Unfortunately, no. Right after I finished planning this, my PhD moved to an accelerated schedule, and I got a job, so my printer and related projects have been on hold for the last few months. Hopefully in the new year I'll get back to it, but if you try the chip out, let me know how it goes.by TopherMan - Developers
Hey all, I've been interested in Trinamic's TMC2660 stepper drivers. They are high power, high resolution, have some handy features, and generally I'd like to play around with them on a printer. Currently there's a board that integrates at TMC260 chip (a slightly lower-power version), but it's an arduino shield form factor for only one stepper, which is ungainly (check it out here). So, to pracby TopherMan - Developers
Different motors aren't a huge problem. The only thing to watch out for is if you're using a design with two Z steppers connected to one controller, you probably want them to be identical, otherwise one will be underpowered and one might overheat. As long as you make sure each controller is properly tuned for its individual motor, you're set!by TopherMan - RAMPS Electronics
So I have the nozzle working well with a liner I made from mcmaster part number 8547K22. I have enough left over for a bunch more liners, so if you're looking for one, PM me and I may be able to ship you one for cheaper than buying a foot of material and making it yourself.by TopherMan - General
Hey all, I have a Budaschnozzle 1.3 (or maybe 1.2, I don't remember). I got it for 3mm filament, and it looks like I need to switch to 1.75mm filament. Lulzbot's site only lists a liner for the 2.0 (which is out of stock). When I contacted them, they said that the 2.0 is just a bit longer, and would work if I cut it down, but they don't carry it anymore because they had to ream out the ID by hanby TopherMan - General
Oh, good point DaveX, you'd have to calculate and set the acceleration and speed with each move, as well as the positions. Plus like you said, it assumes you start and stop at V=0, so you'd have to come to a stop at the end of every segment like the really old firmwares. I wonder what sort of uses this chip is put to, you need a microcontroller to use it, and it doesn't do anything that a microcoby TopherMan - Developers
Hmm, interesting project. I'm inspired to play with the TMC2660 drivers now. However, I was looking around your site and couldn't find what motion controller IC is used. It's labeled as 4361 on the block diagram, but I can't find any motion controller chips with that number. Also, I'd like to see how your motion control is done with these chips, but can't find any code anywhere. You say open souby TopherMan - Controllers
Disclaimer: this is basically thinking out loud. I suspect the idea would not add any features not already present in current electronics packages, and definitely won't be cheaper than what exists. I'm just curious if it would be a viable system or not. So I was reading about the Tbone beaglebone cape (over here: ) and while I have mixed feelings about the board, the Trinamic chips are interestiby TopherMan - Developers
I have the same thing happen, and I don't believe that there is currently a way around it. Thankfully, you can just leave them there--all that will happen is a few small strings to pull or cut off when the print is complete. It's not going to cause print failures. If it really bothers you, you can open an issue for it on Cura's github, but since Cura is under pretty active development, it may notby TopherMan - Reprappers
Aaah, that's good to know. The issue wasn't the actual product, it was with people ordering stuff and never receiving it. I guess it's a small enough order I can risk it.by TopherMan - Delta Machines
Two quick notes: First off, the search function automatically limits searches to posts in the last 30 days, so if you don't find what you're looking for, do an advanced search and broaden the time. Second, I've had my eyes on that bed for a while, but there has been some significant problems with TrinityLabs, see here: I think some people have had good experiences, but a lot have not. Just a lby TopherMan - Delta Machines
Hmm, here in the states McMaster is my choice. I don't know what their Canadian shipping cost is, or if there's a Canadian counterpart.by TopherMan - Reprappers
I like it! Now to think up cool stuff to post bounties on. QuoteMattMoses What if I just get some cool idea and I say "that's a cool idea, I'd pay $X if someone figured it out and posted the plans" but I don't want to mess with managing a github project? Or maybe for some reason I don't want the files to live on github but instead the wiki, or (heaven forbid!) Thingiverse? Or maybe I want to opeby TopherMan - General
Okay, cool, thanks Noobman. Traumflug, I could, but I already have a decent power supply, and I don't have a spare ATX supply. Minimizing waste and all that. The switch idea is an interesting one, though it wouldn't allow me to turn it on remotely. Plus, this will go on a Rostock, and figuring out an appropriate location for the switch that is unlikely to be accidentally triggered would be trickby TopherMan - Controllers
Hey all, Looking at adding a relay to my power supply so I can switch it on and off through my controller. I found this: which looks promising, but since I'm using a Smoothieboard-relative, I'm running at 3.3V logic. Rather than set up a level shifter and all that nonsense, I think if I switch some resistors around it will work properly at 3.3V logic. If someone wouldn't mind checking my calculby TopherMan - Controllers
