Prusa bearing life

How long do the PLA bushings on a Prusa last, and when they do wear out, how much work is it to install new ones?

We find the Prusa's lower cost attractive, but this is to be a shared machine and is hence likely to be used fairly heavily.

They never wear out (so far). I've printed 15 pounds of PLA and ABS on one set of bushings, and they look good as new. The smooth rods I have are just zinc-plated. Having really smooth rod helps with this of course.

Installing new ones depends on how strong the adhesive is that was used to attach them in the first place. I used two part epoxy, but I think there may be problems removing this if and when I need to change the bushings out.

I guess the best advice is to print spare X-carriages, attach bushings, and keep them in a drawer until needed.

By the way, I tried bronze bushings on my Prusa Mendel, and while the movements were really smooth, they tended to bind whenever the machine warmed up. Probably should use two bronze, and two PLA bushings to reduce this problem.

Just like any bearing out there.....PLA bearings WILL wear out.

Many factors will determine how long any bearing will last. Here are just a few to consider.

-bearing material
-Speed you run the machine
-Weight on the bearing
-quality of the smooth rod.
-type of lube you are using
-machine adjustment
-aging of the bearing material

I see reprap prusa with the PLA bearings as a GOOD stepping stone into the hobby. You can also upgrade the machine as you go.

The more you use it..... the print quality will go down, but if your ok with rebuilding and replacing bearings when the print quality goes down its not bad option to get you printing.

In my low cost unit under development I'm using LM8UU linear bearings. They are good, cheep and they work amazing.