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Qdeathstar

3D printer build

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Hi guys.

LED's got me into Arduino, and Arduino got me into 3D printing. And now that I'm into 3D printing i've found a nice hobby.

 

Anyway, i am working on a coreXY machine with an approximate build platform of 18" cubed. For those of you who don't know, that is a large format printer. The gold standard prussa i3 has a build platform of around 8" cubed, for comparison.

 

My design is inspired and almost entirely coppied from The Digital Dentist's build over at RepRap.org. His printer is almost done, but I was so impressed with his build that I took at look at his pictures and I'm in the process of building an approximation. 

 

He has access to a milling machine, and I don't, so had to make some sacrifices to account for this, but over all its looking good.


 

 

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I was able to finish a version of the effector mount. I haven't fully decided on my hotend it yet so there is definitely going to be changes.... im thinking about either dual e3dV6 or i've already a cyclops i modified to have water cooling. I want to do a direct drive (no bowden) system, however. I have might have some Nimble extruders for the cyclops, and if they get here and work that might be OK. The only issue is now i have a big printer and i really need a .8 nozzle or larger to make practical use of it and they are only available with e3d v6. 

 

 


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The motor mount didn't have enough "play" to get it to where i need to be in order to make the belts parallel, which is a requirement for coreXY printers, so i've got another one printing down that shifts the upper square over. derp.  You can also see where i've added some mechanical stops to prevent the rail from sliding off the guides. Had that happen to me yesterday. Not again! (not a big deal, the rails have ball bearing retainers).

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Thanks to The Digital Dentist for the idea of the belt mount. 

 

 

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Overall, the belts look parallel, which is good news. I'm waiting on the slowboat to get here for the larger pullys for the idler bearings... only option was to get them on aliexpress and wait forever. Well, unless you wanted to pay $15each for them. I've got an old RAMBO board hanging around so once i get the motor spacers reprinted i might fire it up and see how she chootches!. I've made some hole in the effector mount to attach a spare linear rail to so i can try the pencil thing DD did. I think that is a great way to check for backlash/optimum speeds, since you can easily see the ripple. Though, i expect with the hotend attached you might have to run a bit slower because of the added mass.

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This is seriously slick. I was looking @ a "build weekly" type magazine build, but it was quite small in all honesty and I was skeptical of the quality. Needless to say I was glad I didn't because there's all kinds of issues with quality. To the point people are having to add in 60mm dc fans to cool down a certain component. How much are you expecting to pay for this in the end?

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i have about $300 in already, I probably will spend at least $1000 more. I am making it top of the line, spare no expense. They are using fans to cool down the stepper drivers on a RAMPS board. You don't really need the fan, i never had one of the stepper drivers fail..  Honestly though, i got some great prints out of a stock $300 printer.. It's just a matter of reliability.

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Nice, this is going to increase your sex toy production exponentially. That 18 inches should really come in handy for some of the larger builds too, wonder what fiendish, many-pronged designs you have planned.

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I have no idea what any of this means. I would like to meet the dog, though. When it's done can it print Star Wars ships for me? So many great ships aren't available. I can repay you by painting things you make, or your genitals. Option 2 suits me best. 

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I'd like to see a range of figures from different game series but all of a uniform size and quality - I have a couple of Ezios but they are much bigger than the Vader I have. It would be nice if I could have a John Marston, Tommy Vercetti, Ezio, Edward Kenway, Vader, Stormtrooper, etc living peacefully and in harmony with a somewhat realistic scale between the lot of them.

 

How about a range of game protagonist themed dildos... Or is that already a thing? I can imagine someone being knobbled by Vader's helmet.

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And she chootches! Or, at least moves. The sound you hear is from the stepper motors. Delightful, amirite?  Im using a cheep-o control board in the back which is why the steppers are so loud. Will switch to a duetWifi once the build nears its completion.

 

 

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Just a small update today.

I got the endstops for x and y going. I am using hall effect sensors. I am planning to print a small cover to cover the sensors ;) The wiring routes underneath the extrusion so that you don't have to see it :D

 
video

 

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Some minor updates


IMG_5172.jpg

I managed to mock up a cable carrier. I'm not sure if this one will have enough room to carry all the cables i need, but i bought multiple sizes so once i move into the wiring phase i'll make my decision.

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One of the biggest changes is that i decided to go with 3" L bracket for a more roomier feel. It doesn't cost me any y space, but it might cost me some x space. I'm not 100% sure this is the final design but for the moment i like it. It allows me to mount my extruder and hotend right to the aluminum. For the extruder i am planning to use the Zesty Nimble which is a worm gear extruder and then a cyclops/chimera for the hotend. Initially i wanted to with two v6's... but with the chimera i can still get most of the larger nozzle sizes... and i already have a water-cooled cyclops in my delta. I might add watercooling to this printer too if needed, but i think with the wide open space for airflow under the hotend mount and the big hunk of alumninum, i might not need it. I'm only going to 50c in the enclosure.


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I also changed how i routed the belts. I made basically a larger version of what was done on The Digital Dentist's corexy Z axis. It consists of a back plate, a center plate, and a front plate. The belts run through and are sandwiched together with six m3 screws. I have a peice of belt facing the opposite direction in each "tray" to help hold the belts. I'm not sure how this will work over time, but it seems like i got the belts a lot tighter using this method. In order to tighten the belts, i made the ends long so they fit all the way through the plates, then inserted a peice of belt along side the drive belt and pulled it though until everything was tight. Seems to work, but we will see how well everything handles being tugged on my motors soon.

