RepRap Build

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

Hi all,

I'm building a RepRap Prusa over the next month so I thought I'd share the documentation of my progress here.  I'm still waiting on some parts to arrive but I have most of what I need all set for the build.  

If anyone has any tips on building one or any warnings about easy mistakes and such, please share them.  I'm very inexperienced with electronics so I anticipate a serious challenge in actually getting this to work.

Here's a picture of (almost) all the pieces neatly arranged.

[Dave Head]

cool looking forward to the end result 

i havent put one together but nicely layed out there must of taken abit of time

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[Shane Fitzpatrick]

I built most of the frame today.  It's a very simple frame to build, taking about 90 minutes or so.  Unfortunately, I seem to have mislaid one of the Z rods and my drill bits for widening the x carriage pieces to fit the smooth rods.  This is going to delay the rest of the build for a few days but I'm hoping to put the RAMPS shield together and sort out everything else in the meantime. 

I'm hoping to have the machine up and running within the next 2-3 weeks depending on my workload.

Here's the parts (most of them anyway) laid out again prior to the build.

http://i.imgur.com/2iLjohI.jpg

Here's the frame during the build process.

http://i.imgur.com/KKkeBur.jpg

[Dave Head]

thats coming along nicely 

was wondering would you like to bring the printer the dublins mini maker fair on the 27th of july?

im looking to get a few different 3d printer together under the 3d printing area.

cheers

Dave

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[Shane Fitzpatrick]

I certainly would if I'm still around.  I finish college in June so I'm not sure if I'll be in the country during the summer.  But if I am, I'd definitely like to bring it to the Maker Fair.

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

Update on the build.

Here's the current frame as built.  I still have to build the extruder and assemble all the electronics but it's really coming along.  I plan on getting the RAMPS board soldered at the weekend and have the whole thing moving by next weekend.  If anyone has any tips on soldering a circuit board, I'd be very appreciative since this will be the first time I've soldered anything so intricate.  

I've been timelapse recording the build and will post the full edited version at the end.  Here's the first part.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fh9pbSo0pgE&feature=youtu.be

[Dave Head]

thats looking good what do you think you will use ABS or PLA?

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

I'm going to use PLA mainly but I'll try ABS as well and see which produces a better print.  Which do you use with the Ultimaker?

[Dave Head]

i use PLA ABS shrinks alot but you can get a nice surface with heating acetone and ABS

On 7 March 2013 17:39, Shane Fitzpatrick <shane.fit...@gmail.com> wrote:

I'm going to use PLA mainly but I'll try ABS as well and see which produces a better print.  Which do you use with the Ultimaker?

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[Shane Fitzpatrick]

I saw that on Hackaday, it looks like you can get some very smooth finishes with that.  Do you use a heated bed with PLA?  I've gotten all my pieces printed in ABS using a big Stratasys printer and the warp is visible on one or two of the larger pieces.  It's only on ones of my own design so maybe it's as much about design as material.

--

Shane Fitzpatrick
Dublin Institute of Technology | Bolton St. School of Architecture
E-mail: shane.fit...@gmail.com or C073...@mydit.ie

[Dave Head]

no im not using a heated bed tho i would like to set one up reason being the base would be nice a smooth compared to what it looks like on the tape

[conr]

Looks deadly....

Would love to know how to do the time lapse!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wx7bMF4mYls

Seems to be a pretty good assembly video...let me know if it is relevant, as will be taking guidance from it, and don't want to use it if it is incorrect.

If you are worried about the accuracy, you can always buy a loupe.

http://www.adverts.ie/for-sale/q_loupe/

Best of luck with the rest of the build.

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

I'm using the LapseIt Pro app for Android to take the timelapse.  It's fantastically simple to use and renders the images into a mp4 on the phone. 

I'm using RAMPS 1.3 so I'm finding it hard to get detailed instructions on its assembly.  That video and most others are 1.4 which  more sensible man than myself would have bought instead of the 1.3 shield.  I have a third hand with a magnifying glass so I think that should be enough.  I'm practising fine soldering today and will attempt the board later this evening.  I'll post some images after the fact and let you know how it goes.  

@Dave - I have a heated bed but I'm unsure whether to print onto tape applied to it or to put a sheet of 4-6mm glass on top of the bed and tape on that.  Any recommendations for that?

[Conor Duke]

Cheers for the tips, u probably have this timelapse...but it is ramps 1.3

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lafFI487S_4&feature=youtube_gdata_player

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[Shane Fitzpatrick]

That seems to be one of the only 1.3 videos around.  I'm about halfway through the board now.  My soldering was pretty horrendous at the beginning but I'm getting neater as I go along.  I may have to redo a connection or two at the end.  

Does anyone know where to get a 40 pin female pinheader in Dublin? One of these - http://www.gadgetfactory.net/images/tn_Female_Header_2.jpg

I mashed one of the pins when trying to break it cleanly and am now short a pin for the RAMPS.

