beyblades, they’re a simple toy. They consist of spinning tops, which are designed to “fight” in arenas by knocking each other around. While the off-the-shelf models are deemed safe enough for children to play with, [Jon Bringus] decided to take the danger level up a few notches with some custom launchers of his own design.

[Jon]’s project started with some of the early metal Beyblades, which are traditionally launched with a small geared ripcord device. He soon realized he could up the action by doing one simple thing—spinning the tops far faster than the manufacturer ever intended. More rotational speed equals more kinetic energy equals more legal liability fun, or so the equation goes.

The design for [Jon’s] “WMD Launcher” is straightforward enough—he combined a lawnmower pull starter with a 12:1 geartrain to turn the Beyblades at truly ludicrous speeds. It’s basic engineering — a couple of 3D-printed gears do the job — but the results are hilarious. The tops begin to emit loud noises as they turn in combat, and some move so fast and erratically that they won’t even stay inside the arena. Protective eyewear is virtually mandatory. Files are on Printables for those eager to build one at home.

Yes, ruining a game of Beyblades is as simple as building an irresponsibly fast launcher. You needn’t even use some fancy brushless motor to hurt yourself — just a little gearing is enough to cause havoc. We’ve featured similar work on this topic before, too. Video after the break.

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Sawblade Turned Beyblade Looks Painful To Tangle With

Beyblades were a huge craze quite some years back. Children battled with spinning tops in small plastic arenas, or, if their local toy stores were poorly merchandised, in salad bowls and old pie dishes. The toys were safe enough, despite their destructive ethos, by virtue of being relatively small and lightweight. This “Beyblade” from [i did a thing] is anything but, however. 

The build begins with a circular saw blade over 1 foot in diameter, replete with many angry cutting teeth that alone portend danger for any individual unlucky enough to cross its path. Saw blades tend to cut slowly and surely however, so to allow the illicit Bey to deal more traumatic blows, a pair of steel scraps are welded on to deliver striking blows as well. This has the added benefit of adding more mass to the outside of the ‘blade, increasing the energy stored as it spins.

With the terrifying contraption spun up to great RPM by a chainsaw reeling in string, it’s able to demolish cheap wood and bone with little resistance. Shrapnel is thrown in many directions as the spinner attacks various objects, from a melon to an old CRT TV. We’d love to see the concept taken further, with an even deadlier design spun up to even higher speeds, ideally with a different tip that creates a more aggressive motion across the floor.

As aggressive as this saw blade looks in action, not all are so scary. Even paper can do the job under the right conditions. Video after the break.

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