MechaBits KraftWerk'r

Pondering Phase...Printer almost complete, I need to print a part cooler but don't want to print just one part...pondering for days, when I decided on a 90x90x20 interface plate to raise & mount the bed at the required height...though that was going to triple the print time...then I chopped it down to 50mm wide...before realizing I didnt even need to print anything & could do it better with metal parts, which just so happened to be 20mm high as needed. So far there's 10 or 11 plastic parts, I could have made it just six, or 4 & 2 sheet metal parts, it pay's to ponder longer.


Finally got around to printing the fan duct, the blue tape didnt look good on the pics...I had left holes for one in the future but decided to not use them for this, not sure why I didnt extend it a little further, but it covers what it needs to. Also printed another part cooler duct for the current build, though not put it on yet.

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Printing Printer Parts on hold while I plug a few other holes in the shooting armory, manual focus is a pain, dual focus a bigger pain, & close focus with anamorphics another challenge.

Cinelux closest focus is apparently 3 meters and the smaller Ultrastar about 1.2m, I have two Cinelux anamorphics but one is set at infinity and needs to be fixed there, as I I have the VFD focuser that goes on the end of the chain(not pictured), changing focus all the time is not ideal, so I thought I'd setup the other as a closer focus unit, so it's set at it's minimum(not sure if there was more turns available didnt want to break any glass). Using the cheap Tamron 77mm close-up 0.5 diopter get's a more usable range. I found a smaller stronger close up lens and fitted that on the Ultrastar so with that I can go closer again, about 0.75m-1m.








Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/18/2020 06:57AM by MechaBits.

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Also needed another mount for the IPIX lens

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[mechabits.co.uk]

remember those little cable clamps I made, now you can get them on line
[www.ebay.co.uk]

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[mechabits.co.uk]

2021 Now I can release the secret of how to make a kilo of PLA last a year, whilst being locked in a room with only 3D Printers for company. I think I still have half a roll, the race is on to see if I can finish it by 2022. Though if I want to complete the latest gizmo I need to print a couple of 110mm diameter parts which should finish the roll off...so because I hate the long prints, i'll focus on some smaller components for my linear focus assist gizmo, 2 new products for the film maker, can I make this product a reality before it becomes a craze? (there's at least 3 different forks).

 

 

Not many parts arriving in the post these days, but when they do it's fun trying to figure out where to use it, spotted a new useful plate,
though they didnt list the dimensions so wasnt exactly sure what i'd do with it, decided to switch out a rather large overkill plate for this new one.
The small cantilever printer seemed a good fit, but now I need to alter the belt path from before, which means a new idler for the 2020 & new cart/hotend holder and new Z nut holder, lucky I already had a similar one printed, finding the orig' project would have been more time consuming than importing the old stl & remaking another to fit better. I could just print a one piece item and do away with the rod holder part, thinking about some POM nuts....or if the profile had of been a tad longer i'd have mounted one of the plastic z nuts on the side of the profile. If I made a backing plate for Z and then placed the new part on top things to neaten things up??? While designing a new hotend holder I've been looking at getting something else that fits with the design better, I really like the Biqu all metal (stainless) vertical heater hotend, cheap enough at the moment...but i'm sure that besides the mounting problem there may be other problems with it, or with me and more exotic materials, and by the time it is mounted and covered in fans, it negates the reason for buying it...I want to see it looking sexy. Not many others at a decent price to choose from so may just keep the v6. China seems to be going premium prices these days...congratulations to our wonderful governments for helping facilitate this. Keeping printed parts to a minimum on this machine, so rather than print an idler for the 2020 or using the method I used on another machine,, I just bought a complete tensioner for £6 almost the same price as the parts for my other method, and much neater to boot. Only 3 printed parts in this machine if I swap out the printed idler for a metal solution...and I just realized dont even need an idler plate to do it, the 45 profile that makes the frame will hold an 8mm stud.

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[mechabits.co.uk]

Nice prints and tremendous photography.

Mike

Cheers Mike here's a couple with the lights on.

