How to Make Fidget Spinner Toys

I’d never even heard of a “fidget spinner” until Donald Bell mentioned them on his Maker Update show. Suddenly, I’m seeing them everywhere, and having developed a seriously nervous tick in the past week, I think I need one now.

In this video from Kris’ Workshop, inspired by Jimmy DiResta videos, Kris fashions a fidget spinner from an old skate bearing, a piece of oak off-cut, and some solder.

I love how many young makers have spinner projects online. Here, 14 year old Slingshot King makes a handsome wooden spinner out of some African Padauk wood, aluminum rod, and a skate bearing.

Brian, a young Filipino maker, has a channel called Brains techKnowlogy. In this project video, he builds two spinners using little more than Popsicle sticks, some coins, skate bearings, and the most basic household tools.

Here’s the Thingiverse project page that Donald Bell talked about on Maker Update. There are dozens of interesting 3D printable spinner designs here, just add skate bearings.

You can find a whole slew of fidget spinner projects on YouTube and on Instructables. One of the more fun things about these little fidget toys is that they can be made out of so many different materials. You’ll find them made out of everything from plastic, wood, paper, and metal using parts from the hardware store, the kitchen trash, and the loose change in your pockets. And, if you’re lazy and just want to buy one, there are plenty of different models of them available on Etsy.