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

So, I have the board soldered, except for the two 8-pin headers.  I'm planning to wire everything up as much as I can this week and test it as soon as I get the missing pieces in the post.  I should have the hobbed bolt by the weekend so I'd like to have everything bar the board ready to go then.  College work is getting in the way, I have a big presentation next week so I might have to delay everything a little until after that.  I'll post up pictures of everythin when I get time but it's coming along nicely so far.

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

I've finally gotten back to working on this after taking some time off for college work.  I wired up the power supply today.  I used an ATX 12V PC PSU.  I was pretty nervous plugging it in for the first time, I couldn't find any definitive guides for how to connect it so I used the CPU 2x2 connector and the +12v and ground from the 4 pin HDD connector.  The photos here show my extremely dodgy clipped connections that I used for the first powered test today.  I'll not be using the croc clips as a permanent connection!  On the plus side, no fires.

http://i.imgur.com/qNhN55V.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/aAhuLP1.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/DqTh9ow.jpg

I didn't have the endstops connected so I only had movement in one direction.  Tomorrow I'll test the other motors individually before connecting the endstops and getting the whole thing moving.  I'm waiting on some ribbon cable in the post.  Taking a trick from Nophead's Mendel90, I'm going to use it to wire the heatbed and the extruder to keep things neat.  I took a trip to Radionics today but they had no ribbon cable at all!  I'm mounting the RAMPS on top of the machine using some extra endstop holders I had printed and a piece of perspex I found at home.  This should keep all the wiring neatly out of the way and I can feed the filament through a slot in the perspex.

It's been a very fragmented build so far, lots of stopping and starting and making stuff up as I go along.  It was honestly the best feeling in the world to see it actually move, I was more than a little worried there would be some fresh problem to deal with.  I'll edit the timelapses together and post them over the weekend.

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

Got to test printing today.  It was pretty much a complete failure and I'm not 100% sure why. 

I used a thin aluminium sheet covered in blue painters tape but the PLA just wouldn't stick to it.  I tried scoring it, lowering the Z axis home point, changing the extrusion temperature but it's still a mystery. 

Also, one of my Z axis bars appear to be slightly bent, so that could cause problems going on.  I'll just keep trying different settings and looking around the RepRap forums to see if I can fix the sticking problem.

[Dave Head]

if you can bring it along bring it along to fabri-con can have a look

what i do with the blue tape i use some actone on some bog paper and rub it over the tape take some of the waxy stuff of which helps stick to it.

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[Shane Fitzpatrick]

Thanks, I'll bring it if I can wrap it up well enough against the rain.  I used a metal file to rough up the surface a bit but still no luck.  How close should the print head come to the surface?  I have it at just about 1 layer thickness away from the surface.  The plastic curls away from the tape and ends up as a blob on the nozzle.

[Dave Head]

ah ok

its to high up you should just about get a peace of paper under the nozzle 

On 13 April 2013 15:52, Shane Fitzpatrick <shane.fit...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks, I'll bring it if I can wrap it up well enough against the rain.  I used a metal file to rough up the surface a bit but still no luck.  How close should the print head come to the surface?  I have it at just about 1 layer thickness away from the surface.  The plastic curls away from the tape and ends up as a blob on the nozzle.

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

Odd, I started with it that close and had been slowly moving it away.  Turns out I hadn't tightened one of the nuts on the heated bed springs and the bed was rising up in one corner when I took the level off.  I'll have to park it for the weekend and come back to it on Monday.  Thanks for the help Dave.

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

I think I've found the cause of my bed leveling troubles.  The table itself wasn't level, so I had to prop the front of the printer up and then level the bed again.  I tinkered with the settings for a while and improved the print to an ok standard.  Still some issues with the extruder feed and Z axis but I'm getting there.  My Z axis is squealing on the way down.  I'll oil it and make sure it's aligned right. 

http://imgur.com/xhJdM4w

[Dave Head]

ha reminds me of my 1st prints the bottom one is looking good 

if you can bring it along would be nice to have a goo at it and see 1st hand

On 15 April 2013 21:16, Shane Fitzpatrick <shane.fit...@gmail.com> wrote:

I think I've found the cause of my bed leveling troubles.  The table itself wasn't level, so I had to prop the front of the printer up and then level the bed again.  I tinkered with the settings for a while and improved the print to an ok standard.  Still some issues with the extruder feed and Z axis but I'm getting there.  My Z axis is squealing on the way down.  I'll oil it and make sure it's aligned right. 

http://imgur.com/xhJdM4w

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

Tragedy struck this morning.  By my own carelessness I think I've accidentally shorted one of the stepper drivers while it was printing. I swapped out the Arduino board with another one I have but still no joy.  I connected everything up everything again but I can't jog the axes in any way.  Pronterface just reads 'Cannot write to printer (disconnected?)' and I get the hardware connection sound on my laptop repeatedly. 

This is pretty much a disaster so close to my thesis handup as I need to print quite a few pieces over the next few weeks.  Does anyone have any advice on things to try to make sure it's fried?  Alternatively, can anyone recommend a place to get a RAMPS board and some stepper drivers in a timely fashion?