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I also started work on the z-drive. Nothing too crazy here... looks like it will work. Finally decided to invest in a nice set of metric taps, which made tapping the mounting holes a lot easier.


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Every scientific or mechanically inclined mind should have its quirks. A scientist or engineer who is all work and no play is one of the most boring motherfuckers on the planet, no matter how important their work is.

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Another round of updates. I have figured out the z axis belt tensioning.

 

IMG_0769.jpg

 

As you can see the bottom belt enters a printed block and then exits back out the bottom. I used another piece of belt along size to make sure it doesn't slip out. On the top, i have a screw and captive nut that pushes down on a block to pull the belt tight. I designed the part with some grooves so that it can't pop out. I didn't really have enough room for a belt along side the main belt where it exits (its there but only three teeth) so i zip-tied the belt together up top to stop it from slipping. It did not slip before i zip-tied it however. Over at it works

 

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These are the things the belt pushes against. I put a bolt on the top where the other bolt pushes into this piece so that the plastic doesn't get worn or give as much. The little slot was for an alternate idea that didn't go anywhere :D. I was going to slide in a small washer and have the main screw hit that and feed through the plastic piece. This way is simpler and works.

 

Due to several factors i will need to redesign the hot end mount, as well as the x-rail. I am not happy with it ATM because it costs me too much y-space (3" almost) and i also need to be able to move it down about three inches. I think i will get another wider rail for the x axis and mount it in a more similar way to The Digital Dentists original design. In the end i may not go with the nimble because it creates about the same amount of problems as it solves. I bought it when i was committed to sticking with my Delta... was hoping i could repurpose it for the corexy but the drive cable will make an enclosure harder to design.


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Figuring out the z-axis was so far the hardest part of the printer. I eventually settled on this set up. I had an extra 8mm rod, so cut it to length and mounted it to the top of the printer as you see. The pulley slides on the rod without a bearing. Its not the best, but i think for my purpose it will be OK. If not they do have some 5mm id 8mm od bearings. I can then get some 5mm rod and mount it in a similar way, with the bearing in-between the rod and pulley. Im up for other ideas as well.


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I got the bed mount ready. The three black screws will be 50mm flat head screws that will be fed through the mic6 bed, with a spring, to allow me to level the bed. The aluminum blocks are tapped and there is a 6mm hole drilled through the extrusions to allow the screw to pass cleanly through without interference.  I may need to beef this up, apparently the plate weighs 10 lbs! 

Coming along.

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I had a small delay. I decided to get a milling machine. It will increase the skookemness of my 3d printer as it will make all the parts more precise.... 

 

i finally got it unpacked and unloaded :)

 

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Finally got the mill home and in place.  I still have a lot of set up to do. I need to extend an existing 20amp 240v circuit so I can power the thing... and need to install the digital read out. 

The mill and stand weighs around 1000lbs ;).

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Here is an update 

IMG_5796.jpg

This is the mount for the idler pulleys. I was using printed abs but after a month of tension in the belt the abs want really holding up, plus, i had to use long screws because the abs was thick...


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A view from underneath, showing some pocketed fasteners. 

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This is the base of the motor mounts. The slots are to allow sideways adjustment of the motor, so that i can keep the belts parallel and at 90 degrees. I will cut slots in the aluminum tubing to tension the belts.

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Just another view from the underside... 

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I really enjoy milling,  got a lot to learn but there is something satisfying about shaping metal into something, 


Got a few pictures of the mill set up with dro as well. A lot of chips..

I think ebay. is the best bed to get tooling, I got some nice end mills that are much higher quality than the grizzly set i bought for about half the price.... i want to get a corner-radius end mill set and maybe a face cutting end mill asap, but maybe after i get my small lathe. 
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Been a long while since I had a proper update. I can't believe it has taken this long to get the xy assembly right again, but other projects pop up... anyway, some pics:

IMG_6133.jpg

This is one of the belt clamp for the effector, I machined it down to match the bearings, then notched out s bits round the corners so the belts had a place to lay, than drill/tapped a few holes to get everything to stay in place.

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you can kind of see how it goes onto the effector here.

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nothing like blue marking paint, but this is the mount for the dual aero extrudes. It will slide up into the belt attachment thing showed earlier. this way i can make everything modular for perhaps a laser etcher or if i need to the extra two inches a single extruder head... 

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easy sliding action, attaches with 4 m5 screws.

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Here the belt clamp is in place. There is a screw that goes though the belt clamps to squeeze them together, then there is a screw on the bottom and top(pictured) that screws down to prevent side to side movement.  It works nicely.  however, i will have to keep an eye out for belt slippage because it's just the clamping force of an m5 screw that is squeezing the belts together to keep them in place.

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I decided to rethino the y carriage and go with a larger rail with an extra bearing block like in the digital dentists design. I've notice the rail movement is smoother.

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just another close up of the belt clamp

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et cetera, the guiding bowden tubes fit through the slot down to the aero extruders. 

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looking good, might make a water cooler for the extruders, if i feel the need. A i noticed a difference with my cyclops on the delta, but there is a lot more surface area here so im probably good with just the fans.

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overview..

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