Metallic Blue Build Thread

[hernejj]

I received my 12" i3v kit today. The primer is drying now. Here is a preview of the paint job.

[Cameron]

Cool. I did a metallic grey that looks great (except for the brown maker farm extruder parts). I just printed some blue parts in ABS so at some point I will make it so that it all matches. I am going for a grey metal blue theme.

Good luck with your build!

[printbus]

That should look great. Enjoy the build.

[hernejj]

Paint Job
The paint I used was "Rustoleum Metallic" in "Cobalt Blue". 1 coat of primer, 2 coats of paint. There are a few flaws in the paint job, but they add character .


X-carriage
Unless I missed something, according to the build videos, one of the non-adjustable delrin idlers on the X-carriage is mounted using a washer and the other is not. This leads to one side being slightly taller than the other, and thus, a slight tilt in the extrusion. I'm not sure if this causes a problem, but adding a washer to the other side levels it right out.


As measured by micrometer:
The distance between the wood surface of X-carriage and the underside of the delrin idler:
With the kit provided washer: 7.20 mm
with out the kit provided washer: 6.09 mm
The idler with the eccentric spacer: 7.20 mm





Motor Set Screws
The replacements I purchased required a 1.5mm hex wrench. I'm not sure what the stock ones use.





Y-bed
Like most others, I had issues with the belt wanting to rub on the wooden bracket. I resolved it by flipping the gear on the motor and carefully adjusting it until the belt rides in the center of the idler. You want to adjust the gear by moving it in whatever direction you want the belt to shift. So if the belt is riding on the right side of the idler then move the motor gear to the left.





Heated Bed
I used two pieces of 1/4 cork I got from Lowes: http://www.lowes.com/ProductDisplay?productId=4747227


The thermistor comes pre-soldered now and has a rather large connector. The wires are not long enough to place the connector such that it is off of the heat bed. So I had to cut a rather large hole through the cork (both sheets) for the connector to sit in.


Here is the first layer with cutouts for the bolt heads and thermistor connector





Here is the second layer (laying on top of first layer) with (hard to see) channel cut for thermistor, wires and connector.





A 12"x12" 2.5mm glass sheet held onto the bed via the mini-clips suggested by everyone:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00006IBK2/


Because I forgot to do it ahead of time I had to take the heat bed apart and cut channels in the top layer of cork for the binder clips. A nice and quick method was to clip them in the positions you want them around just the cork and trace them with a normal thickness permanent marker. Then use an X-acto knife and cut around the outside of the traced markings. This leaves a little extra room for when you are installing the clips.

[hernejj]

Endstops General
DO NOT USE ZIPTIES The Printbus method is a *must* here!


I used M2.5 bolts to hold the end stop switches to the wood mounts. I used a drill bit (not sure what size) to make counter sink holes in the back of the wooden mounts. See the Printbus build guide for more info on this: http://3dprintboard.com/showthread.p...ll=1#post17130


In my case, the screws fit so snugly into the body of the switch that I did not feel the need to use nuts on the back side. This was good for me because the screws I got were just a bit too short for nuts. I could probably slightly increase my countersink depth to get the extra room needed for nuts, if at some point I need them.


Y-endstop
After trying both positions I found that the best contact is made if installed such that the arm of the switch faces up. In this configuration I did not feel the need to modify the screw that hits this endstop.




Z-endstop
While this is a good idea, I imagine it is also a pain in the *** to adjust it. I flipped the screw upside down to allow easier access for adjustments. If this modification causes other problems later I'll flip it back and update my post.








Another thing you might notice in the above picture is the use of real couplers for the z axis threaded rods. Here is a link to the exact item I used, as was recommended by several members of the forum: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M4VNAPA/

[hernejj]

Some more misc build pictures.

[hernejj]

Few more.

[usarmyaircav]

looks Great! I have debated on using a second sheet of cork as with just one I have the screws and springs really cranked down. I suppose if I need to take the bed apart for any reason I will just go ahead and do that.

[dustmann]

Hi hernejj, I just put in an order for my 12" i3v today, and am curious what you used for a power supply?

[hernejj]

This one: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It is 30A, and very easy to work with electrically. The one downside is it does not come with a standard 120v pc-type power cable connector. Meaning your supposed to strip a power cable and use the screw terminals to hold down the bare wires. Me... I repurposed the connector from the back of an old ATX power supply. Once my build is complete I will find a way to anchor it down to the printer frame somewhere.