It would requred plugin code similar to that used by smoothstepper. I'm sure someone is working on it but I'm not aware of any working solutions. Keep in mind that Mach3 and Ramps both output step and direction signals so the only reason you would want one to drive the other is if your computer can't keep up. For printing this wouldn't be popular.by dean448 - RAMPS Electronics
1m diameter wheels are too large for lower cost Laser cutters. The wheel and holders could easly be routed out of any non ferus material with a home built cnc router. The issue out when you build it out of sheet stock you will get considerable waste. I guess you could come up with a pattern that has minimal waste buy interlocking the parts... Other then the points mentioned above, haveby dean448 - General New Machines Topics
Trimble to aquire Google Sketchup. Looks like changes to come.by dean448 - 3D Design tools
Upper right is says log in. It will only allow you to save the model in the 123D format until you log in. Must also be on line (new to beta 9), just click on save as and you will see a bunch of formats. The STL models are great quality except for the fact that its not easy to orient the model to 0,0. Maybe someone else knows the trick. I always import the STL out of 123D into netFabby dean448 - 3D Design tools
Checkers, I think you have something wrong with your setup. I'm running a 6 mo old win7 lower priced laptop and see no delays at all. It does take some time to open. I've used it completely off line (not connected to the intranet) with the same performance. However I just checked beta 9 and it won't allow you to save in any other format then .123d when off line. That must have been aby dean448 - 3D Design tools
I don't understand why some admin on this site just create a new category called Standard or most stable platform or most liked by an elite, all knowing, group of members and move this thread, Saving reprap and developent incentive (I think there are only three) to that category and all is good again. Maybe members will again talk about developments in this area. The combination of Standardby dean448 - Developers
I don't believe there is a Mendel90 version in wood but it sounds like a good idea. The acrylic frame could easily be built from good quality plywood, which is far easier then trying to fabricate corner peices in a normal Mendal out of wood. The real question is how could you design a Mendal90 out of wood that doesn't require equipment that most folks don't have? Like a CNC router. So tby dean448 - General Mendel Topics
Someone put this in the comments section of that Hack a day article on saving reprap. Seems to also define the technical politics of those in favor and against the notion of developing standards. Its interesting that this discussion is being posted in a 'Develoment' section. I think it belongs in a 'Standards' section. To quote the always useful WikiWikiWeb: “Standards and methodologby dean448 - Developers
So one of the points somone made on the 'Saving Reprap' thread, which this seems to be a continuation of, is that a standard would help someone new get right into printing without all the issues of sorting through hardware/software. Help the newbie get going right away. The topic links you added to this page are mostly the favorites of late, they also are at the root of all the newbie's questby dean448 - Developers
I believe this thread is pretty much dead, but for anyone interested in reading a richer gamit of responses check out comments attached to that article. Also thanks for that 'slashdot' reference. Looks interesting enough to check on from time to time.by dean448 - General
Let the market progress to a point where you can buy one at your local Target. That won't happen through standardization but hard work by some development orgainzation. Other then the use of metrics is there any true standardization amoung auto manufactures? Probably in some areas where other maufactures supply key components like fuel, tires, batteries, ect. I just don't see that happeninby dean448 - General
I read through the article a few times and couldn't understand what the point was. Maybe just entertainment. Restated a bunch of things from the past like self replicating. Machines have been building machines for a very long time. There needs to be a standard... why? There are parallels to other developments... sure, what the point? The point of this isn't in a name, the software,by dean448 - General
Extractors? you mean extruders? They are the most important and difficult component on these machines. Buying a ready made extruder from an on line company may work just fine. But beware they arn't all good. At least for the established designs there are many points of view that can help you draw your own conclusions. Unlike laser cutting, that is dominate by chinese build components,by dean448 - General
Acetone is not a chemical you want to mess with on a regular basis. PLA is just plastic. I'd go the route of adding a hard coating to it. Problem is that many hard coatings are also not to be messed with on a regular basis... like epoxy. You can brush or spray on a number of the better synthetic wood glues. I guess it all depends what you are trying to accomplish.by dean448 - Printing
I have been using 123D for four months. Works great for the design of printed parts. STL files work great. There is a design tools section in this forum. Let us know what you think.by dean448 - Reprappers
I've designed them at 14.5 point to point and when cold they are too tight. Imerse the PLA part in a cup of near boiling water for about 10 seconds and press the bolt head into the recess of the gear. Make sure you don't distort the gear while you press it. Run it under cold water and its back to full stiffness. I use 5/16" bolts.by dean448 - General
