Itty Bitty Double FLEX Extruder

[Forrest]

Not sure what you mean ... what is the problem? did you follow these instructions http://clough42.com/instructions/dou...r-calibration/

[clough42]

40% infill should be plenty. I print .2mm layers. ABS at 250C in the hexagon. Cooler in other hot ends like the JHead.

Just wondering what material and settings "temp, speed, layer height" you guys are using to print out the extruder parts?

Thanks,
Chadd

[clough42]

Yes. The pitch is 2mm--same as the ones that chime with the MakerFarm printers.

Thanks for the info. How did your pulley gears turn out? I have printed a few up but don't have the belts to check the fit, are the belts the same pitch as the ones that come with the makerfarm kit?

[clough42]

I'm using Slic3r, which has offset settings. If S3D still doesn't have them, you'll need to set the offset in firmware.

Am using simplify3d and am having problem with extruder offset. How did you guys that encounter this problem fixed it. How did you found the correct number.

[clough42]

Sorry for the late reply...I've been traveling.

I haven't heard of that being an issue in general.

Most slicers have some facility for managing the preheat and cooldown of the extruders. Slic3r tries to do this itself, but it also has logic that looks to see if your start and end GCODE is doing it and tries to stay out of the way. I don't know if you're having some kind of trouble related to this logic.


Make sure that your slicer is set up so it knows you have two extruders. Also check your end gcode to see if you have code in there to turn off both extruders. Here's the code I use:


START:


; 8" i3 & i3v 3mm ABS for .40 Hexagon Double 2014-11-28
M42 P5 S255 ; light on
M190 S[first_layer_bed_temperature] ; wait for bed to heat up
M104 S[first_layer_temperature_0] T0 ; start heating T0
M104 S[first_layer_temperature_1] T1 ; start heating T1
G1 Z5 F50 ; lift nozzle
G28 ; home X and Y axes
G29 ; auto bed level
G1 X0 F8000 ; move to side
G1 Y210 F8000 ; move off front
G1 Z0 ; Level for wipe
M109 S[first_layer_temperature_0] T0 ; wait for heat
M109 S[first_layer_temperature_1] T1 ; wait for heat
G90 ; absolute
T0 ; extruder 0
G92 E0
G1 E12 F50 ; extrude
G1 Y0 F8000 ; wipe
T1 ; extruder 1
G92 E0 ; reset extrude
G1 E12 F50 ; extrude
G1 E9 F50; retract
G1 X15 F8000 ; wipe





END:


M104 S0 T0 ; heat off T0
M104 S0 T1 ; heat off T1
G28 X0 ; home X axis
G28 Y0 ; home Y axis
M84 ; disable motors
M42 P5 S0 ; light off
M190 S0 ; wait for bed temperature to be reached





The text in brackets, like "[first_layer_temperature_0]" is macros for Slic3r so it can insert the settings. The key code is the M104 S0 T0/T1 at the start of the end GCODE. This is what turns off the extruder heaters.

I have run into a strange situation though. At the end of the print only the second extruder turns off. I have tried several ways including special gcode in sli3er and looking for a fix in the firmware. If anyone has ran into this issue and have a fix, I would be very grateful.

[tsteever]

Can't find a thread for the single itty bitty extruder if someone knows where that would be.

I have the single setup and it is a great design and I love the fact that I can reduce the weight moving around on the axis. I think my prints will be better. I say will be cause I am having some intermittent issues. I occasionally will get skipping. I have tried adjusting the stepper driver and I have to have it at .4 to avoid the skipping but the motor get crazy hot. Right now it is pushing 80 degrees C!

Not sure what is going on. The nozzle is clean and so is the heatbreak. They are new as of this print. I am using maker farm 3mm black PLA. and am printing at 190 with a E3dv6 .4mm hotend.

What are some things I can try. I hate to go back to the stock extruder but if I can't get reliable printing I may have to. Are there better, stronger stepper motors than the ones Clough42 sells on his site?

[voodoo28]

here is the thread http://3dprintboard.com/showthread.p...ingle-Extruder
towards the end you'll find my remix for the E3d Hot end.


My setup would skip too..which is why i went to the Dual. I think it may have something to do with the pulley configuration. The dual Itty bitty has a different pitch for the pulley setup. I think its more effective..

I now have the Dual Flex setup on a 1.75 E3d Machine and another on a 3mm Hexagon Machine both working perfectly.

Can't find a thread for the single itty bitty extruder if someone knows where that would be.

I have the single setup and it is a great design and I love the fact that I can reduce the weight moving around on the axis. I think my prints will be better. I say will be cause I am having some intermittent issues. I occasionally will get skipping. I have tried adjusting the stepper driver and I have to have it at .4 to avoid the skipping but the motor get crazy hot. Right now it is pushing 80 degrees C!

Not sure what is going on. The nozzle is clean and so is the heatbreak. They are new as of this print. I am using maker farm 3mm black PLA. and am printing at 190 with a E3dv6 .4mm hotend.

What are some things I can try. I hate to go back to the stock extruder but if I can't get reliable printing I may have to. Are there better, stronger stepper motors than the ones Clough42 sells on his site?

[tsteever]

So you are using the dual but in a single setup? What is your stepper set at? There is part of me that thinks there may be something else going on. The main wheel is hard to turn at times which led me to think the nozzle was clogged or that the heat is too low. I don't remember the large wheel being that hard to turn. Does the size of the wheel make that big of a difference?

[voodoo28]

No, actually im using it with a Dual setup..but i don't see why you couldn't just mount one side only. Then when you are ready, you can setup the other side. Your gears should spin freely with no belt attached, obviously with the belts attached and the printer "OFF" there will be some resistance since now the motor is engaged. And yes it is quite hard to turn manually for extruding than the stock Greg Extruder...you have to turn it much much slower..

If you have the RAMBO board like i do..my Digital Pot is set to 135 for my 3mm setup....on my 1.75 setup it is set to 100 since it requires less pressure to extrude the thinner filament, hence it wont skip.


here is a pic of when i had the single setup

here is my Dual Flex setup

So you are using the dual but in a single setup? What is your stepper set at? There is part of me that thinks there may be something else going on. The main wheel is hard to turn at times which led me to think the nozzle was clogged or that the heat is too low. I don't remember the large wheel being that hard to turn. Does the size of the wheel make that big of a difference?

[clough42]

Can't find a thread for the single itty bitty extruder if someone knows where that would be.

I have the single setup and it is a great design and I love the fact that I can reduce the weight moving around on the axis. I think my prints will be better. I say will be cause I am having some intermittent issues. I occasionally will get skipping. I have tried adjusting the stepper driver and I have to have it at .4 to avoid the skipping but the motor get crazy hot. Right now it is pushing 80 degrees C!

Not sure what is going on. The nozzle is clean and so is the heatbreak. They are new as of this print. I am using maker farm 3mm black PLA. and am printing at 190 with a E3dv6 .4mm hotend.

What are some things I can try. I hate to go back to the stock extruder but if I can't get reliable printing I may have to. Are there better, stronger stepper motors than the ones Clough42 sells on his site?

There are stronger NEMA 14 stepper motors available. In general, the stronger motors are longer and weigh more, but there's certainly plenty of margin on the single Itty Bitty Belted Extruder.