Thanks again - after further reading, it looks like the first spool or two will be used to make structural braces for the frame. I did laugh, reading some of the negative comments on Amazon about the frame flexing etc.. and it never occurred to them that they had the tool in front of them to fix the problems they were moaning about.
That's one of the reasons I was set on getting an aluminium frame: I didn't want any problems in my prints due to a flexible or brittle frame. That and I was really concerned about cracking acrylic due to overtightening fasteners (I can be a bit heavy-handed). After doing much more reading however, it turns out that as long as it's well designed then the fact that it's an acrylic frame is not really a problem. And, as you mention, you can always print parts to fix specific issues . When you're putting together a kit, more printer parts are usually the first thing that people make (aside from test pieces) .
Just got a shipping confirmation for my printer and I noticed the full description states: Free gifts: Filaments+Hotbed +SD card +Tools Aw, yes! I knew I was getting some filament with it, and I expected there might be some cheapo tools in the box, but the SD card is a bonus and hotbed suggests it's a heated print bed afterall!
Sweet! Tho frankly I'd leave the SD card well alone and use one of my own... One I that know isn't potentially loaded with malware!
Well, it does have a heated print bed It arrived today, and I've had about three hours at it - most of which has been spent peeling fcuking paper off the laser cut acrylic pieces. The tops of the lead screws aren't anchored in any way - they just kind sit loosely in holes at the top of the frame - note to self: print some end caps. Just about to make a start on the electronics etc.. [edit] didn't have a choice with the memory card - the assembly instructions are on there.
Excellent . That's pretty normal for the lead screws. If you can find/design some brackets with mounts for bearings it would certainly make things smoother. They're loose in the brackets on my printer too but the tolerances are pretty tight, they don't flap around in the breeze (the smooth guide rods help align them).
I spent five minutes cursing because I thought the lead screws were too short, until I spotted the grub screws on the motor coupling, and realised it was adjustable. Not mentioned in the instructions BTW.
Haha, I had the exact same problem . What I ended up doing was marking the required depth on threads with a sharpie. Initially I had the lead screws mounted far too low in the compression fittings. What I'd *really* like is to get my hands on a set of Z-axis motors which have the lead screw mounted directly into the motor, rather than having to use the compression fittings in the first place.... They exist, but I haven't found any long enough :/. EDIT: Well, ok, everything I've found is either too long or too short, and I don't have the tools here to make a clean cut...
Well, she's built. Cabling needs some work, but that'll come fairly quickly. Byron, I ran the power lead back up the inside of one of the main struts, fastened with a couple of cable clips, mitigating any strain on the PSU terminals. I'll put a plug on it tomorrow and start testing/calibrating. [edit] Pics to follow, once I've tidied up a bit.
Here we go: Was cleaning up last night, and found a part not included in the assembly instructions - turns out to be a auto-levelling sensor. Just started printing my first test cube.
First print complete - 20mm test cube Looks pretty good, although there is a 0.1mm variation in size when measured with my vernier caliper. That might be belt tension, perhaps?
Excellent work . I must say, that's some pretty tidy cable work... Mine looks nowhere near as good! Is it out on all axes, or just one or two? The easiest thing to try is to slow the print speed down and see if that improves your accuracy. If it doesn't then there could be a number of things: it could be belt tension, it could be over-extruding, something might not be aligned correctly...
To paraphrase Chief Brody, "We're gunna need a bigger reel". Print all the things! I've printed some thumbwheels and tools holders for the A8. Where you you get your filament from? I reckon I'll need some different colours. Also - I need to create a collar for the centre of the patio table, to hold the parasol shaft - so all I want to create is a short tube with a flange on the end - any recommendations for easy to use software to create it?
Sketch up with the .stl plugin to convert for use in CURA. It took me about 30 mins to learn how to use it watching a few you tube vids.
Thank you both, I'll have a look. I tried some of those web-based tools and they seem to be universally sh!te.
