How to measure a part for a quote.

01 / PHOTOS

Shoot it square, with a ruler in the frame.

Lay the part flat on a plain surface and hold the phone straight above it, not at an angle. Put a ruler or a coin right next to it so we can check scale.

• One straight down, one from the side, one from the end
• One showing where it attaches or what it fits into
• Broken in pieces? Line them up the way they were and shoot them together

02 / HOLES AND SHAFTS

Measure what it mates with.

The overall size matters less than the parts that have to line up. For each hole, give its diameter and how far its center is from the next hole. For a shaft or post, give its diameter, and if it has a flat side, the width across the flat.

Calipers are best. A ruler is fine too: get as close as you can and tell us you used a ruler. We'll print a cheap test fit before the real thing when it's tight.

03 / HOW IT'S USED

Tell us how it lives.

A sentence or two saves a round of questions:

• What it attaches to, and how: screws, snaps, glue or a press fit
• Which way the force goes, and roughly how much
• Indoors, outdoors, in a car or near heat
• Anything that failed on the original, so we can make that spot stronger

Not sure which plastic? Try the material picker.