Good Morning Newbie Alertt

Hello all

I never knew what ‘RepRap’ was until about an hour ago. I had heard the word and just assumed it was another make of printer

It was only when I mentioned (on a Thingyverse conversation ) what I had just done to the MakerBot I had been given, that the subject of building a RepRap came up, and was I going to build one.

So I Googled RepRap, and here I am


So the story

About 2 years ago I was given a Makerbot Replicator 2 Mightyboard RevG. Then 6 months later, a Mini. Not used either much. Until about 5 months ago. I broke my leg in motorbike accident in Czech Republic in July 2018, and here we are Feb 2019, still laid up. Been seriously working on these two MakerBots for about a month now while confined to my home due this broken leg that is still not healed and recently operated on.

The MB Mini had two Smart Extruders, cracked carriage hanger and abysmal software /firmware. Constantly changing differeing failures. Seems every new print , it would find another new a novel way to fail.

I’ve been working on the Mini, and the Rep2, probably from 0800 hrs, sometimes through to 2200 every day near enough for this last month. Well the Mini and final ‘heater / temp sag’ errors yesterday were the last straw. Two Smart Extruders, but both with issues. Two weeks earlier they both worked.

So as you can see from the attached pictures, I gave the TurdoMatic Mini a final ‘talking to’ with boot, fist, large hammer and finally Torx and hex wrench.

Result is a pile of bent and twisted sheet Metal and plastic, some Stepper motors, a PSU, and threaded x-axis drive rod and nut


I have not been tempted yet to ‘talk to’ the Replicator2 in the same manner yet, as that just needs new heater element and thermocouple, which should arrive today.

So, so far towards a RepRap build all I have done is search this forum for ‘MakerBot ‘


Are there any parts from the TurdoMatic Mini that are worth keeping for a RepRap build or are the steppers etc all cheap crappy components ?

Can I do anything with the Replicator2? Swap Mighty Board for something that accepts generic firmware /g-code etc ? Looked at SailFish, but that seems to have ‘dried up’ around 2014.

Or should I just trash all the MakerBot stuff and start fresh ?

I will do more research myself later, this is just a first post ‘Hello’ and Brief History of (my )Time with 3-d printing

I’ve seen my mates GeeTech twin filament heated bed Prusa clone machine, which he built for about the same cost as a new Smart Plus Extruder for the TurdoMatic Mini, hence why I had no intention of buying new parts from MakerBot.

I won’t even go into the MakerBot firmware/softwares issues that have cropped up over the last month... gggrrrrrr.


For those of you that made it to the end of my first post, Thankyou

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/19/2019 04:13AM by NeilP.

re Mighty Board, you should be able to put marlin on that.. its a atmel 1280 you wont be able to have all features due to limited memory... but thats not really an issue...

Someone has even already created a pins_MIGHTYBOARD_REVE.h hopefully that is close enough

It wont be easy though...


someone else has already converted one [www.thingiverse.com] basically they replaced most of the electronics...

Thanks for that

Quote
Dust
re Mighty Board, you should be able to put marlin on that.. its a atmel 1280 you wont be able to have all features due to limited memory... ..

Typo / Auto correct ? ATMEGA 1280 ?


i did not mention MakerBot in the title of my first post as that seems like a big turn off for people. I Have jointd other 3-d print forums and posted various questions over the past few weeks, and not one reply. Even makerBot support don't reply or help.

I am trying to read up on pins_MIGHTYBOARD_REVE.h, firmware but ...I'll see how to do it.. and if i can. might be more trouble than it is worth.
Not yet found a 'How To" yet on what software to flash the RevG. Board with .pins_MIGHTYBOARD_REVE.h, firmware

I had preciously looked at SailFish and usingg the old makerBot ReplicatorG software. to flash SailFish.

From the reading just now, seems I need to compile the pins_MIGHTYBOARD_REVE.h, Marlin stuff myself. first knowing all the settings board and stepper specifications ...gulp...


The Ramps 1.4 way might be better.



