Tank3d printer build

[Boyan Silyavski]

Today was a busy day, but while resting managed to finish printing a couple of popular cable guide chains and found that not one is working properly. Mehh, i was not into designing a cable guide but it seemed that i had to. Luckily having the printer at hand i did some prototypes and at the end i have sth that i am very proud of. Its strong, impossible to break and to break apart using normal force by hand and most of all moves freely cause i left the necessary clearances. if i further compromise a mm or two and make it bigger here and there , i can make it even to be printed assembled, though dint see reason to do that for now as its good as it is.

I wanted a cable chain not that i could not use just the proper flex cable, but because i would lke to be easily scalable, that means all has to be perfect from the beginning. So later just scale and do.

About the bed. Any idea what heating wire i could use to achieve the proper 0.4w per cm2? 12VDC , 24VDC or even better 230VAC ????? I would like to route the aluminum with channels and insert the wire from below. Certanly sb will know a silicone wire or similar that could do the job, instead of the ugly silicone pads?







in case anybody is wondering that is the proper way to print a cable chain links, i tried all possible today and thats how they are printed strongest:




Ok to be more exact like that:





By the way i would like to remind you that this will be open source so if sb needs some CAD, meanwhile i am finishing the drawing just drop me a line. I draw in Nx and can send you solids.

[magicniner]

It would be nice if the hot end could deal with printable wax, speaking as a man with a furnace or two ;-)

[Boyan Silyavski]

It would be nice if the hot end could deal with printable wax, speaking as a man with a furnace or two ;-)

Of course, speaking as a man also with a furnace or two :-)

But isn't that possible with the e3d hotend? I thought of using wax PLA filament with my neew printer, so when heated in furnace is similar to wax and dissapears. Or yo mean extruder head where wax is melted and injected into nozzle? I think that bearing will support similar setup plus there is almost none overhang if you look at pictures from side

[magicniner]

Of course, speaking as a man also with a furnace or two :-)

But isn't that possible with the e3d hotend? I thought of using wax PLA filament

I was thinking of this -

http://www.machinablewax.com/product.php?product=52

- Nick

[Robin Hewitt]

Too late for updates, 40 minutes to go

[Boyan Silyavski]

I was thinking of this -

http://www.machinablewax.com/product.php?product=52

- Nick

Exactly. On my to buy list. Anything similar in EU? Or a supplier here?

Too late for updates, 40 minutes to go

NIce. The update did not work well. To loose. Its a challenging little thing this link, either is too strong , either too weak. It breaks easily or is next to impossible to assemble. I manage heating it but sb else could find that impossible. So still not 100% right . Though works quite fine once assembled and if printed from nylon or a just a bit flexible plastic that will not be a problem.

[Boyan Silyavski]

At the end after a couple of experiments managed to finish 100% the design of the chain. So now clicks easily, moves right, prints right and most of all attaches link by link flawlessly without any breakage. Anyways i used again hot water to click them, this time all went very nice.

Meanwhile managed to find realistic drawing of the 8x8x2 / 4 start screw in step, which was not perfect and after a lot of fiddling have the nuts 8mm 4 start and 2 start x 2mm pitch in 100 realistic drawing read to print. Very important aspect of all this project is that parts are 100% realistic represented.

Took me a whole day but managed to send a file from Openscad to FreeCAD and from there to ifus, import the Igus in NX11, sew the surfaces while importing and finish with an usable for customization solid model part.Phew... Nuts printed well as seen on picture. Also the chain.






Finished drawing the Z motors and the mounts. Mounts are designed so that will space precisely the motors in all directions





Table design include 2x motors and belts..etc. This is due to the whole idea behind that model to be able to scale bigger easily. Without any actual change of design. Apart from lengths of elements. So to be truly parametric design. Plus motors are cheap, Z plate will be cast and trully from what i see / the printer i am testing/ this is where all designs i have seen suffer. I dont see what is the big deal to include second motor and for mere 20-30 euro more to have no problem with acceleration of the plate. There are cheap signal multiplexers? that make one signal for 2 motors / if board will not support it/, etc.

Anyway most possibly my printer will be at least with closed loop if not with servos. maybe i will build one to see how it goes with cheap motors first.




Now the big question for me is the table plate.

i know i will be cast aluminum >6mm. I made it bigger so it accepts 2 cheap 200x200 heated beds. I will see if i can make it as i said using heated cable or resistors or sth similar. I will isolate it from bellow using special paper and then sheet.

But what small plates i use to connect the heated 100C plate to the bearing blocks???? Rigid connection, no fiddling with adjustable screws and springs? Something that will stand to 130 degree, that will not change dimension, so i make a precise connection. And most importantly willnot transmit heat to the bearing blocks.

Not that the bearing blocks can not be ordered for a couple of dollars to be heat resistant / bronze instead of plastic/ but i would like to be usable with normal bearing blocks, not special. Any ideas of materials? have to be easily obtainable and DIY at least by me.


The whole model starts to look deceptively simple but it was a lot of thought and different approaches tried, drawn and then discarded.

[Robin Hewitt]

By the way i would like to remind you that this will be open source so if sb needs some CAD, meanwhile i am finishing the drawing just drop me a line[/B]. I draw in Nx and can send you solids.

Can you send me this as a .stl file
I don't need cable chain, I am just curious if my prints come out the same as yours.

[Boyan Silyavski]

Can you send me this as a .stl file
I don't need cable chain, I am just curious if my prints come out the same as yours.

Here are how parts come from the printer i use now, meanwhile waiting for the Prusa MK2. I use PlA 3d850, setting same as normal PLA but 230C instead of 200C, 50% infill, 0.4mm nozzle, 40mm/sec as the printer is very wobbly. Outside rectilinear. Parts are very strong.




Here are the files that are most possibly final for now. Note that the link still needs work, for now i heat with hot water when mounting together, then use pliers to straighten and when cold works perfectly.


motor mount.stl link.stl belt clamp plate.stl puley mount.stl

[Robin Hewitt]

I am halfway through a print, I will do a couple of links when it finishes