This is my design of a refillable capsule that works with the SmartClean system from Philips to automatically clean the shaver heads. As the JC301, JC302 capsules and the SmartClean system were replaced by a newer one, the original capsules are hard to get and are very expensive. With this design, you can continue to use your Philips SmartClean system with widely available shaver head cleaning fluids. This capsule has a removable lid and can be cleaned in the dishwasher (at the low temperature setting!).
The design has a slot for the filter you can remove from an original capsule, but I also provide a model to print your own filter.
The Filter
If you have an original JC30X/50 capsule left, carefully cut it open along the top rim. There is a filter in the capsule that is just slid into a groove. You can easily remove this filter, clean it, and insert it into the printed capsule.
The 3D-printed filter is not as effective as this original filter unless you glue some fine mesh on it. Make sure to put the top side (print) of the filter in the direction of the sink.
About My Design Compared with the Original
The original design of the filter is optimized for plastic injection molding, and therefore looks more complex than it actually is.
The goal of the design is to slow the particles down that are coming back from the sink on the device. These particles (cut hair) shall settle on the bottom of the capsule and not be transported back to the reservoir with the pump in it.
My design uses a pipe on the sink side that starts from the bottom, preventing any direct backflow to the filter. Also, a small ramp, similar to the original, prevents any direct flow at the bottom layer. The 0.2mm steps from the 3D print seem to be even more effective in capturing the particles at the bottom.
On the pump side, I use a design that extracts the fluid directly from the bottom, as I never had any large particles on this side.
Suitable Materials for Print
After using this capsule design for over a year, I found that PETG does not fully withstand the ethanol which is the main ingredient in the cleaning fluids. Therefore I recommend printing the capsule using PCTG.
If you print the capsule with PETG, it will work well for a long time (+9 months), but after that time, I found hairline cracks where the cleaning fluid evaporated. So, if the capsule starts to get empty quicker than expected, you will have to print a new capsule.
