You set the driver to supply the current that the motor is rated for, or maybe a little less. The driver sends current through the motor in pulses that average to the value you set (the rated current for the motor). Motor torque is mostly a function of current. The current and torque spec for a motor are based on the temperature rise that that current produces. If you exceed the rated currentby the_digital_dentist - General
Have you calibrated the extruder and the steps/mm for all axes yet? What material did you use and what were the temperature settings for the extruder and bed? Do you use bang-bang or PID temperature control? Did you tell the slicer to retract filament on layer changes?by the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
see calibration guideby the_digital_dentist - Mechanics
You could get a 24V fan. They aren't hard to find or expensive... A quick check on ebay finds several sellers selling them for $3-5.by the_digital_dentist - Controllers
You don't have to pull the USB cable, you just eject the card by right clicking on it and selecting eject. If you're using pronterface you can reset the smoothieboard by sending the "@reset" command. As an alternative you can simply pop the uSD card out of the smoothieboard and edit its contents on your computer then plug it back into the smoothieboard. I believe you can also access and edit tby the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
Smoothieware is fully compatible with Marlin. In Slic3r, you select Marlin type gcode. It works. It also works fine with Cura. I slice with Cura all the time- there's no need to change anything in Cura. Calibration is not dependent on firmware. You still have to set steps/mm and calibrate the extruder the same way you do with any other firmware. The only difference is that all the configby the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
Maybe. It will modulate the speed of the belt/extruder carriage which will modulate the thickness of the plastic line being extruded. That will show up as a visible defect in the surface of the print, though it may be difficult to pick that particular defect out when mixed with other common surface defects. It probably won't hurt the strength or accuracy of the part much unless the pulley is rby the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
When you slice for smoothieware, you use the marlin/repetier gcode option. If the smoothieboard is behaving strangely in spite of checking and rechecking everything, try using a different uSD card. I had some problems getting it working initially because it couldn't read the card reliably. I got a new uSD card and all the problems magically disappeared.by the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
That looks a lot like the X axis I built for my machine- It uses a linear guide screwed to a 1" square aluminum tube with printed NEMA-23 motor mount and belt tensioner. It isn't really very difficult or expensive to make in any length you need, and the linear guide will perform better than wheels riding on an aluminum extrusion. You can pick up used linear guides with matching bearing bby the_digital_dentist - General
Linear guides have holes drilled in them at regular intervals. They normally drill them for cap screws, but you can use any screw with a head and lock washer that will fit. All you need is a flat surface to screw them down. If you're doing 3D printing, it's time for you to get better with CAD- only printing other peoples' stuff gets old, fast. Start by modeling the rail and bearing block thatby the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
How will you get the printed part to release from the screen? I think it will work, but you'll have to figure out how to keep the screen flat even when the plastic is shrinking and pulling on the wires. I think you're going to have to replace the screen with every print. You can print on unheated PIR foam. I've done it with ABS and it works fine, but haven't tried it with any other material.by the_digital_dentist - General Mendel Topics
That looks like a lead screw. The screw should only move the X axis or undercarriage plate up and down- the lateral shift is probably caused by slop in the bearings that ride on the guide rails that should be parallel to the screw(s), and possibly slop in the bearings that the extruder carriage rides on, and possibly flex in any of the guide rails. There's no way to predict any or all of that sby the_digital_dentist - Mechanics
Why can't the screw be replaced? Is it welded to something? The fix for a bent screw is to replace it with one that isn't bent. Threaded rods commonly used for the Z axis in 3D printers are always bent. Using lead screws eliminates problems caused by bent threaded rods. Lead screws are pretty cheap- see here: There is no good reason to use threaded rods instead of lead screws.by the_digital_dentist - Mechanics
it's probably the cookies in your browser.by the_digital_dentist - General
Yes, acceleration and deceleration. You can check it by setting it to a ridiculously low value and running the printer.by the_digital_dentist - General
