When this one is working, it does exactly what a boomerang is supposed to do: it arcs out, makes a wide turn, and comes back to be caught. After some practice, the maker reports it returns closely on nearly every throw, and it rises higher than typical boomerangs do before looping back. That tall trajectory alone makes this an interesting one to watch in flight.
The whole thing came from the maker's own design work in Onshape, and apparently there was no working printed version to be found anywhere, which is why they built one in the first place. It flew right on the first throw, which is a rare result for a homemade flying part. The model is bright orange and has been shared for free, with the download link sitting in the model description.
What stands out to me is how much throwing knowledge got folded into the project. The description includes the maker's own tips, and four numbered steps are laid out: hold it near horizon height with a slight tilt to the right, curl the arm and wrist back, release near horizon height with a small flick, then adjust and make the catch. For grabbing it, the maker recommends a two-handed clap on the flat sides, the crocodile clap method, since one-handed catches are tricky and can sting.
The open question for me is durability: it has only been printed in PLA so far. The maker does note that a boomerang needs a fairly stiff body to fly consistently, so how the design behaves in other materials seems worth exploring. My own guess is that a tougher filament could be a good test, but that is speculation on my part.
Project by Trazelman. Watch it on their YouTube channel: