Carbon Fiber Prusa i3 build thread

Hello everyone!

My name is Cody and I've been into 3d printing for the last year or so. I've built a large Prusa Mendel i2 with a build platform of 300x275x150mm which is my main printer. It is well built and can do .1mm layer height with no problems, but I've always loved the look and simplicity of the i3 and knew I'd have to make one for myself one day.

Not just a standard aluminum or wood frame would do for my second 3d printer build. I had something more exotic in mind...Making carbon fiber is what I do for a living; recently I received a degree in material science. I've set up composite manufacturing facilities from the ground up, passed crash tests with racing seats I've designed, built prosthetic legs, wind turbines, hoods for cars and lots more.

I thought to myself for months how cool it would be to make a carbon fiber i3! The hard part was coming up with a molding method that would create a 6mm carbon fiber panel that was glossy on both sides. After a few experiments and trials, I came up with a layup for the perfect carbon fiber panel. I took it to my local waterjet shop here in Washington. We have a lot of aerospace fab shops in this area, so it wasn't hard finding one close to home. They made me a prototype carbon fiber frame and were so excited about the project they offered to waterjet more of my carbon fiber panels in exchange for an assembled i3. Score! So luckily I have a few extra carbon fiber frames if anyone is interested. There is a ad in the "for sale" forum here, or you can email me at cody@infinity-designlab.com for more info.

Here's some pics before I get started on the build-

If you were the same seller on ebay selling the carbon frame then I got my frame from you. Story sounds the same.

The frames are of excellent quality. The carbon is very strong but it is more flexible then aluminum. It does not seem to affect print quality but I haven not printed anything over 50mm tall so I don't know if there will be negative effect as the z height gets taller, But I wouldn't not mount anything heavy on the top of the frame such a spool holder.

Yes that was the prototype frame I listed on ebay. Nice to see your i3 up and running, I like the gray printed parts on the carbon.

Since the proto I changed the resin formulation and lay up to give more stiffness to the i3 frames.

I'm more interested in the print bed frame. Is it much lighter than an aluminum bed frame?

I've got the frame assembled and extruder built this thing is going to be a sweet machine!

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RSA27
I'm more interested in the print bed frame. Is it much lighter than an aluminum bed frame?

Not sure let me know what an aluminum one weighs in grams.

Wow, if only I could get my hands on that.
Would you sell some customized pieces? General price range?
Am I wrong to ask that here?

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Realizer- One who realizes dreams by making them a reality either by possibility or by completion. Also creating or renewing hopes of dreams.
"keep in mind, even the best printer can not print with the best filament if the user is the problem." -Ohmarinus

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MrDoctorDIV
Wow, if only I could get my hands on that.
Would you sell some customized pieces? General price range?
Am I wrong to ask that here?

What are you looking for in customized pieces?

Hm.. I'd have to take another look at my design, never planned to put any panel type things on it. The bed would be the biggest thing I would use it for, findinga precision flat bed at my volume gets pricey.
Say, 750mm square, only needing to be shiny on one side. How flat are these? Tolerance?
Do they transfer heat well?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/16/2014 11:00AM by MrDoctorDIV.

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Realizer- One who realizes dreams by making them a reality either by possibility or by completion. Also creating or renewing hopes of dreams.
"keep in mind, even the best printer can not print with the best filament if the user is the problem." -Ohmarinus

Aluminium is 50% denser than carbon fibre. So with identical parts the aluminium one would weigh 50% more.
Dibond is lighter than carbon fibre and cheaper!
The carbon fibre frame looks really great!

I wasn't quite going for weight, the looks of carbon fiber inside my all black build will be wonderul. Especially if you could print directly on the carbon fiber, keeping it visible and aesthetic.

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Realizer- One who realizes dreams by making them a reality either by possibility or by completion. Also creating or renewing hopes of dreams.
"keep in mind, even the best printer can not print with the best filament if the user is the problem." -Ohmarinus

You can print directly on carbon fibre:

The surface finish compared to glass (on left):

The supplier was
[www.reprapsource.com] 1mm

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/16/2014 12:47PM by Ralph.Hilton.

How well does it stick? Does it need a hotter bed than glass to get the same surface temp?

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Realizer- One who realizes dreams by making them a reality either by possibility or by completion. Also creating or renewing hopes of dreams.
"keep in mind, even the best printer can not print with the best filament if the user is the problem." -Ohmarinus

It sticks fine - similar to glass. I used 60°C for both prints. I suspect that with a larger printer you would need a thicker piece of fibre and therefore a higher temperature. I am just printing with PLA.

I print exclusively PLA, and yes, larger printer. About 600mm. I'll be getting 2/3mm thickness.
So I assume it's as flat as it gets? Google gets me nowhere trying to find comparison pictures between matte/gloss/textured.

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Realizer- One who realizes dreams by making them a reality either by possibility or by completion. Also creating or renewing hopes of dreams.
"keep in mind, even the best printer can not print with the best filament if the user is the problem." -Ohmarinus

I just printed out a pretty cool electronics box http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:162288 I'm using Arduino/Ramps1.4 with polulu stepper drivers. I didn't have enough filament to print the cover, but the important part of the box is mounted up so I can do the wiring.

A carbon fiber print surface is a great idea, I'm totally going to make one for this printer! I can make one for you if it works out. The resin I use is good for 230F so it should stay flat with abs bed temps.

Cody - What would a 225mm x 325mm print surface cost?
MrDoc - I don't know if flatter(smoother) sheet is produceable. It is hard to find data for me too. The surface printed on glass shows fingerprints whereas the slightly rougher print on a carbon fibre surface doesn't.

yeah, before I commit lots o' money, what would your pricing be on min 2mm thick, 600mmX600mm?

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Realizer- One who realizes dreams by making them a reality either by possibility or by completion. Also creating or renewing hopes of dreams.
"keep in mind, even the best printer can not print with the best filament if the user is the problem." -Ohmarinus

Nice cmerce ! What extruder (cold end) are you using and what filament diameter ?? I see an E3D hotend, great stuff !!

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smokey_rs250
Nice cmerce ! What extruder (cold end) are you using and what filament diameter ?? I see an E3D hotend, great stuff !!

Thank you! Its a .3mm hot end I'll be using with 1.75mm filament, and the "rework" extruder. Just waiting on some Nema 17s from Lulzbot right now.

For the carbon beds I'll get one made and get back to you on a price. A 600mmx600mm panel is pretty large, would you be using it for a print bed?

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cmerce
For the carbon beds I'll get one made and get back to you on a price. A 600mmx600mm panel is pretty large, would you be using it for a print bed?

Yeah, that'll be my bed size.

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Realizer- One who realizes dreams by making them a reality either by possibility or by completion. Also creating or renewing hopes of dreams.
"keep in mind, even the best printer can not print with the best filament if the user is the problem." -Ohmarinus

Nice carbon work cmerce. Do you have any tips on eliminating bubbles in the carbon?

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RodF
Nice carbon work cmerce. Do you have any tips on eliminating bubbles in the carbon?

Bubbles can be a huge problem when getting started in making carbon fiber. My advice is to use a vacuum bag, hand rolling will never be 100% bubble free on the surface unless you are just getting lucky a few times. Resin infusion will give you the best results, there are a ton of youtube videos describing the process, and I'd be glad to give you advice with any of your projects.

Thanks for that cmerc. I already vac bag so I will have another look at resin infusion.