If your budget allows, this type of thing is about the best you can get: I have linear guides in X and Y axes and there is no detectable play at all.by the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
It sounds like the wiring to the heater is intermittent.by the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
When the extruder stops heating, does the machine stop or just keep going as if there is nothing wrong? Did you also check connections to the heater? If the thermistor failed you'd see an error message on the LCD (if you have one), but an open heater wire wouldn't show up at all and the thing would keep trying to print while the extruder chewed a divot into the filament.by the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
Check your acceleration and jerk settings in the firmware. If they are too high it can cause that sort of shifting, especially if the bed moves in the Y axis (higher moving mass- problems show up here first).by the_digital_dentist - General
QuoteDRobs86 Is it possible that heat warped the stator poles causing them to press upon the rotor? Should the stator poles and rotor make slight contact or no contact at all? Yes, possible, and no, they definitely should not touch. Kudos for sourcing scrapped industrial parts! My machine wouldn't exist without them, many sourced via ebay.by the_digital_dentist - General
2 out of 4 motors are unusable? The supplier obviously has zero quality control. I'd say you'd better find a better motor supplier (which shouldn't be too hard considering how awful the one you bought from is). If the shafts won't turn it seems most likely it's because the bearings and rotor axes are not lined up. Make sure the bearings are pressed all the way into their fittings, and of courby the_digital_dentist - General
Yes, if it's a hot-end cooling fan (not a print cooling fan), you can just wire it directly to 12V and it will run all the time. You still have to figure out why turning on the hot-end fan turns on the bed heater. I'm guessing a wiring error...by the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
The hot end turns on and off depending upon the temperature, so the fan would do the same, and may not keep the cold side of the heat-break cool enough if it doesn't run continuously. I used that for printing ABS for a long time and it mostly worked, though I did have to clear jams occasionally, but I would not trust it for PLA filament at all. It is best to just wire the fan right to 12V so itby the_digital_dentist - Reprappers
Stuff like that would require a lot of support material in an FDM printer, and breaking it off without destroying the model would be very difficult. FDM can do a lot of things, but not everything.by the_digital_dentist - General
You usually have to tell the firmware how large the bed is in each axis. Maybe it needs to be updated? If the firmware is right then maybe it's the way you're slicing- the slicer also needs to know how big the printer is in each axis. If the home position is off the bed, you can enter it as a negative coordinate(s).by the_digital_dentist - General
I would look at mechanical factors such as play in any of the bearings, flex in the X and Y guide rails and play in the extruder carriage and overall frame flexure. You shouldn't have to relevel/zero the bed with every print. When you recalibrate the bed, are you adjusting the zero position or are you releveling it or both?by the_digital_dentist - Mechanics
Here's a clear view of the plate that supports the Y axis linear guides in my printer: Here's a CAD drawing of Y axis as I actually finished it: The two pink bolts are the screws that attach the Y axis to the machine's frame. You can see the Y axis bolted to the frame here: You can see the whole thing here: Son of MegaMaxby the_digital_dentist - General Mendel Topics
Orthogonal axis compensation (which should more accurately be called nonorthogonal axis compensation) doesn't keep the bed lifting screws synchronized. It compensates for poor axis alignment and makes the same assumptions that autotramming does- that the bed plate is flat and that it will remain at a constant XZ and YZ angles throughout the print (and assumes that the angles between X, Y, and Zby the_digital_dentist - Mechanics
Quotemdcompositi I have 250x300 bed, when I calibrate it with the four springs in the corners, I start a print and all work well! the next print, or when z axis move simply, need a new little calibration! belt is tensioned ad all work good!! what do you think about? Are you saying you have belt synchronized screws lifting the bed? How are the screws anchored- can they move up or down in the enby the_digital_dentist - Mechanics
Quotemdcompositi In the case of three threaded rods and one motor, do you think that an autobedleveling use with inductive sensor can solve the problem of synchronization? Auto-tramming does absolutely nothing for syncing the screws. All it does is level the bed so the first layer will stick. It relies on three assumptions: that the screws will remain in sync after auto leveling is done, and tby the_digital_dentist - Mechanics