Show all posts by user

Wanhao Duplicator I3 shuts down - 1 year ago

I have a Wanhao I3 that worked well printing ABS with it in an enclosure. Suddenly it has heated up to the correct temperature for the nozzle and the bed, and as soon as it reaches temperature both temperatures start dropping as the heaters turn off and it never moves. It homes all axis correctly and I can move it around to level the bed. This is the G-code generated by Simplify 3D for the star

by garyhlucas - General

High quality extruder head - 4 years ago

It has been several years since I looked into 3D printing. I bought some Reprap parts and had 2 major electronic failures which turned me off. I also started lost foam casting in foundry set up an old friend gave me. 20 minutes foam cutting on my CNC mill, overnight drying of drywall coating, 30 minutes of heating and pouring and I have a real aluminum part that can weigh as much as 16 lbs! How

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Trying to make my Wanhao I3 Heater Cartridge easily-detachable, can't figure out wire gauge for connectors - 6 years ago

Strip the wire longer, bend it tightly 180 degrees and insert in crimp connector. It is all about filling the connector barrel not about the shape of the wire.

by garyhlucas - Prusa i3 and variants

Re: GT2 belt types - 6 years ago

Some types of belts are available with kevlar reinforcements. Very high tensile and softer than steel going around pulleys. However they do not tolerate being pinched tight which will break the fibers.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Printer fire hazard - 6 years ago

I bought two cylinders so I can test fire it. After puncturing cartridge I will bubble test for leaks. Might have to use locktite on cylinder threads for long term. Simple weight check to be sure it hasn’t lost any. CO2 won’t damage printer. Yes the metal cabinet may snuff the fire but lives are at stake not just the printer. Yes there will be a smoke detector too.

by garyhlucas - General

Printer fire hazard - 6 years ago

I have been very worried about a printer fire for overnight printing. So I got a metal double door wall cabinet (came with feet too) to enclose the printer. Still you could have a fire potentially producing a lot of smoke which would be bad. I think I have a cheap solution. I got an old style CO2 bike tire inflator turned from aluminum. I am going to plug the end that attaches to the tire tube wi

by garyhlucas - General

Re: DC Barrel Jacks - 6 years ago

Quotejcamp For DC connectors at 10 amp look at Anderson Powerpole pp15 The power pole connectors stack up too. You can make multipole connectors of any size. The contacts are spring loaded and have wiping action that cleans the contacts when they make and break. Not to mention they are rated for 600V and are available in ratings to 600 amps for those of you powering your printer from a fork

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Which printer to build for abs? - 6 years ago

Practically fire proof, and the fumes given off during burning are cyanide gas!

by garyhlucas - General

Re: ABS printing suggestions - 6 years ago

No, It isn’t just to look at. It wil be installed in a real pump body and tested for flow. Is PETG stronger than ABS when printed? I bought some to try.

by garyhlucas - General

ABS printing suggestions - 6 years ago

I got my 14 yr old grandson a Wanhao Duplicator I3 for Christmas along with Simplify3D. He got it working on his own and I am impressed with how well it prints. It has a heated bed and he has printed some small parts in ABS he modeled in Inventor and they came out very and were quite strong. Simplyfy3D settings were nearly perfect as far as how the parts look, and measure. He has printed some

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Mini Mills, Bench Mills. Cutting aluminum extrusions square. - 6 years ago

You will find having a minimill extremely useful. I can vouch that LMS is a good company to deal with and are basically the only company with a stock of replacement parts for their mills and others. I have purchased parts and accessories only. The Grizzly is fine too. In machining repeatability is more important than accuracy in most cases. The extrusions themselves make great gauges. You can ea

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Profiles diameter for aluminium frame - 9 years ago

There is only one naturally stiff shape. A triangle. You drive over a large bridge, what do you see? Did they make all those triangles because they thought it look cool? Look up at the ceiling beams in Home Depot. Why didn't they just make rectangles, it certainly would have been easier? You were impressed by 30mm vs 20mm stiffness. Do you have any idea of how much stiffer a rectangular frame o

by garyhlucas - Extruded Aluminum Frames

Re: 1 Meter bot project - 9 years ago

Yep, I may sound a little negative, however my comments are in fact little hints about what they may be doing wrong without a dissertation on it. What you learn on your own sticks much better than what you are taught. So I'd like to see this thread continue as well.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: High temp sealant review - 9 years ago

Most really high pressure seals are metal on metal. The nozzles really need to be designed wit a tapered metal to metal seat to prevent leaks.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Aluminum Extrusion Supplier - 9 years ago

Take a look at Palleti. Very wide range of shapes, will custom cut as well.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: 1 Meter bot project - 9 years ago

