Anyone besides Vik actually built/have one?

Just wondering if there are any people with working RepRaps in NZ besides Vik. The map says SamV is working on one and Vik mentioned in NZOSS he's assembled several...

If someone does have one, how much did it cost? Prices I see mentioned are around US$400 so I would guess given this is isolated NZ and how shit the exchange rate is now it would be something like NZ$800?

Cheers

Sorry I forgot to register

It would also be good to see some recommendations of places to get parts in NZ.

(I haven't started building a reprap, but hope to at some stage)


Cheers,
Len.

Lenbok Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> It would also be good to see some recommendations
> of places to get parts in NZ.
>
> (I haven't started building a reprap, but hope to
> at some stage)
>
>
> Cheers,
> Len.

When you do actually want to build one if there's been nothing further here, you can try contacting Vik (or perhaps Simon?) directly, I don't know if he checks out this particular group much, perhaps he's even forgotten or doesn't know it exists. On NZOSS someone expressed an interest in building a few for school and he seemed quite willing to help. On a related note, he's probably been in contact with a few of those here who are building (or have? built) one so could probably help put you in contact with those that never made it here too for collaboration, bulk buys and the like.

As I mentioned in another post in a different group I don't expect everything to be easy to find, or cheap but you've probably guessed as much yourself. Indeed even Vik has mentioned this [www.rrrf.org] .

It might be better to try and get most of the lightweight stuff from overseas. Or perhaps try to convince the foundation it's a good idea to open an office here :-P

(I would like to build one but I can't afford it at the moment.)

Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 01/09/2009 07:44AM by Nil Einne.

My one is 90% complete but has been all year!

I'm on a relatively long Christmas holiday at the moment but when I get back I'll only be working half days for a couple of months so I hope to have it finished by the end of Feb (but I said that last year as well).

I've got a spreadsheet of everything I've bought so far and where from etc. plus an estimate of how much the next one would cost me which I can email to anyone interested, just PM me. Its a bit of a mess at the moment as I've been at it so long, broken a couple of parts etc. that I've spanned quite a number of revisions.

I'll be in transit for the next week or so though so don't expect a fast response.

My price so far is $2030 (not including the one off purchases) and my estimate for building a second is $983. Aside from the drop in price due to printing your own parts the other major drop is because the RRRF have now sourced far cheaper motors.

If you don't make as many mistakes or take as long as me I'd guess the price for building one of your own would be a little less than $1500. Exchange rates and shipping costs could alter this significantly though.

Mine is sitting at about 50% build (bitsnbytes resin model). I got stuck because I didn't realise that the bitsnbytes model changed the belts to metric T2.5mm. I have no problem finding MXL belts (e.g. they're used as the tail drive belts for a number of RC helicopters), but I can't find T2.5mm belts here.

My plan at the moment is to use Vik's laser cut design to get just the pulleys from pokono, and go with the ball-chain drive.

You could try asking Vik (if you haven't already) if he knows where to get the belts. He hangs out on Irc a lot

I found Vik on IRC, and he was able to provide Ponoko-cut pulley parts (cheers Vik!). I've picked up some chrome-plated brass 4.5mm ballchain via trademe so I can get back on building.

My attempt at a PCB for the stepper drivers hasn't working so well and I'm currently debugging it.

I'm in Wellington (Porirua, actually)

* I've made an XYZ mechanical assembly, with stepper motors and screw threads.

I've had a a long look at the reprap history, and the PIC/Atmel solutions, and it looks to me like there are 2 categories of issues:

(1) There is a lot of modularity, this equates to more cost, due to more parts, connectors, wiring, circuitboard area.

(2) They are picking processors that don't natively have enough pins to do the job, and are then forced to use glue logic to expand. Also, they are running up against memory limitations on code space, although the manufacturers keep bring out larger code space upgrades in the same footprints.

Both general categories of issues are workable, but they impose difficulties of pricing, and of ability for the capabilities to grow.

I mailed Vic for prices in Auckland, and if I hadn't previously had my own design build electronics/SW business, I would have accepted the current status.

So, I started work on a new design. I've almost completed the schematic, but I'm not rushing things.

I've picked an STM ARM-Cortex-M3 chip, with 100 pins, and there will be I/O for lots of extra functions compared with the current official generation.

Most standard wish list items are there, also expansion capability for a CPLD/FPGA for any crazy extra I/O-speed requirements.

This is current progress:
[forums.reprap.org]

Graham Daniel.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/21/2009 08:15AM by grael.

Hey Graham,

Sounds like a nice approach.

I'm using an LPC2148 dev board as my controller. Plenty of I/O pins, ADC, I2C, SPI, 512KB of flash and 128KB of SRAM. The dev board is an Olimex from sparkfun (http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/product_info.php?products_id=676) which is a lot easier to deal with than trying to solder the chip by hand (at least for me that is).

I'm running the steppers via a timer interrupt-driven command queue with just the ADC chopping running in the main loop. I'm planning to add GCODE support. No full PCB yet but I'll get to it once everything is happy.

Daz.

I think Annirak is interested in that approach, the LPC does look like a nice chip, but I'm seduced by the extra ADC of the STM32. I'm not using the biggest chip, almost everything is there, and expandable if need be. I was hoping to process G code too. I'm not sure what the code density is though, it's worth looking at, if it make the difference between fitting, or not. At 1/2 meg ram, you have the option of doing small parts in the PGM/DATA memory of that part I'd say...