Oooh, good thinking. Slight incompatibilities between metric and imperial is helping instead of hurting for once!by TopherMan - Reprappers
Hey all, Working on switching over to a bowden setup in anticipation of my Rostock. Since I already have a 3mm hotend and a big pile of 3mm filament, I'd like to stick with it. I've found some good adapters on Thingiverse, but the one thing that has been unclear is what diameter PTFE tube to get. Some places recommend 3mm ID/5mm OD, and some say 4mm ID/6mm OD. Does anyone have suggestions one waby TopherMan - Reprappers
I'm gonna second the Smoothieboard. Over at their irc channel, I think they said they expect to start selling and shipping non-Kickstarter boards by first quarter next year, so it's a bit of a wait, but not terrible. I have a smoothie-on-a-breadboard and while the wiring is a mess because I made it myself, the actual firmware is very reliable, has lots of handy features, is growing constantly, anby TopherMan - General
I don't use Repetier, but your config file looks okay. Generally, if you have a "spazzing" motor, it means one of the following is happening: 1.) Trimpots are set way too high and thermal shutdown is happening 2.) Trimpots are way too low, and the motor is stalling 3.) Acceleration, speed, or jerk is set way too high and the motor is stalling/binding 4.) Motors are wired incorrectly Since yourby TopherMan - Controllers
I'm also interested in getting some parts together to build a small engraver toolhead. Would the following parts be everything I need for the toolhead to work properly? Diode with Aixiz lens and host Aluminum heatsink Driver circuit I know I can get kits that have all the parts necessary, but I like sourcing individual components so I learn about how they work, and how they all go together. Thby TopherMan - Laser Cutter Working Group
I've been playing around with this and it works well, but I wanted to note something that confused me at first. I compiled Cura from source, so I didn't need the patch. For the "Path to Cura" I originally put /usr/bin/cura (the first result of whereis cura and the command that runs if I just type cura in a terminal), and it didn't work. Uploading an STL on my main computer caused Cura to launch,by TopherMan - Developers
Interesting idea. Also, as an owner of an actual lionhead, I like the name. Looking at it as a product intended for non-technical users, here is what jumps out at me: Firstly, one of the first things laypeople ask me when seeing a 3D printed object for the first time is "Cool! Can you get rid of these lines, though?" Even with fairly low layer height prints (0.2mm) the roughness of the surfaceby TopherMan - General
A lot of people use either superglue or locktite to secure them. The thermal characteristics of these materials probably aren't as good as the thermal tape's, but you only need a thin film, and a lot of the heatsink ends up directly in contact with the chip, so it ends up working at least as well, possibly better. And, it holds it significantly more securely. Just make sure that they are attacheby TopherMan - General Mendel Topics
Looks really nice Bob! Just to make sure I understand the purpose of the 74LS08, does the /ESTOP then let you kill all the motors at once? And is P302 a pushbutton that does the same thing?by TopherMan - Controllers
If you're willing to wait a bit, the Smoothie guys are prepping for a Kickstarter for Smoothieboards (see , don't know when it's actually going to start). They'll be offering the current 4-axis as well as a 5-axis and a 3-axis (for mills and stuff). If you're not willing to wait, you can get an LPCXpresso 1769 board, a RAMPS, a few odds and ends, and a lot of point-to-point soldering you can endby TopherMan - Reprappers
I've been eyeing these as well. It would take some OpenSCAD work to incorporate them into the X motor end and X idler end, but it should be doable. There'd be less friction than the current poor man's anti-backlash nut, and a lower TPI should let you run the Z axis slower. The combination of these two things would make it less likely to overheat the Z motor or driver and let you run it faster, buby TopherMan - Reprappers
Cool, thanks guys! Yeah, the gate drivers worked well on the XpressoSmoothie board, but some recent changes in Smoothie locked down the use of a bunch of pins to I2C and SPI, and unfortunately, they were pins I assigned to steppers. Eventually, I'm going to update the board to fix that, but I think it's going to end up being a tangled mess. So, for the mean time, I wanted to hack something togethby TopherMan - Controllers
In case anyone's curious: just talked to the guys over at the Smoothie irc channel, and it turns out the problem is that the level shifter is the wrong component for the job, since MOSFETs draw such a large current. I'll either add a mosfet driver or just replace the fets themselves.by TopherMan - Controllers
Hey all, Long story short, I'm working on a project connecting an LPCXpresso 1769 with my RAMPS, using some protoboard and a ton of wire. Since the LPCXpresso is a 3.3V board, I decided to use a level shifter to switch the MOSFETs. Unfortunately, it's not working. I'm using this shifter, 3.3V on side A and 5V on B. If I switch the various pins on and off, on the A side (3.3V, connected to MCU)by TopherMan - Controllers