I'm only guessing, but it looks like you still don't understand the meaning of stiff.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: 1 Meter bot project - 9 years ago

If you claim a positioning accuracy of 0.005" then the deflection had better be much less than that or combined with lots of other factors you can't possibly get that kind of accuracy. Note that deflection in the frame will produce a position error that will be huge for small parts and probably much less for very large parts.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: 1 Meter bot project - 9 years ago

Quoteo_lampe I´m wondering how such a huge frame is getting along without any diagonal struts? They would reduce the load on all the vertical struts alot... -Olaf It seems that no one teaches basis physics or mechanics anymore. The comment "seems very ridgid" is really reassuring. I'll bet they don't own a dial indicator or else don't know how to use it. Please mount a dial indicator on a trip

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Looking at building a Large FDM - 9 years ago

Thanks James, The mill is both vertical & horizontal and has an R8 spindle and a router spindle. It also has a lathe tool post behind the spindle and a 7x12 stepper driven lathe bed for turning. There is also a 3d printer head and 12" square heated bed, but haven't got that working yet as all the Reprap parts I bought were complete junk.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Looking at building a Large FDM - 9 years ago

Okay, I've bee working on a fairly large Delta printer for about a year now. All design is done in SolidWorks. I have virtually all the materials and have cut all the extrusions and machined some of the frame parts. It is being built on the home built CNC that I have attached a picture of. So far about $1200 invested. The basic parameters were that it needed to pass through a standard 36" doo

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Clip-on extruder - have anyone done this before? - 9 years ago

Take a look at Millmax spring loaded connectors

by garyhlucas - General

Re: How to turn useless extruder driver to second axis motor? - 9 years ago

If the drivers could handle the current from two identical motors in parallel I see no reason at all why it wouldn't work. In fact unless one lost a full step they would likely stay in perfect synch. I've had DC drives running three motors in parallel for at least 20 years on machines I have built. The drive is simply rated for the total current needed for three motors. I've also done motors in

by garyhlucas - General

Re: What will 3D printing be in 20 years? - 9 years ago

We will go to the other planets in ships 3d printed from nickle iron material mined from asteroids. Without weight that causes sagging or atmosphere to contaminate the material and with intense sunlight to power a large KW laser, they'll be able to build ships of any size as freighters between the planets. The missing piece is fusion power. We need fusion power to end our earth side energy prob

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Nozzle material - 9 years ago

Actually diamond would likely be excellent. It is a non-conductor of electricity, but conducts heat better than copper! They make water jet nozzles with diamond. Looks like you could get one for about $450. Not too bad if it works better and literally lasts forever.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Possible fix for ATX low voltage shutdown - 9 years ago

Those ATX power supplies are switchers designed to power electronic loads not inductive loads like motors. When you decelerate a couple of axis at the same time the motors act as generators and push the power back.to the power supply driving the voltage way up. This why they trip. My linear power supply with a large transformer, hefty diode bridge, and big filter caps absorbs that voltage surge

by garyhlucas - Reprappers

Re: Ammissible deflection in 3d printing - 9 years ago

Get yourself a cheap dial indicator and measure the actual deflection at various places with a small amount of force. I think you'll be shocked at far it actually deflects, and you'll likely find that certain parts deflect way more than others. You fix those big deflections first and you'll probably see a big improvement, and not bother with the others. I found this to be true when I was build

by garyhlucas - Mechanics

Re: Need help diagnosing heatbed issue - 9 years ago

I read this kind of post all the time and seldom see mention of a volt/ohm/ammeter being used to troubleshoot. I think everyone in this group needs to recognize these are essential tools needed right from the start of a build. Test the power supply for voltage. Test fuses, wiring for continuity. Test heat beds and nozzle heaters for resistance which gives power requirements and proves they work.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Is a RepRap printer a good fit for someone with a disability? - 9 years ago

Ed, You know what surprises me about your statement about people not being able to afford an electric chair? I wanted one for my dad, and started looking on Craigslist for a used one. I was amazed, there were tons of them at very low prices! I bought a Jet 7 from a woman that had gotten it for her mother through insurance. She said she drove it once around the neighborhood, never used it agai

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Belt failures - 9 years ago

I see your belt has metal tension members. I bet if you check with the manufacturer that the belt is being run around a pulley that is too small in diameter. This bends the tension members beyond their fatigue point and they fail quickly as a result.

by garyhlucas - General

Re: Sitall glass for heat-bed without any kapton, glue, etc. - 9 years ago

I see mention of Kapton tape being difficult to put down with bubbles and wrinkles. Has anyone tried using soapy water and a squeegee like is used to put vinyl labels on? You can reposition the lables until you squeegee out the water.

by garyhlucas - For Sale