plastic (composite) frame for reprap printers?

Looks like a standard UK weather Deacon, no wonder you chose orange to brighten things up.

Don't get me wrong when I talk about folly, follies can be really cool, and the beauty of 3D printing is that you can use it to build as many follies as you want from the comfort of your own home. Small scale follies compared to architects who build much grander follies.

When I started out designing my printer I wanted no frame, but always in the back of my mind was the thought it might need one, luckily I had what I needed lying around, items I bought a while back on ebay(35mm diam black ali tubes), knowing I could put them to use for a number of things, as it turns out they now a support structure to brace the printer against. As luck would have it I have just the right amount for the frame, which is like 2 sides of a cube.

it's all held together with these clamps, another ebay bargain

Not the best model for printing. https://grabcad.com/library/manfrotto-t-clamp-1


If I really wanted to use the frame better, it needs parts designed specific for the task, ie clamping to 35mm tube. The problem with that is the parts need to be quite large, and unwanted rotation of parts on the tube a problem, and I don't want to drill holes in the tubes. Sure clamps & other things can be done in plastic but easier with metal clamps. You could use scaffold & key clamps. Experimenting with the solutions to the problem is the fun part, and just because you can get something to work, doesn't mean it was the simplest or best way to go. If I was going to buy new Ali parts for frame it would be square not round, and have handy mounting grooves & rails to boot, but the cost of joiners and other bits could soon mount up, and the finished article will be much the same as many other printers & machines out there. Profile always seemed such an expensive way to go, especially for larger machines, but I'm going to have to ask around the scrappies for profile see if there is any in my area, but most just melt everything, ship it off, then we have to pay for it to be made again...grrr

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/09/2015 10:16AM by MechaBits.

that was a reason I went for square tube on the frame instead of round, I don't really know the phrase "standard UK weather" means, I just made it the way I like it orange and chrome was in my head before the first line was drawn

Wet is the pretty much the norm, in UK especially today, it was the little boxes out the window had me believe it was UK. With a name like Deacon I always think blue...and frost too, even though its white.
so now wonder you wanted the warmest colour you could find.

I see I just thought it was a nice combination of colour , yeah very much the same here outside in Ireland

What in the UK half? bloody orange lodge!

not in the UK half, probably be better off though with the dreaded euros here, what orange lodge?

only joking I knew when you said Ireland you didn't mean the other tiny little enclave... the orange lodge(order), you know the rather obnoxious crowds that parade the street every now & then thinking they own the place

The Grand Orange Lodge It is a Protestant-only, Masonic-style fraternity that defends/promotes Protestantism, conservatism, Britishness, and the continued unity of the United Kingdom (i.e. unionism).

[en.wikipedia.org]

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/09/2015 02:38PM by MechaBits.

didn't know about them, sounds contradicting somehow as I read more of it.... I'm not even irish by the way lol, but my families are

though I throw this pic up too after putting all the bells and whistles on it I'm liking the orange

My experimental SCARA is orange too ... talking about like-minded people

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFkgJ53w2DA

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/09/2015 05:34PM by realthor.

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RepRap Lander concept on Concept Forge
RepRap Lander concept on RepRap Forums
My Things, mostly experimental stuff

Orange n Black nice combo.

realthor nice color

thanks MechaBits, yea I though it would look nice when I though of the colour combo, but I'm even more impress when I put them together, it does look nice like that

The big issue with plastic-heavy frames is that they will be bulky to reach the same sturdiness of a metal-frame or a metal+plastic couplers frame. Unless we can create the tubing out of some cmposite that will rival metal piping but that would be cost prohibitive (http://brimages.bikeboardmedia.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Kovit-R6-isotruss-carbon-structure-road-bike06.jpg).

Although I am drooling to make isotruss columns and test them this will be nothing more than an (expensive) experiment.

I guess that for frames the most sensible approach is electrical conduit + 3d printed prackets + external skin of sorts to make everything as rigid as possible.
Furthermore, a similar approach should be considered for built-in 3dprinters (like in a cupboard shelf), where the parts can be thinner as we can use the wood panels that are already there as skins and support. Even if this means screwing into them.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 11/10/2015 06:48AM by realthor.

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RepRap Lander concept on Concept Forge
RepRap Lander concept on RepRap Forums
My Things, mostly experimental stuff

My £10 HiFi Stand with spiked feet will one day be something much better, with about 3 foot of Z to play with.
Should I want a 3 Foot high lump of plastic cluttering the house up...I wonder how many kilo's of filament a vase that size would use...hmm I wonder how much a potters wheel is...far more therapeutic & environmentally friendly.