I know of another RepRap under construction. Sam Villain at Catalyst Ltd. is putting one together from a Ponoko kit. He's doing it in free time, so I'm hoping in a month or two Sam will have finished it.

Vik :v)

I'm based in Christchurch and about to set a group of high school students on the project... interested in finding out where we can get parts ... unfortunately if we're going for a grants we have to get 2 quotes on everything.

Well, let me know if I can help.

Vik :v) (currently in Wellington)

Hi,
I’m in Rotorua and have just built a machine based on the Darwin design.
I am using a Sanguino processor with four 24 volt stepper motors. Unlike the Darwin none of the X & Y stepper motors move. Still tweaking about with the printing. Only been running on PLA so far. Gave up on tracking the cost as I changed parts of the design a few times. Still looking at rebuilding & changing other bits.
Have sourced parts from about 15 supplies from NZ, Australia, India & US.
Have learnt a lot along the way.

Bruce

I've been talking to Tim from mindkits.co.nz and we're putting a kit together for the NZ market (uses locally available bits), supplying PLA, steppers etc.

First batch of 10 under construction, so soon there should be a lot more Kiwis in this forum

Vik :v)

I'm building a RepStrap, even though Vik and Tim don't live too far from where I live. Building the robot chassis as a personal robotics project.

When its idle, it will be producing parts to help Tim out, as well as parts for my Mendel

Hi,
I am based in Wellington and have just started to build a Repstrap based on the Mendel design, so far I have a chassis frame built using MDF and aluminium parts instead of the reprap ones generating 2d patterns by importing STL's into Solidworks. I have been waiting to get the Elelctronics from Makerbot when they are in stock again but am getting pretty fed up waiting. What sort of kits are Mindkits going to be offering? I have sourced all the mechanical bits locally (except the belts still need to buy) and it is looking like it will be sub 1K NZD to complete depending how challenging some of the smalller reprap bits are to make by hand. If anyone out there is able to print some of the smaller parts for the X & Z axis I would be interested. Also any one knowing who a good reasonably priced supplier of belts locally is would be great.

Andrew

Belts in New Zealand are imported upon request, and very little is held in stock in the country. This is what I have found with asking around.

Electronics from MindKits for a RepRap is something I got to ask last night at the Arduino group meeting. Essentially it will be all the parts that are supplied by either SparkFun and Arduino.

[www.mindkits.co.nz]
[www.mindkits.co.nz]
[www.mindkits.co.nz]

More will be shown come mid April

I tried getting belts, pulleys, bearings and gears from McMaster in the USA. McMaster would not export parts to NZ. Ended up sourcing from Small Parts & Bearings in Australia (http://www.smallparts.com.au/) they have a lot of good stuff but the problem is that they have a A$50 standard overseas freight charge per order. Should really be only about NZ$15 as they are only across the ditch.

Bruce

To get belts and pulleys here in New Zealand, your best chance is to actually as a local transmission specialist, eg Saeco Bearings, they will import them in for you.

Though not really a good idea to buy bearings in this country, as I asked Saeco, and they were going to be hideously expensive, this site VXB bearings should have all the bearings you would need, just choose a non express method, and just use a normal post postage, this is by far the cheapest option, but not trackable.
If you want tracking, then that will cost a LOT more, generally you'd want that for really expensive items.

Thanks for the Information, I purchased the bearings from Saeco a couple of weeks ago they cost me $153.13 and took 3 weeks to get from Australia. I was about to speak to them again about belts but was guessing this would set me back about $150. Will look into Small Parts & Bearings in Australia. Already bought the fastenings from MSL on the works trade account.

Andrew

For those who don’t want to build stepper motor drivers PCB’s, Ocean Controls Australia may be of interest (http://www.oceancontrols.com.au/) They supply stepper motor controllers, KTA-261 (1 axis bipolar) A$79 and KTA-263 (3 axis bipolar) A$214; freight charges A$14.50 These drivers accept up to 30VDC and output is adjustable up to 2.5A, thermal protected. Each single driver measures 58mm x 47mm x31mm (3 axis is just 3 single drivers together)

I am using these drivers (max output 2.5A) with 24 volt bipolar stepper motors which are rated at 3.5A.

The stepper motor control boards have warnings about correct polarity of supply voltage, and are current protected. You are also warned not to connect or disconnect the stepper motor connections with power on. What you are not told is that each motor controller has a 4 pin plug output connector to the stepper motor. The 2 middle ones are for one set of motor coils and the outer 2 are for the other set of motor coils. You need to take extreme care with wiring up the stepper motors as if you end up wiring one set of the stepper motor coils to the controller inner connection and one to the outer connect and same with the other stepper motor coil set, the over current protection and thermal protection won’t save you and the controller will go snap, crackle, smoke!!! By-By-Stepper Driver….You don’t get a second chance!!! Been there done that... Same properly applies with other stepper motor driver boards.

Bruce

I have fully working Mendel down here inNelson

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Experimenting in 3D in New Zealand

I have a RepRap at Tangleball Makerspace needing calibration.
Gen3 electronics at the moment, but may be replacing with my own RAMPS variant (uses the MAX6675 as the thermocouple conditioner).

I would almost be tempted to move North just to see Tangleball at work but I think I won't I much prefer the climate here in Nelson

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Experimenting in 3D in New Zealand