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General discussions. For specific printers / electronics / fabrication methods / softwares, please see other sections.
RAMPS 1.4 and PWM-enabled fan. What do I need to know? - 12 years ago
Hello All, I've recently added a fan to my Prusa Mendel reprap. The fan I repurposed out of a non-functioning computer that was easily over 10 years old. I've noticed via M106 S??? commands that I don't appear to have PWM, which doesn't surprise, given where I got the fan. The fan is "all on" if I give a M106 S128 or higher, and there's no discernible difference between S128 and S255. If I wereby Karmavore - RAMPS Electronics
Re: Poor quality, spaghetti prints and not accurate prints - 12 years ago
Gyvven is probably on to something there, but I wanted to try nophead's exercise to see how it comes out to me. I'd advise you start with calibration cubes. I've used these, but there are lots of options out there. The diameter of filament extruded into air for me is .50 mm (despite my .35 j-head?) The cross-sectional area would then be 3.14*(.50/2)^2 = .196 mm2 My filament width (.5 mm) times tby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: The X-end smooth rod teardrop inserts are too small for me. Why? - 12 years ago
Thanks, nophead. To clarify my issue, the rods would fit into the teardrops just fine, but when the hit the "sprung pressure pads" the part cracks along some layer boundary. I'm incrementally approaching an answer. I've improved the bridging by adding a fan, so I no longer have filament drooping into the hole. That may have helped a little. I also increased the temp a few degress on my black ocby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: The X-end smooth rod teardrop inserts are too small for me. Why? - 12 years ago
stephenrc Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Sounds like your Z axis isn't calibrated or it's > losing steps. A reasonable thought, but no, the measurements for my calibration cubes in the z direction are true. Let's try flipping this question around. Is there anyone out there who is printing the v2 github x-ends in ABS, and for whom the rod inserts go smootby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: The X-end smooth rod teardrop inserts are too small for me. Why? - 12 years ago
Thanks for the reply. No, my rods weren't chamfered, but neither were the rods I put into the working Mendel I have now. And besides, it's more than just noise. If I put the rod all the way in, the part separates at a nearby layer boundary. It's more than just a small scraping. I wonder if this is due to ABS shrinking more than PLA as it cools, or if there is some setting that is making my extruby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
The X-end smooth rod teardrop inserts are too small for me. Why? - 12 years ago
The subject says it all, really, but here are some more details. I'm getting some good prints of the Mendel v2 x-ends as they are provided from the github. That said, the teardrop shape inserts for the x smooth rods seem to be too small. When I try to insert a 8mm smooth rod, I first hear and then see a lot of cracking. I'm printing with ABS, and I don't think my issue is due to warping, but iby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: No enough room below x-carriage for 40-mm fan? - 12 years ago
Thanks, Lazzy. I thought I'd come back here and post the solution that I'm currently using, which is a self-designed rear mount suitable for addition to a Greg Frost x-carriage: See Thingiverse #51068.by Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: Ditching the Print Bottom Plate... Taking Suggestions - 12 years ago
Regpye: I can endorse what you've done. Your website has some nice pics of a sweet build. I'm setting build plate issues aside for a while, but it's surely no fluke that the spring-free are doing so well. Mine sounds much like yours, except I've got a PCB heated bed. 3mm Aluminum, heated bed, clipped glass, kapton tape.by Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: Ditching the Print Bottom Plate... Taking Suggestions - 12 years ago
ben1272 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > You mentioned your battle against warping ABS. Indeed I did. That's a topic that could launch 1,000 other posts, and I'll let it. A temperature-controlled enclosure is on my list of future enhancements. If you start this before I do, please keep us posted regarding your experience. (Another thought: Doesn't a Mendel90 haby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: No enough room below x-carriage for 40-mm fan? - 12 years ago
