◆ Clay

Chainmail texture roller

European four-in-one mail: rows of round rings, each through four neighbours. Armour for cosplay props, sculpts, bases and polymer clay.

Make your own texture roller Download free on Thingiverse
3D render of the printed chainmail texture roller in its dark fork handle, resting on a slab of clay it has pressed with chainmail
Clay ~68 g

Rows of round rings about 10 mm across, every ring passing through four others and each row leaning the opposite way to the next, the classic European four-in-one weave of a medieval mail shirt. Roll it into polymer clay, air-dry clay or warmed EVA foam for cosplay armour panels, sculpted knights and orcs, shields and dragon hoards, or into clay for fantasy pottery and jewellery.

Read more

Made with our free texture roller tool, not modelled by hand: we drew the pattern in code as a seamless picture, uploaded it, and set a roller 30 mm across and 80 mm long with an 8 mm bore, the pattern raised 1.5 mm and repeated twice round and twice along. The zip holds the roller and the tool's own fork handle with its two retaining pins, as two STL files, plus the pattern picture, so you can remake the roller at another size or depth.

Every roller in this set is the same size and fits the same 131 mm handle, so you print the handle once and after that only rollers: pull the two pins, swap the roller, push the pins back in.

Shown as a 3D render of the printed roller in its handle on the clay it has pressed, not a photo.

Chainmail texture roller at a glance: every printed part with its size, print time, filament, print settings and the three steps to use it

What you need

4
  • About 68 g of PLA or PETG for the roller, the handle and its pins (about 30 g for a roller alone)
  • Something to texture: polymer, air-dry or ceramic clay, or EVA foam warmed with a heat gun
  • A smooth work surface, and a rolling pin or two guide strips to roll the clay to an even thickness
  • A little cornstarch, or a water spray for ceramic clay, if it starts to stick

How to use it

5

  1. Print the roller standing on its end and the handle and pins lying flat, all as exported, no supports.

  2. Set the roller between the arms of the fork and push one pin through each arm into its bore, hex head outwards; the roller turns on the pins.

  3. Roll the clay to an even thickness first: 4 to 6 mm for terrain and slabs, 2 to 3 mm for jewellery and ornaments.

  4. Roll across once, in one direction, with steady, even pressure, and lift off at the end. Going back and forth doubles the pattern.

  5. Pull the pins to swap to another roller from the set, and wash the roller in warm soapy water after use.

Print details

2 h 40 minPrint time
~68 gFilament
4Printed parts
31 × 31 × 80 mmSize (W x D x H)
All print details
Print details
Works withClay
Printed parts4
Size (W x D x H)31 x 31 x 80 mm
Print bed needed151 x 131 mm, 81 mm tall
Filament~68 g
Layer height0.2 mm
Infill20%
SupportsNot needed
DownloadZIP: roller + fork handle and 2 pins (2 STL) + pattern picture (PNG) + print sheet + README
Added2026-10-01
Make your own texture roller →

Made with the free Texture roller generator. Upload your own shape and get the same kind of tool built from it, in your browser.

Download free on Thingiverse

Free download. Opens the Thingiverse listing in a new tab.

Free for personal use. Selling the printed piece itself needs a commercial licence (Pro or Founder); passing on the file is not permitted on any plan. Full terms.

New to this? Read the texture roller guide.

chainmail texture rollerchain mail texturecosplay armour textureeva foam texture rollerfantasy armour texture

Questions about this design

Can I use the chainmail texture roller on EVA foam for cosplay?

Yes. Warm high-density EVA foam with a heat gun until it softens, then roll across it firmly and once. The rings stay pressed in once the foam cools. Seal it with a flexible primer before painting a dark steel and drybrushing silver over the rings.

How big are the rings on the chainmail texture roller?

Each ring is about 10 mm across with a wire close to 2 mm thick, chunky enough to read clearly on a cosplay piece or a big sculpt. For finer mail on a miniature, upload the pattern picture from the zip to the texture roller tool and raise the repeats.

Does the chainmail texture roller fit the same handle as the other rollers?

Yes. Every roller in this set is 80 mm long and 30 mm across at the base, with an 8 mm bore, and every zip carries the same fork handle and pins, so you print the handle once and swap rollers by pulling the two pins.

How long does the chainmail texture roller take to print?

About 2 h 40 min for everything on a current printer at 0.2 mm layers: about 1 h 15 min for the roller and 1 h 30 min for the handle and pins. Once you have the handle, each new roller is only the first part. The times are estimated from the parts' volume, not sliced.

More designs

See all clay tools →