Wonder if I could have swapped the board on the MakerBot Mini too? or if the weird X-Y axis stepper motor arrangement would have stopped that .
The Mini uses two stepper motors on ione belt connected to the print head carriage. Turn both motors in the same direction and the head moves in X- axis, turn in opposite direction and it moves the head in the y- direction.

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/19/2019 06:02AM by NeilP.

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The Mini uses two stepper motors on ione belt connected to the print head carriage. Turn both motors in the same direction and the head moves in X- axis, turn in opposite direction and it moves the head in the y- direction.

That's standard CoreXY kinematics. All the standard 3D printer firmwares support that.

---

Large delta printer [miscsolutions.wordpress.com], Robotdigg SCARA printer, Crane Quad and Ormerod

Disclosure: I design Duet electronics and work on RepRapFirmware, [duet3d.com].

Quote
dc42
That's standard CoreXY kinematics. All the standard 3D printer firmwares support that.

Hi Ummm, my previous post. I quoted you,but my comment did not make it ... odd.

Damn. I am stupid, letting my annoyance with the MakerBot Mini and its multiple annoying constant errors and buggy firmware,

I could have kept the running unit and taken out all the PCB’s, kept the gantry and Stepper motors and added a Ramps1.4 board /PSU / new extruder on my own mounting plate. Could have even fitted an engraving head.


I trashed it thinking I’d only be able to salvage the motors.

The XYZ axis movement , Stepper motors etc all worked fine
My bloody temper ☹️

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/20/2019 02:45AM by NeilP.

Try to find out all you can about the stepper motors you have. A full specification sheet with inductance and rated current would be perfect. Without that you may need to start low on current settings and slowly raise them until you get the performance you want, or they get warm to the touch.

There's enough peope on here that will pitch in with board recomendations but bare in mind with ramps for file transfer (to allow you to disconnect the computer) you have options of: painfully slow, sneaker networking, or use Octoprint on a raspberry pi (Octopi) or spare old computer. With Octoprint you do get your own web interface for the machine.

On the alternative controller side of things there are 32bit controllers with higher microstepping available for quieter running and higher current limits on the steppers and I think also the heaters.

I'm using the older Duet v0.6 and v0.8.5. Not because I don't like the newer ones, just ebay raids tend to result in older boards! :-D Besides, my main issues with cantilever machines aren't control board limited at the moment!

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 02/23/2019 02:10AM by WesBrooks.

Hi Wes,

I think I am going to sideline this project now...because my tempter got the better of me and my misunderstanding of what building a RepRap machine or converting my old one was.

I should have kept the complete running gear of the XYZ axis and chassis ( the complete MakerBot Mini minus its PCB ) and added a Ramps board to that. I had a fully working system..which I trashed...


It seems form other posting that the MakerBot steppers are not the best, so if I was now going to go to the effort of building a complete new chassis, with etc, it would make sense to use better quality steppers.


Your suggestion of trying to find the specs of the steppers would only be worth while if I had the complete Mini as a running unit and had not beaten it to death


I have the Replicator 2 as a fully workmen machine, so to scrap that, and make it in to a RepRap is an idea...but why risk trashing that too. it is working ..don't tinker with it.
Probably far cheaper for me to just buy a ready to go kit...where the specs of the kit and the software/ firmware is already done.


if i do anything along these lines with a repRap, I do have plenty of spare machines and a spare Rasp Pi kicking about , so thanks for the hint to use that

Three new terms learnt to:
Octopi
SneaekrNet
cantilever machines


Re SneakerNet, so do some RepRap printers have built in USB / SD card reading abilities too ..they must I guess if I understand the meaning of SneakerNet correctly

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Re SneakerNet, so do some RepRap printers have built in USB / SD card reading abilities too ..they must I guess if I understand the meaning of SneakerNet correctly

Some controllers have built in SD card sockets. For the others you can add an LCD display/SD card socket combo.

Some controllers also have built-in WiFi or Ethernet, allowing you to control your printer from a browser on PC/Smartphone/tablet and to upload print files from the browser, without needing Octopi.

---

Large delta printer [miscsolutions.wordpress.com], Robotdigg SCARA printer, Crane Quad and Ormerod

Disclosure: I design Duet electronics and work on RepRapFirmware, [duet3d.com].

thanks