Sorry for the threadomancy here, but I wanted to share with folks a modification to the "latest stable build" page that I was hoping to get some input on. That page, to be honest, looks a little boring and unimportant. If I were a new member, I think I might miss its significance. I didn't want to change that page without permission, so I put together a version with pictures and brief explanationby Pointedstick - Developers
Okay, I've fleshed out my ideas for a more newby-friendly page at Thoughts? It cold use a bit more text, to be sure, but I wanted to design something a little more inviting and visually appealing than the typical bulleted list with paragraphs of textby Pointedstick - General
Good point, bobc. I've reverted my changes and put up my ideas atby Pointedstick - General
Needs some pictures. I'll post some for the components I have.by Pointedstick - General
Updated.by Pointedstick - General
Have any other folks here used the Printrbot Ubis hot end? I was initially skeptical about their high and might reliability claims, but I have to say, this hot end has really grown on me. I tried many hot end designs before finally settling on the Ubis. I have two machines that have been printing literally 24/7 for months with Ubis hot ends, and I've never once had a jam! These hot ends come assby Pointedstick - General
A sticky FAQ on the forum would be good. Perhaps it could even point to a big page on the wiki for "stable developments" or something like that. Even though there's constant bleeding-edge developments, there are a lot of aspects that are very common and very stable, like heated build platforms, RAMPS, Marlin, J-head, etc. For inexperienced new users who aren't for example interested in milling aby Pointedstick - General
IMHO, this is a case where trying to correct substandard hardware with software tweaks is going to be futile. The pulleys are so important to the motion that it's really worth it to just splurge on some manufactured ones, at least until you have your machine dialed in so well that you can print ones with the accuracy required.by Pointedstick - General
Excellent, that worked!by Pointedstick - Repetier
First of all, Repetier-Host looks like an unbelievable piece of software. Now if only I could get it to work! I have a MendelMax driven by an Azteeg board with Marlin on it operating at 250000 baud. I can use this machine with Pronterface, but I'm having some problems with Repetier-host. When I connect to the machine with Repetier-host, I can tell it's managed to connect because the board powerby Pointedstick - Repetier
Idolcrasher Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Wow, > > Awesome. I will have to give this a shot once I > get all mced into my new home. > > I just spotted a nice looking cheap sanguinololu > derivative: > > r_controller_p/ax13dp.htm > > The Azteeg. It has fan support built in like the > Melzi. It is only $75, very cheap! Tby Pointedstick - General
If you were going to power your RepRap from solar panels, I't want a big beefy marine battery to go with it. Nothing would suck more than having your print abort right in the middle when a cloud passed overhead. Powering a heated build platform would be a challenge too, methinks.by Pointedstick - General
Well hey Sublime, I think the Tantillus looks awesome! The build platform is a bit small for my uses, but I really like the attractive, compact design. It manages to be cool-looking and nerdy without looking like something that came out of a mad scientist's laboratory! I'm also curious about the cabling arrangement you've used for the motion. Looks pretty neat.by Pointedstick - General
Turns out it was a baud rate issue after all. The Mint machine didn't seem to like the existing setting of 250000; as soon as I changed it in the firmware to 115200 and tried at that, the Mint machine connected like a champ. Strangely, the Azteeg continues to work with 250000.by Pointedstick - General
I'm in the process of switching to Linux, but I'm having a problem with one of my machines. I had a Prusa using Azteeg electronics and a MendelMax using RAMPS 1.4 connected to a Mac OS X host, and now they're both hooked to a Shuttle PC running Linux Mint 12. Both of these machines worked with the Mac without issue. But only the Azteeg board connects to the Pronterface on the Linux PC. The Mendelby Pointedstick - General
Backlash is a factor too. You can actually get going *fairly* fast with the right kind of leadscrew, but unless you have a complicated ballscrew nut, the backlash when it reverses direction will be unacceptable. And once you've gone with a balls crew, you've greatly exceeded the cost of a belt and pulley.by Pointedstick - General
If you hold down the shift key while you scroll, it also goes through the layers.by Pointedstick - General
The fact that your prints are messing up in exactly the same place is sort of a hidden blessing, because it will make debugging easier. I would guess your thermistor wires are crimped/held in such away that at the very same place, they're twisted or kinked and they short. See if their insulation has stripped away anywhere, and make sure the crimp connections are clean. About your skipped steps,by Pointedstick - General
If you're looking for a bulletproof reliable hot end, I highly recommend Lulzbot's Budaschnozzle. Of all the hot ends I have in use, they've given me the least trouble by far.by Pointedstick - Reprappers
Polygonhell Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > There is a secondary issue IMO which is it's hard > to assemble a square cuboid out of things like > threaded rod, so most of the gantry designs use > either lasercut parts to make the box or Al > extrusions. I'm not really sure how those align > with the original rep-rap vision. Fairly well, it seemsby Pointedstick - General
glrra19 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > i just got some from lulzbot and they work great. > also, techpalidin , who is pointedstick on here > has some that look the same to me. > both are at good prices. > as far as quality, i think it took out some of the > waves in my prints that > was created by the big teeth going around the > little 6by Pointedstick - Reprappers
You can also cool the drivers with a fan. There's sort of an art to this process, since if you turn the drivers down too much, the motors won't have the torque they need to go at high speed and you'll need to slow down to prevent skipped steps. But if they're up too high without active cooling, they'll periodically shut down to prevent themselves from melting, thus causing skipped steps!by Pointedstick - Reprappers
I've used 0.5 and 0.35 nozzles extensively, and here are my impressions: 0.5 mm nozzle - stronger parts (because infill lines are thicker and adhere better to one another) - faster printing (because infill lines' increased thickness means fewer of them are needed to achieve a given density) 0.5mm nozzle cons - corners not as sharp as prints with 0.35mm nozzle - top surface finish rougher and leby Pointedstick - Reprappers
tstrandberg57 Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > There's a UI for Slic3r for Ubuntu? How do I > access it? > > pete-theobald Wrote: > -------------------------------------------------- > ----- > > You don't need to integrate slic3r with > > pronterface. You can run it directly and it has > a > > nice gui. It saves gcode to theby Pointedstick - General
QuoteThe article Only solid printing is permitted, ensuring very strong printed parts, but also using more material. The software does not provide an option to select a density percentage. Yikes, that sounds terrible. This thing will be mega slow. It's also kind of funny how 0.17mm layer height is touted as if it's some kind of achievement for a commercial 3D printing companyby Pointedstick - General
Good USA sources include Ultimachine, ProtoParadigm, and TheFutureIs3D.by Pointedstick - General
This is a noble idea, but study the OLPC project and learn what went wrong with it. If you've never been to a 2nd or 3rd world country, go there. 3D printing is great, but it's an amazing luxury even in a 1st world country. People in developing or underdeveloped countries need stable and safe supplies of food and water, reliable electricity and sanitation, less corrupt governance, more modern traby Pointedstick - General
Very interesting. Have you needed to lower your acceleration?by Pointedstick - General
If you're looking for an alternative to blue tape without moving to a heated bed, try a piece of acrylic. I've had great results printing PLA directly on the surface.by Pointedstick - General