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Japanese waves magnetic fidget slider

A magnetic fidget slider with a seigaiha wave pattern under your thumb: calm to look at, clicky to use.

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3D render of a navy and white 3D-printed magnetic fidget slider with a japanese waves texture, assembled, next to a spare plate and insert
Print only ~20 g

Two identical plates held bottom to bottom by twelve magnets, sliding over each other with a click at every row. The thumb faces carry seigaiha, the overlapping wave arcs of Japanese textiles, cut shallow so the thumb feels each crest. White waves on navy plates, the colours of the sea on a print.

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Made with our free fidget slider generator, not modelled by hand: we picked the Japanese waves surface and set the plate colour to navy and the insert colour to white. Everything else is the tool's default: 35 by 45 mm plates, 5.8 mm thick, for 6 by 2 mm disc magnets, six per plate in three rows, under a 0.4 mm floor, with the insert a 0.15 mm press fit in its pocket. The zip holds exactly what the tool exports: a 3MF with both plates and both inserts in their two colours, and one plate and one insert as STLs to print twice. Like every free download from the tool, each plate carries a small raised MESHCAST mark on one long side.

Print the four parts flat with no supports, press in twelve magnets (the two plates the opposite way round) and the two inserts, and it is ready in an evening. It makes a good desk toy, a quiet thing for restless hands in meetings, or a small gift that looks bought.

Shown as a 3D render of the printed slider, assembled with the top plate slid one click along, next to a spare plate and insert, not a photo.

What you need

3
  • 12 round neodymium disc magnets, 6 x 2 mm (six per plate)
  • About 20 g of PLA or PETG, in navy and white
  • A drop of superglue, only if an insert ends up loose

How to make it

5
  1. Print two plates and two inserts flat as exported, no supports. Finer layers (0.12 to 0.16 mm) on the inserts bring out the texture.

  2. Stack the magnets and mark the top face of the stack with a pen.

  3. Press six magnets into the first plate marked side up and six into the second marked side down.

  4. Hold the plates bottom to bottom: they must snap together. If they push apart, flip the magnets in one plate.

  5. Press an insert into each pocket over the magnets, put the plates together and slide.

Print details

2 h 10 minPrint time
~20 gFilament
4Printed parts
35 × 45 × 13 mmSize (W x D x H)
All print details
Print details
TypePrint only
Printed parts4
Size (W x D x H)35 x 45 x 13 mm
Print bed needed45 x 36 mm, 6 mm tall
Filament~20 g
Layer height0.2 mm
Infill20%
SupportsNot needed
DownloadZIP: 3MF in two colours + plate and insert STLs + README with assembly
Added2026-10-05
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Made with the free Fidget slider generator. Upload your own drawing and get the same kind of part built from it, in your browser.

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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.

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Questions about this design

What is the pattern on the Japanese waves magnetic fidget slider?

It is seigaiha, a traditional Japanese pattern of overlapping arcs that stand for calm waves, used on fabric and ceramics for centuries. On a fidget slider the arcs make a gentle ridged texture that the thumb can follow round and round while the plates click back and forth.

Which magnets do I need for the Japanese waves magnetic fidget slider?

Twelve round neodymium disc magnets, 6 mm across and 2 mm thick, the most common size there is: six per plate. If you have a different size, open the free fidget slider generator, pick it under Magnets and it moves the holes and the pocket to fit.

How long does the Japanese waves magnetic fidget slider take to print?

About 2 h 10 min for all four parts and 20 g of filament at 0.2 mm layers, estimated from the files rather than sliced; a current printer is faster. The 3MF puts both plates and both inserts on one bed in two colours.

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