Thoughts on my Prusa i3 Rework BOM

Hey everybody,

Attached is a BOM I've been putting together for a Prusa i3 Rework all with the hope of being able to build something much better than a cheap kit, but hopefully for not much more. My overall goal is to build something with as much quality as possible and still stay around $400.
This is also my first printer, so at least for now, I'm trying not to do anything too complicated or that varies too much from the Rework documentation.

I'd love to get some input from some of the pro's here and any thoughts about my part selection: things I may have overlooked, bad vendors, bad/good deals, etc.
Feel free to ask me any questions as well.

EDIT:
I also wanted to clarify that I am using a local shop to laser cut the frame for me out of pine plywood. At the moment I'm planning on using this frame design:
[www.thingiverse.com]

Thanks!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/03/2016 12:37PM by rdlaner.

Anybody?

While I didn't check the nut/bolt numbers etc my thoughts...
Looks good - I like the fact you want a genuine e3d hot-end, GT2 belts are good,

Not sure about the controller board? I've always used RAMPs.

I've found an alloy heatbed like this one is better than the China PCB type as it doesn't flex/warp
[www.marginallyclever.com]

I've always used an LED type power suppply vs a PC power supply, but it will work fine.

Motors I've used:
[www.aliexpress.com]
Your ones are pretty much same spec and more torque than what the typical cheap kit supply

Hope this helps

---

My updated Instructable on our Prusa i3 Build
[www.instructables.com]

Thanks SteveRoy! Your Instructable, by the way, was one of the main things to convince me to source and build on my own printer.

With a metal bed, do you suggest auto bed leveling with an inductive sensor? Is it a feature you think is worth installing sooner than later?

Have you ever had any issues with the z-axis couplers? I ask because I came across some motors that had the threaded rod mounted directly to the motor without the need to use couplers.

Cheers!

Auto bed levelling was something I looked into for my printer, but it has turned out that I don't need it as if you brace the frame and calibrate it accurately then you don't need the software to compensate for an uneven bed.

As for the couplers vs rigid rods, I would use the couplers as the threaded rod should be free to move about allowing the printer carriage to travel on the smooth rods without being influenced by stresses from the drive. Some people seem to have quite different view here and make the threaded rod captive at the top, if the printer is built square, and the bearings and rods are good this should not be required and is likely to result in lower quality prints.

The more accurate your frame build and the alignment of rods, and squareness of the frame the better the results.

I've never needed any auto bed leveling. I set the 4 corners and don't need to adjust them for weeks and then it's only if I move the printer and set it up again.
I do check the home position with the usual paper test when I change the filament, but that's about it.
A properly built and setup/calibrated i3 shouldn't need auto leveling - really it's just compensating for something that's out of alignment (IMHO)

Steve

Great, thanks for the info guys!

I'm going to try out the couplers and see how it goes. I also noticed a number of folks using flexible tubing instead of aluminum couplers. Have you had any experience using tubing?

Quote
rdlaner
Great, thanks for the info guys!

I'm going to try out the couplers and see how it goes. I also noticed a number of folks using flexible tubing instead of aluminum couplers. Have you had any experience using tubing?

I used to use flexible tubing (like aquarium tubing), but I changed to the aluminum couplers instead. I noticed after a failed print that the threaded rod had "unscrewed" itself from the flexible tubing - even with two zip ties on each end of the tubing.

I'm also planning on changing out the 5mm threaded rods for 8mm lead screws in the near future. Right now I'm looking at adding auto bed leveling to my printer.