Thanks, Lazzymonk. I'm now printing with a fan, to my benefit. Best hollow cube I've ever printed. But I'm not entirely happy with my setup yet. First, my Reprap's parent printed out a version of the x-carriage with nut traps that were too small, so my fan is more loosely attached than I would like. Second, I'm losing x print distance to the fan. So, as long as I'm replacing my x-carriage, I'm lby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: Newbie need some help... - 12 years ago
I had trouble with axis directions at first, too. I spent a lot of time with trial and error, changing INVERT_?_DIR and other settings until I took a deep breath and stopped to think about what was going on. The reason that your axes are only going in one direction is that your firmware is concerned about the endstops, which are absent. My advice would be to try this: 0. Put your endstops backby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: No enough room below x-carriage for 40-mm fan? - 12 years ago
Mount. 40mm to 40mm sounds great, since then I won't have to buy a new fan. In fact, putting the fan on an angle using your mount solves my issue with the fan dropping too low. Thanks! Done and done. And in the meanwhile, I can work on a design to combine the usefulness of Greg's x-carriage with the functionality of a fan vent like that found in a MendelMax 1.5. If I ever do that, I'll be back tby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: prusa i1-i2 extruder difference? - 12 years ago
It sounds to me like you don't have the original extruder, but you've got one of the (better) follow ups. If I understand, these extruders follow their own path and are largely interchangeable, and they aren't necessarily tied to a particular Prusa version. In your situation, I'd avoid the wiki, and use YouTube and photos and forums to figure what goes where. The extruder designs are complicatedby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: No enough room below x-carriage for 40-mm fan? - 12 years ago
Thanks, lazzymonk, The light blue mount... are the screws that mount through your blue part and into the carriage at a distance consistent for a 40mm fan? IOW, could I use that design to mount a 30mm fan where I currently have screw holes (in Greg's x-carriage) for a 40mm fan? If so, could I borrow your design files? If not, are your design files something I could modify to fit the x-carriage tby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: Ditching the Print Bottom Plate... Taking Suggestions - 12 years ago
Your spring setup seems neat and clean. I like it. I'm not sure exactly what I'm looking at, though. Is that a nut on what is essentially a 3mm threaded rod? That would be a nice setup to keep the bed in the place without having a machine screw head sticking up into your print area. And are you printing directly on the PCB? And thumb wheel adjusters, what are those? For those that visit this thrby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: Ditching the Print Bottom Plate... Taking Suggestions - 12 years ago
waitaki Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > The problem with ditching the print bottom plate > is 'How to level the bed?' It could be done with > adjustable height bearing holders I guess (if they > existed). They now exist, if a parameterized OpenScad file counts as "adjustable". If I had needed to adjust these, I would have sanded down the ones thatby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: Ditching the Print Bottom Plate... Taking Suggestions - 12 years ago
I've done it! A short slideshow of where I started and where I got to is here. Long story short: I didn't need to provide any extra effort for bed-leveling, beyond just having a well-built, level Mendel to begin with. Why oh why isn't a single-bed design what is laid out on the Wiki? It could have saved me many an hour. Speedymetals.com was a great source, except they hilariously sent my pacby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: Ditching the Print Bottom Plate... Taking Suggestions - 12 years ago
sweaving Wrote: > i would say that using springs gives a crash > buffer! Good point! I wonder how valuable that is. I get the sense that in a crash, the kapton-on-glass layer I have would be ok, but the steppers would strain in a direction they could not go. Who knows if the torque of the the two z-steppers would be enough to do damage to the any of the pieces that would come under straby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: Ditching the Print Bottom Plate... Taking Suggestions - 12 years ago
I plan on taking the "ditch the springs" message to heart. In fact, I'm quite looking forward to ditching them. The tension the produce pushes up on the top build plate, yes, but it also pushes *down* on the bottom build plate, especially on the side with just one bearing. Bed-leveling chaos ensues. I'll concede that the springs were a good tool that allowed me to build an intuition of how highby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
