Samla is (probably) a registered trade mark of IKEA. This clip is – needless to say – not to be confused with a genuine IKEA product. It is solely a self-printable addition for the popular Samla boxes made by IKEA. So please, dear Ikea legal team, take a relaxed sip from your coffee mugs and move on to something else.

––––
NEW! Now also in 45/65 Liter version.
––––

I know „The best one“ sounds arrogant and bold, but let me explain:

You can find quite a few locking clip designs for the IKEA Samla boxes here on Thingiverse, but most of them just don't work as satisfying as they should. I've tested them all and found that they are either too small, too massive, don't snap securely, slide/slip, interfere on stacking or simply can't be grabbed/handled properly. Interestingly even the original clips IKEA itself offers suck (they seriously do).

Being a, what I call, pixel f*cker, I made no less than 10 (!) revisions of the final design, tweaking dimensions in steps of tenths of millimeters, and playing with various degrees of pretension, until I came up with the perfect clip, one which really works as one would expect:

• Excellent thumb handling
• Tight and secure grip with satisfying snap
• Correct stiffness vs. flexibility ratio: As thick as necessary, as thin as possible
• No interference on stacking.
• Versions for 5/11/22 Liter and 45/65 Liter boxes.
• Harmonically rounded, so actually also good looking. Also feels good.

Save your time and filament, skip the mediocre experience with other designs and go with this clip. Satisfaction guaranteed!

Adjustable in length

The clip is based on a simple extrusion, which means you can scale the length as desired. It has been initially designed with 36 mm in length (which is what you see in the preview), but snaps and handles just as good and tight, at 22 mm. I wouldn't go any shorter than that however, as it then becomes inconvenient to grab with the thumb on opening.

Print orientation

Place sideways on your print bed, so clips get printed in extrusion direction.

Material suggestion

If your printer supports ABS, I recommend it over PLA. PLA has a harder surface, which leaves some scratch marks on the Samla lid (which is made from rather soft PP (Polyproylene)). ABS is a bit softer and doesn't leave any marks based on my experience.

Avoid elephant feet

A common problem with FDM printing on heated beds are elephant feet, which is especially annoying with a continuous extrusion profile like this where. Imagine the end which sits on the print bed to come out thicker, which leads to an imperfect fit when attached to the Samla lid.If you have a Dual-Material Printer, like I do, you can avoid this by printing with a raft in an easily separable material. For ABS for instance PLA is a good raft material. For PLA, I suggest for instance PolyMaker PolySupport.

Like it? How about a cup of coffee?

If you are satisfied and print more than two of my clips, I'd appreciate a small donation of a $/€ or two through the blue TIP BUTTON on the left.

Thanks and enjoy,
André