Hi,
I am thinking of making a lisa simpson 3d printer because it looks interesting and has a seemingly lower cost. [
forums.reprap.org]
He used a 1018 Carbon Steel Precision ACME Threaded Rod 1/2"-8 Size, 1" Travel/Turn, 6' Long, Right-Hand Thread, 8 Starts from [
www.mcmaster.com] for his printer which has multiple threads and a travel of about 25mm per turn.
I can't find this for sale in the UK. All I can find for ballscrews and leadscrews is: [
www.mooreinternational.co.uk]
They are expensive and the nuts to go on them even more so. They have leadscrews and ballscrews starting at 6mm wide with pitchs going upto 96.5mm.
This raises questions for me:
What is the right thickness rod that I do not have to worry about flex but do not weigh so much that the motors are suffering (and my wallet)? I am thinking of using rods between 600mm and 800mm in length.
What pitch range should I aim for? a shallow pitch results in better control as the motor has to turn more to move the print head but a steeper pitch means a faster printer.
Does anyone know anywhere cheaper? I am interested in getting ballscrews really as they are 90% efficient apparently as opposed to leadscrews 50% efficiency.
