About the dizi
The dizi (笛子) is the Chinese side-blown flute, usually made of bamboo. This printed version keeps the look of bamboo. It is part of a series by the same designer, and at 250 mm it is the smallest one. It is also the only one that prints in a single piece with nothing to assemble. The flute in the main photo is clear PETG.
The designer explains that tuning was the hard part. Even after reading up on bore sizes, hole spacing and the sound holes, the results weren't good enough. So they asked their old university wind teacher for help. Together they adjusted the size of the finger holes and the blow hole, and how the holes relate to each other. They also used feedback from people who printed the earlier flutes in the series, including hiding the seams better.
The flute stands upright on the bed with only a small contact area. To stop it falling over, the supports are modelled into the file and kept a small distance from the flute, so the surface stays smooth and you can print it straight from the profile. The designer's profile uses 0.2 mm layers, 2 walls and 5% infill: about 28 g and three hours. A two-part "mini" profile for the A1 mini was added on 19 March 2025. If its joint is too tight, sand the seam a little.
There are two sister flutes in the series. The D-key flute hides its joints at the bamboo nodes and has profiles for the P/X series, the A1 and the A1 mini (three sections). The A-minor flute is 280 mm long, prints in about 1 h 40 min with 31 g of filament, and has alignment grooves at the joints.
What you'll need
Printed parts
- The flute (one piece), or the two-part mini version
Bought parts
- Nothing
Tools
- A 3D printer tall enough for 250 mm, or an A1 mini for the two-part version
- Fine sandpaper for the mini version's seam and the support marks
Build overview
Our own summary of the designer's notes, which are in Chinese on the MakerWorld page.
- Print it upright with the modelled supports. Use the designer's profile: 0.2 mm layers, 2 walls, 5% infill.
- Remove the supports. They are set slightly away from the flute, so they should come off cleanly.
- For the mini version, join the two parts. If the fit is tight, sand the seam a little.
Print settings
- Material: PETG (clear in the photos)
- Profile: 0.2 mm layers, 2 walls, 5% infill
- Filament and time: About 28 g and 3 hours
- Supports: Modelled into the file
Video
Demo of the D-key flute from the same series (Xiaohongshu) linked from the design page
Demo of the A-minor flute (Douyin) linked from that flute's design page
Photos
More of the designer's photos are on MakerWorld. See them on MakerWorld ↗