Stepper Motor Dampers WOW !!!!!!

Hi out there , I have just fitted Stepper motor dampers to my Rep Rap ! I can hear again !! fantastic and cheap ! Try it its another peacefull world ! Enjoy

These are highly debated to use on a printer. I can't seem to find the article or thread that talks about them causing loss of print quality because the stepper is not rigidly mounted to the frame.

Stepper motor dampers are indeed debatable, but that does not mean they should not be used - only that they may cause a loss of quality. In a properly set up printer without stiffness in the carriages and/or leadscrews they should not cause a problem. If on the other hand there is a lot of resistance caused by friction, stiction or inertia then some of the force that should be going into moving the carriage will be spent in twisting or stretching the damper - resulting in the carriage not being exactly where it should be.

Without a bunch of handbooks of mechanical systems, the full data sheets of the damper and stepper motor and a degree in maths it is best to try it out. If the cost in quality can't be seen or measured then for all intents and purposes there is no loss of quality. I have used these exact couplings on one of my printers and there has been no measurable or visible loss.

Mike

What happens when you tighten the belt to specs ?????
Better mount these dampers when there is no radial load.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/30/2019 11:17AM by MKSA.

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"A comical prototype doesn't mean a dumb idea is possible" (Thunderf00t)

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MKSA
What happens when you tighten the belt to specs ?????
Better mount these dampers when there is no radial load.

Tightening a toothed belt to its recommended load would also be above the recomended radial load of the bearings in most NEMA17 steppers so a reasonable compromise should be found. Pulling a toothed belt on a too compliant mounting will cause the toothed belt to ride against one of the cheeks of the pulley and this will be evident in the print and this will happen whether it was compliance in a vibration damper or too flimsy plastic part that caused it. At a cost of a couple of vibration dampers though, it is worth checking to see if a sweet spot can be found.

Mike

In addition, you might also try smoother drivers, vibration isolating feet, grease your bearings. To test the isolating feet idea just lift your printer (safely) while printing. The noise often greatly decreases. This is because the desk you have the printer on can act as a speaker when vibrated by the printer. For printed dampers make sure you use ABS or PETG. PLA will quickly crack and fail.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/30/2019 03:45PM by bryanandaimee.

@leadinglights
My question was rhetorical.

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"A comical prototype doesn't mean a dumb idea is possible" (Thunderf00t)

Well I dont do theory ! I make mistakes and improve on them ! This was not a mistake !I tried it worked quality perfect (for me anyway ) And Im not going deaf ! All good I think !

Quote
bryanandaimee
In addition, you might also try smoother drivers, vibration isolating feet, grease your bearings. To test the isolating feet idea just lift your printer (safely) while printing. The noise often greatly decreases. This is because the desk you have the printer on can act as a speaker when vibrated by the printer. For printed dampers make sure you use ABS or PETG. PLA will quickly crack and fail.

I agree. I make my homemade printers using a wood base. When on a table its really loud. My tables are really good speakers I guess.

So what I do is place the base on a 1/4" piece of rubber foam.

Now the loudest noisemaker is the 30mm extruder cooling fan.