Dumb Question of The Day on 3D printing

[the_digital_dentist]

I printed a couple items that seem to be mirror images of the files I start from.  Text is mirrored, etc.  I suspect I am running the X axis backwards- does the X-minimum endstop switch go at the right end or the left end of the axis?

[Pete Prodoehl]

Look for INVERT_X_DIR in your configuration file (using Marlin?) and set it to either true or false (flip it and try again.)


Pete

On 5/22/13 9:54 PM, the_digital_dentist wrote:

I printed a couple items that seem to be mirror images of the files I start from.  Text is mirrored, etc.  I suspect I am running the X axis backwards- does the X-minimum endstop switch go at the right end or the left end of the axis?

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[Ed Hagopian]

Yup exactly what Pete said.

[the_digital_dentist]

Do I need to move the x endstop to the other side of the machine?

[Pete Prodoehl]

Maybe...  Where do you want "home" to be?

I know with my MakerGear machine Rick likes his home to be the left/back of the bed, and I wanted the left/front, so I ended up moving my Y endstop from the front of the machine to the back.

Is your x endstop on the left side or the right side (when you're facing the machine)?


Pete

On 5/23/13 3:24 PM, the_digital_dentist wrote:

Do I need to move the x endstop to the other side of the machine? --
 
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[Ray Scheufler]

I don't think so. There should be another setting near the INVERT_X_DIR that tells the printer your endstop is at min / max.  You will need to make sure that you have the proper bed size set in your firmware so that it won't run off the edge.

Ray Scheufler

On Thu, May 23, 2013 at 1:24 PM, the_digital_dentist <mark.r...@gmail.com> wrote:

Do I need to move the x endstop to the other side of the machine?

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[Pete Prodoehl]

Sidenote: I don't use max endstops (does anyone?) because Marlin let's you configure the bed size so that once you home it, it can't go past the max distance. (Same with height on the z axis.)


Pete

[Ray Scheufler]

I don't have endstops on both sides.  I think that one of my endstops is a max because of mounting ease.  I know that my z endstop is a min.

Ray Scheufler

[Ed Hagopian]

I do but that's just because i ripped the clickers out of computer mice, and I had alot of them. and they work great as endstops.

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[the_digital_dentist]

On Thursday, May 23, 2013 3:58:22 PM UTC-5, Pete Prodoehl wrote:

Sidenote: I don't use max endstops (does anyone?) because Marlin let's you configure the bed size so that once you home it, it can't go past the max distance. (Same with height on the z axis.)


Pete

I have found that the firmware read of the rotary encoder is extremely poorly written (or the encoder is a POS, or both) so that when you use manual movement of the axes in Marlin, the printer cannot keep up with the encoder and the position of the extruder can easily mismatch what the firmware thinks is the position.  In that case, it is possible for the extruder to move beyond the software defined endstop and go places it should not.  A hardware endstop is absolute- when that switch closes, the machine will not attempt to go beyond it.

[Pete Prodoehl]

Hmmm, I've not had mine move beyond what I've set in the config file...

But hey, every RepRap is different! :)


Pete

[Ron Bean]

>I have found that the firmware read of the rotary encoder is extremely
>poorly written (or the encoder is a POS, or both) so that when you use
>manual movement of the axes in Marlin, the printer cannot keep up with the
>encoder and the position of the extruder can easily mismatch what the
>firmware thinks is the position.

Doesn't that just mean the jogging speed is too fast?

[the_digital_dentist]

OK, I reversed the X-axis and added another limit switch then tweaked the firmware and the machine now prints the right way.  I'm still trying to get my head around why it was printing backwards when the axes were set up to match the "normal" CAD orientation of the axes.

The fluorescent red and yellow filament I ordered has arrived along with the 5mil kapton tape.  I taped the glass bed and tried a test print last night and it worked great!

I will make another run at the full size skull this weekend, I think, with time-lapse video to go with it.