Printer decided to play space invaders while waiting for the cowl to finish.
Idler for X still on the boat, still undecided on new hotend parts, wondering if doing away with the 3rd Z bearing would be too detrimental, might look better with slight rearrangement, ie one metal bearing housing and the other by the motor 3d printed but with a longer bearing, will get a shorter shaft for the bed idler at some point and if I can find the 8mm flange bearings i'll slip them in.
I wish there was a little more choice on 40mm fans, the standard 40mm has some nice contours that this LED one doesnt have or can't be seen, i'd prefer the outer part black & just the blades glowing some patterns would be cool.....I can wait. I think the slits on the side mount part cooling fans are probably too wide at 4mm was going to go thinner, maybe next time, I doubt i'll be needing them anyway just put them there for a little flexibility in the future. Maybe move filament roll of top of Z, though I can hit the column quite had without any noticeable movement

Tempted to get a little skr board to neaten things up a little more compared to a bulky ramps sandwich.

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Decided to buy this sexy stainless hotend(£14) Some Italian trying it on on ebay wanting £46 for this, even though I could see alternate, newer, better options, even though it might bring no end of issues? Mounting a fan & duct not ideal, also the 24v heater I have doesnt fit due to the sleeving over the joins and alternate solution will be needed(got it in, forgot the paste? nothing suitable to hand, no retaining screw), and I suppose a good time to go high temp, M4 thermistor think I need this one....[www.ebay.co.uk]

but not sure I could get that working with the SKR Dip...may decide it's best in the cube printer due to the direct drive making it easier to grip/mount this hotend, but not sure plastic bmg types are ideal either(scratch that it doesnt fit) so might need another metal version.

Idler arrived to tidy the other machine up

Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 03/22/2021 12:50AM by MechaBits.

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now the hotend is £11 on ebay i've been robbed maybe 2 would be even sexier, one for each ear, beam me up Scotty. Maybe buy a few and flog em for £40

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/22/2021 07:25PM by MechaBits.

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wondering if my SKR will be taking a dip in the Suez canal, fine weather for it

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Looks like I didnt have to worry about the ship sinking, this little guy must have helped out, it was only after hitting the buy button I realized the DIP was 1.1, not sure what the issues with the board are, or if i'll run into them, let's hope the issues are avoidable, marlin 2 here i come, even had a microsd in the bag.

Suppose by the time I get some 2209's it might be more cost effective to get a better board?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/29/2021 10:55PM by MechaBits.

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Almost at the end of the roll....don't think I have enough left for the lid, considering I live by the sea & the roll has been out of wrapper for a year, I'd say it performed great to the last drop. Toying with the idea of a base for this case so it could hide some cables, otherwise I could have done more to manage the cables internally, maybe on the back of the lid, could have put a larger fan on the lid as I dont really know what these 24v 40mm's sound like. Wondering about a small silent 24v psu, a little cheaper & smaller than the slim meanwell 350, I dont have any 24v psu's but I suppose one good one is worth investing in, or something even beefier with other stepdown units? Scratch that the smaller the better...maybe a laptop psu, no heatbed at the moment.

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With one print left on the roll I decided on a fan shroud/mount...this thing isnt going to like getting very hot so at some point when the ideal hotend/extruder/mount combo reveals itself to me, this will have to do for now. First ever print using support settings...failed at the end, as it was releasing from the bed, and it hit a curl.

While I get to grips with Marlin 2(deep in'it), just modding an ender profile, removing any bells & whistles, running with A4988's for now as the choice of tmc's & revisions of tmc's and dud's, I have to be sure before splurging, and there's no real way of knowing yet if the boards even working...I assumed there would already be firmware on the board...doesnt seem to be as it cant be seen on the USB (Maple driver showing issue).

Anyway I finally decided which machine to put it on, the cube, which is already wired up with ramps on 12v, so once I copy the settings I forgot, I'll swap it out for the skr(if I get it going). Ended up getting the meanwell 350 in the end, after missing out on a cheap black dell psu that looked like the normal LED psu's but looked better made...So the cheap control board better be worth it, they just released a new board a few days back, not sure the price on that.

The bed on the cube needs finalizing, as does the carriage, previously had to dangle the hotend quite low but now I've built up the bed a little, I'm figuring out new dimensions for the dangle & filament drive, might be a good idea to be able to switch from direct to bowden easily.
I'm thinking of screwing 3 point system into this chopping board, some inserts into the wood on underside then some screw thing to attach to the U shaped spans, though I'm also on the look out for other hardware that could be used, maybe ball & socket for the fixed point, maybe rod ends, or anything else I can find or suggested.

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