My mistake your subject misled me to believe you were trying to find something to hold up to the high temperatures at the hot end. It should do fine above that but you realize that if its part of the structure it also must be structurally strong. Glues are normally used to bond two surfaces that are close to each other but I'm not to sure they are well suited to being cast in to a block or somby dean448 - General Mendel Topics
I tried JB Weld once and found that it wouldn't take the high temperatures very well. I then tried a material used for muffler sealant and got a short or open in the circuit which scrapped the entire hot end. Then went to resistors as a heating source for the hot end and gave up the glues forever. Save youself time and effort and skip the glue.by dean448 - General Mendel Topics
First off I'm printing PLA at 170. I was printing on a cold bed with double sided carpet table. The goal was to get maximum bond to the surface to reduce warping on long parts. It kind of worked but I could see deformation on the first 5 layers of the edge against the bed. So I picked up a heated bed which everyone says isn't require for PLA. Now I know thats BS. Running the bed atby dean448 - Printing
The upper end of the extruder is pretty straight forward. Since you mentioned CNC, I built my first set of gears on my cnc router with a 1/8" dia bit. You just have to manually cut into the roots of the teeth with a small saw. I used a band saw, you might be able to use a coping saw. The goal is for the stepper to drive a 11 to 39 reduced shaft where the filiment is pinched against the shaftby dean448 - Reprappers
You could try running a small pin drill into the tip when its hot to try to break up the blockage but if that doesn't work you will need to take the hot end apart and clean the nozzle out from the inside. These Makergear hot ends are probably good when they work but total rebuilds when they fail. I know this isn't any help but in my design, where it uses a heater block, I can simply unscrew thby dean448 - Printing
Makes sense since 5/16 is 62 microns smaller then the inside of the bearing, which is a significant amount of clearance for a bearing, especially if it were important to have stiffness in all radial directions. So sliding up and down would be sloppy, but how about loading in one direction like in the case of the Y axis - extruder?by dean448 - General Mendel Topics
So I'm sure all these packages have the capability to clean up models, scale, reposition, ect. I use netfabb on every model to make sure its oriented properly prior to slicing. However lets say you had a counterbore that you would like to make larger. in the orginal model you can easily push/pull on that feature and change size. Do any of these modelers allow you to do something like thatby dean448 - 3D Design tools
This is a bit off topic but I've always used Stanley tape measures. on a quick internet search of US companies like McMaster Carr they do not sell a pure metric tape. Everything is inch/mm. They do have a metric only in a lufkin brand. I guess there is simply no precieved market for a metric only tape in the US. I stopped in a Rockler store lately and same story.by dean448 - General Mendel Topics
I've often wondered about this. Sofware I have builds STL from a model but won't go from an STL to a model. You can push and pull triangles around but not much more. I basically measure features and reproduce them in a fresh model. Any other methods?by dean448 - 3D Design tools
You can't get much metric at your local home center in the US but McMaster carr supplies it. 8mm and 5/16" are pretty close is LU8MM too loose on 5/16"? 'Loose' like it actually affects performance, or is this just being picky? Having grown up in a world with feet & inch we have come a long way. Most cars are now metric, I think. Most manufactures are designing in metric. unfortunby dean448 - General Mendel Topics
A far as the design tools most folks in this site seem to like openscad. Basically you define objects using code and create a STL file. They are even talking about more automated way to go from openscad to a printer. I work on code during the day, and would rather not have to do it as a hobby, so I use one of the many free design packages called autodesk 123D. This site has design sectioby dean448 - Reprappers
Hello Stefan, PLA and ABS are the two materials commonly avaliable for these machines. I'm sure folks have tried others but they havn't become popular. Surface finish is a function of nozzle size. Smaller nozzles give you smoother surfaces but at higher print times. Most folks try to make the print either functional for some reason or try for some look. The goal is not normally to get theby dean448 - Reprappers
a mil is 25 microns and also a thousanth of an inch. We typically print in layers of 300 microns but refer to that as .3mm Most industries who deal with close tolerance parts work in microns. I don't know anything about the cube but you will find that the folks on this forum are mustly 'build it' types. As long as that makes sense we will continue to build vs buying. Remember Heathkit hereby dean448 - General
I can only compare Sketchup to Autodesk 123D. I gave up on sketchup for a number of reasons. I can't knock it for drawings buildings and layouts but when it came to small mechanical components like pulleys, struts and small frame members I got frustrated. It doesn't like small designs in the mm range, adding radii around 3D countour was impossible, I don't like that the SLA export is an addby dean448 - 3D Design tools