I was getting a great quality print off it at the time.  I'd finally calibrated it right and was getting good prints from ti and I go and do this.  Just fantastic.

[stevie.d]

Really Hate to hear that Shane and I don't have any directions fro rep rap suppliers Sorry, I wouldn't stress too much though as in a worse case I don't think you''ll be left stuck without a printer. Just Holler

Good Luck,

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

Thanks, I really appreciate the offer.  I might take you up on that next week if that would ok?  I might be able to get mine back up and running soon, but in the meantime I'm going to use the time to work out the stl files for printing.  I'm going to tap the college 3D printer for a timeslot as well.  To rub salt in the wounds, a batch of lovely new filament was waiting for me when I got home.

[Conor Duke]

Hey guys,
My prusa Mendel is complete! Managed to get extruding some basic stuff, but the thermistor keeps burning out!?!?@

I am using klapton tape, but it is still happening, anyone got any advice on how to wrap it properly?

Conor Duke
+353 85 1207729

On 9 May 2013 22:29, "Shane Fitzpatrick" <shane.fit...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks, I really appreciate the offer.  I might take you up on that next week if that would ok?  I might be able to get mine back up and running soon, but in the meantime I'm going to use the time to work out the stl files for printing.  I'm going to tap the college 3D printer for a timeslot as well.  To rub salt in the wounds, a batch of lovely new filament was waiting for me when I got home.

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[Conor Duke]

Tough break on the printer front...ugh!

You could hit up the fab studio in the NDRC, they have some good machines, and would love the press of your thesis

Conor Duke
+353 85 1207729

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

I got the printer sorted in the end.  I've been getting things printed in the 3D printing shop in Rathmines for the last week.  I'm glad to see the guys there making a proper business out of it and I was really surprised that nobody has tried it in Dublin before. 

Can you post some pictures of your hotend?  Is it overheating and burning it out?  That may be a firmware issue, where the max temperature isn't set right.  What firmware and electronics are you using?

[Conor Duke]

Got it sorted...just put it between the brass hotend and the lock bolt.

Was in with Nigel in Rathmines today.

Lovely man and the have a lot of nice kit....

Conor Duke
+353 85 1207729

On 24 May 2013 01:02, "Shane Fitzpatrick" <shane.fit...@gmail.com> wrote:

I got the printer sorted in the end.  I've been getting things printed in the 3D printing shop in Rathmines for the last week.  I'm glad to see the guys there making a proper business out of it and I was really surprised that nobody has tried it in Dublin before. 

Can you post some pictures of your hotend?  Is it overheating and burning it out?  That may be a firmware issue, where the max temperature isn't set right.  What firmware and electronics are you using?

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[Shane Fitzpatrick]

Was it a case of it just working itself free?  My hotend is a J-Head so there's a small hole for the thermistor in the heating block.  The whole assembly looked very neat until I wrapped it 3-4 times in Kapton tape to keep everything in place.  Before that though, the thermistor, being loose in the hole, would just pop out at the slightest provocation.

[conr]

Lads!

I am dying here. 

It was extruding pretty ok yesterday, but today I was messing with the temperatures (as the first 1-2 runs weren't coming out ) and it is a disaster!

I am using PLA and I have tried all ranges of temperatures, but it either bubbles and then spits out to much, or just doesn't come out at all.

Driving me M-A-D.....has anyone got any step-by-step on how to test the correct temparature for the wades extruder?

Thanks

Conor

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

Can you post some pictures of the prints you've tried?  I've had no trouble with PLA from 185 all the way up to 230.

What's your machine set up and where did you get your filament?

[Conor Duke]

Aha, the filament could be the issue! It smokes at 205.....

Thought the temperature was an exact science, but from both you and novels experience it sounds like my pla is pretty poor stuff.

Going to jack it up to 220 and see what happens :-)

Conor Duke
+353 85 1207729

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[Conor Duke]

Also using a wades extruder, should the spring bolts be tight or loose on the inputting end?

Conor Duke
+353 85 1207729

[Shane Fitzpatrick]

You should test a range of temperatures to find what works best.  If your filament has moisture in it, I think you can bake it in the oven at a low-ish temperature for a while to dry it out. 

The bolts on my extruder are reasonably tight.  I use a knurled bolt rather than a hobbed on so I tightened them quite a bit to get a good grip.  Are you having feed issues?

[Conor Duke]

RTFM!

Forgot to put the plastic tube in the nozzle, thought the filament wouldn't fit down it ;-p

Melting out all the burnt gunk today, and hopefully will put the tube in and it should be A-OK!

Thanks for all your help / advice thus far ;-)

On Mon, May 27, 2013 at 9:54 PM, Shane Fitzpatrick <shane.fit...@gmail.com> wrote:

You should test a range of temperatures to find what works best.  If your filament has moisture in it, I think you can bake it in the oven at a low-ish temperature for a while to dry it out. 

The bolts on my extruder are reasonably tight.  I use a knurled bolt rather than a hobbed on so I tightened them quite a bit to get a good grip.  Are you having feed issues?