No enough room below x-carriage for 40-mm fan? - 12 years ago
Hello All, I was looking into adding a 40mm fan to my Prusa Mendel i2, when I discovered that the combination of 1) GregFrost's LM8UU X Carriage with Fan Mount (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:9869) 2) Wade Goes Fishing extruder (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5268) 3) J-Head Mark V hotend caused an issue. When I mount a 40mm fan, it drops down further than the hotend nozzle by about 2mm. Soby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: Ditching the Print Bottom Plate... Taking Suggestions - 12 years ago
Thanks for the answers, guys. waitaki: The plan for bed leveling would be to have the springs between the single plate and the PCB. Or, use an appropriate number of washers to get the bed level. I'm not sure what you mean by "single bed recipe". Greg Frost's 18mm blocks look like the stilts you mentioned. Greg: Your aluminum beds are self-manufactured, right? I saw in a different post that youby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Re: during print issue - 12 years ago
Does the print that work well always work well? Do the prints that don't work always fail at the same time in the same way? Answers to these questions would help us troubleshoot. That your printer always runs to an edge is suspicious. Is it always the same edge? A loose wire to a stepper could cause your motor to only move in one direction. Good luck. Keep reminding yourself that the troubleshoby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Ditching the Print Bottom Plate... Taking Suggestions - 12 years ago
So I've had a functional Prusa Mendel i2 doing well the last couple months. I've been printing exclusively with ABS, which means I've been engaged in an unholy war against warping for most of that time. I've made a serious commitment to bed leveling, and I feel that I've progressed as far as I can as long as the following remains true: 1) The Y-axis has LM8UU bearings zip-tied to printed parts tby Karmavore - General Mendel Topics
Slic3r 0.9.3, No Complete Fill on Next-to-Bottom Layer - 12 years ago
Hello All, I'm wondering if the problem described here is one of my own causing, or something that the good Slic3r folks should look into. I'm printing a rail track, and I've attached a photo of the second layer. The print starts with three curved "areas" on the bed. The larger, middle area has been filled in great. However, the two slim tracks off to the side are not getting the 100% fill thatby Karmavore - Slic3r
Re: What's up with the different kinds of bar clamps? - 12 years ago
Thanks Misters Glanville and Six. I appreciate the community support. What's the benefit of getting the Y smooth rods touching the threaded rod with the triffid hunter clamp?by Karmavore - Reprappers
What's up with the different kinds of bar clamps? - 12 years ago
Hey all, Today, I got my first "useful" (i.e., non-calibration) print out of my prusa mendel. It was a bar clamp which I got off the Prusaj github. It looks mostly like this: The version I bought, however, looks like the one on the Wiki (http://reprap.org/wiki/Filem-bar-clamp.jpg). One could "stand the U upside down" because it doesn't have the angled edges. I think my not-entirely-calibratedby Karmavore - Reprappers
Re: How long does it take for the mk2 heatbed to heat up - 12 years ago
I'm here because I'm trying to get my bed to heat up more quickly, too. I haven't been particularly successful. I've got 3mm kapton-covered glass over inverted MK2 PCB (i.e., trace up), and the thermister taped to the non-trace side. I've got a silicon insulator under the PCB (but it's about 15mm smaller than the PCB at every edge). I've got 18 gauge wire to RAMPS 1.4, (with a molex connector inby Karmavore - Reprappers
Re: Plastic Parts from <avdwege2003> - 12 years ago
I'll jump in here and vouch for avdwege2003. I bought some parts from her, and they were excellent.by Karmavore - Plastic RepRap Parts for Sale
Re: Makerbot Endstops / Wiring Kit / RAMPS 1.4 mismatch - 12 years ago
Thanks for your reply. I effectively achieved my successful result by acquiring 4-pin harnesses from old computers, and placing the pins into the appropriate locations when I could, and soldering wire when I couldn't. Modification of the endstop board was never on the table. I didn't know that these harnesses were reusable via these tabs. Ah, well, just another thing I've learned along the way.by Karmavore - RAMPS Electronics
Re: Makerbot Endstops / Wiring Kit / RAMPS 1.4 mismatch - 12 years ago
Thanks for the reply. I take that there isn't something I'm missing; I need to bring the soldering iron out for some endstop wire modification.by Karmavore - RAMPS Electronics