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Laser alignment crosshair inserts for Vanguard Aesthetics

Ten threaded crosshair inserts for lining up a laser, rebuilt in CAD from Vanguard Aesthetics' sample, tried in the mating part and 3D printed in white PETG-HF.

Client
Vanguard Aesthetics
What it is
A threaded insert with a crosshair, for lining up a laser
Started from
The client's sample piece and its mating part
Order
One prototype, then ten inserts in white PETG-HF
Quote a production run (opens WhatsApp) Send a brief
Crosshair inserts, printed in white PETG-HF
10
Prototype, screwed into the mating part before the run
1
Thread, 2.0 mm pitch, on a 25.3 mm insert
M14
From the brief to collection
6 days

What we brought

  1. What we can do

    Rebuilt from the sample

    We measured the client's sample insert and rebuilt it in CAD: the outer thread, the ring and the thin cross across its opening.

  2. How we look after you

    Tried in the mating part

    The client left the mating part with us, so the prototype was screwed into its threaded collar before we printed the set.

  3. What you get

    A small batch, quickly

    The mock-up deck went out on the day of the brief, and the ten inserts were ready for collection six days later.

The build

How we built it

5 steps, from the brief to the finished piece. Pick a step to jump to it.

The brief

Step 1 of 5 · 26/03/2026

Part
Laser alignment crosshair, a threaded insert
Size
To the sample piece
Material
White PETG-HF, raw print finish
Our scope
CAD from the sample, a prototype and the printed set

At Additive Inn, our 3D printing studio in Singapore, we reverse engineer small parts from the client's own sample. Vanguard Aesthetics needed laser alignment crosshairs: threaded inserts with a cross across the middle, used to line up a laser. We were to rebuild the insert in CAD from their sample piece and 3D print it.

From the sample to CAD

Step 2 of 5 · 26/03/2026

We measured the sample and modelled the insert for FDM printing: a ring with an M14 outer thread, and a thin cross printed across its opening. The design went to the client as a mock-up deck the same day, and they approved it.

  1. Revision 0 · 26/03/2026

    25.3 mm across with an M14 x 2.0 thread, 12.9 mm deep, and a cross of 0.9 mm bars set flush with the top face, in white PETG-HF.

    Render

The prototype, then the set

Step 3 of 5 · 27/03/2026

We printed a prototype in white PETG-HF and tried it in the mating part. The client went straight to the full order without collecting the prototype, and asked for ten. We printed the set on our FDM printers, left as printed.

PETG-HF holds its shape up to about 69 °C, so the inserts are made for normal working temperatures, not for a hot environment.

Fitting the mating part

Step 4 of 5

The insert screws into a threaded collar on the client's aluminium mating part, in place of the original. We checked the printed prototype's thread in that collar before the run.

The prototype going into the mating part.

The final build

Step 5 of 5 · 01/04/2026

Vanguard Aesthetics collected ten crosshair inserts in white PETG-HF, rebuilt from their sample and checked in the mating part, along with the mating part itself.

All ten inserts, as printed.

More production runs

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