Qidi Tech 1 - Replicator 1 clone

[DaveB]

Does anyone know how long the PTFE tube that is inside the QiDi extruders should be?

I just checked the half dozen I had accumulated from QiDi with spares etc. They measured between 30.3mm and 34.2mm with an average length of 32.3mm. The length apparently is not that critical? Or are these supposed to be trimmed to length when installed? What is the right number?

I just found this tube cutter jig, http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1675294
It looks like it would work well and want to make it the correct length for the QiDi. The cutter's design length appears to be ~ 34.2mm.

[DaveB]

I just found this tube cutter jig, http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1675294
It looks like it would work well and want to make it the correct length for the QiDi. The cutter's design length appears to be ~ 34.2mm.

I printed this thing. It needed 104% on the X & Y to fit the 4mm OD PTFE tubing that I have. It works extremely well. I get a clean right angle cut on the end and a repeatable length of 34.18 +/- 0.02mm on a sample of three tubes cut. Now if I just knew what the proper length should be...

[DarkAlchemist]

I printed this thing. It needed 104% on the X & Y to fit the 4mm OD PTFE tubing that I have. It works extremely well. I get a clean right angle cut on the end and a repeatable length of 34.18 +/- 0.02mm on a sample of three tubes cut. Now if I just knew what the proper length should be...

Does it matter? If it doesn't matter to Qidi then no one will know but you could ask Emily to ask what is the real length of the bloody thing or at least what it is supposed to be.

[DaveB]

Does it matter? If it doesn't matter to Qidi then no one will know but you could ask Emily to ask what is the real length of the bloody thing or at least what it is supposed to be.

Yeah, I sent Emily an email earlier but I have not heard back from her. It is Sunday there.

[DarkAlchemist]

Yeah, I sent Emily an email earlier but I have not heard back from her. It is Sunday there.

She does work on Sundays or at least answers the email but it will have to wait until Monday there the soonest.

[Syd_Khaos]

See I had been using the Dollar Tree Superglue, and Crazy Glue since they are not knock offs but the real deal I grew up with but they suck. Hell, I can't even get them to work on plain "non printed" plastic either. Oh, I can get them to stick my fingers together though but not much else (thank goodness for Acetone), lol. I tried the gel and the liquid but both sucked equally well.

After the first batch of wal-mart cheap glue we tried Dollar Tree glue as well. Didn't do so good.
Kinda crazy....its all called super glue but it seems no 2 are alike. I think I just lucked out with the wal-mart stuff to be honest. But on my 4th or so 4pack and its still doing good. Hard for me to judge now though as I have been finishing all my stuff a bit different since I found out wood filler bonds great to ABS.

[jfkansas]

Ideally, the tubing should be PTFE. Teflon is slippery and will have much lower friction with the filament. I use 4mm ID, 6mm OD style. I did not get the 4mm OD, 2mm ID stuff, seemed to me it would just be more likely to bind with the filament.

If you have a setup that can support the single long hoses, that should work fine.

I have a supply of 4mm OD and 2.5mm ID. Best I've ever used. The 2mm ID stuff works ok but does seem to bind a bit. The 6mmx4mm stuff is really stiff so I stay away from it. Overly stiff guide tubes can twist the gantry and affect print quality.

[DarkAlchemist]

After the first batch of wal-mart cheap glue we tried Dollar Tree glue as well. Didn't do so good.
Kinda crazy....its all called super glue but it seems no 2 are alike. I think I just lucked out with the wal-mart stuff to be honest. But on my 4th or so 4pack and its still doing good. Hard for me to judge now though as I have been finishing all my stuff a bit different since I found out wood filler bonds great to ABS.

Well, the what is crazy is the stuff in the Dollar Tree is the real deal from back in the 1970's and stuff but just does not work. Now I had read last year that Cyanoacrylate glue has expiry dates and actually goes stale fast (meaning it will not work right) so I suspect the Dollar Tree stuff is older stock but not for sure.

Remember Cyanoacrylate glue was created by Super Glue to seal the wounds of soldiers in Vietnam and at that the stuff excels. Thanks to that glue staples after surgery is no longer used (on older people who had surgery pre ~1974 you can see the staple scars) but wth? I still remember in the 1970s and 1980s that stuff glued plastic like no tomorrow but after about 2000 just didn't work as well. What I figured was the plastic was slightly changed so the Cyanoacrylate glue would no longer work as well, if at all, because if you could mend it then that is a lost future sell. With the stuff not working all that well on the filament we use I don't know what to think but I still remember when it glued everything well and not just your fingers and hands.

[jfkansas]

I printed this thing. It needed 104% on the X & Y to fit the 4mm OD PTFE tubing that I have. It works extremely well. I get a clean right angle cut on the end and a repeatable length of 34.18 +/- 0.02mm on a sample of three tubes cut. Now if I just knew what the proper length should be...

It is easier to find the right length by taking a nozzle and thermal tube and test fit a liner. You can cut it a bit long and see what the gap is between the nozzle and the thermal tube. I like to compress the tube just a bit. Leave about a .1mm gap, and this will close up when tightened together. The end of PTFE that goes into the nozzle should have the ID chamfered a little with a drill bit. Just use a bigger than 4mm drill bit and take the edge off the inside. go about .5mm deep with the chamfer.

[JSensebe]

After playing with supports, I final decided to cut one of my parts in half so both ends could face up. I'm using Krazy Glue to glue the PLA together, and it works well. The secret for me is pressing for several seconds, and then several more. It's like water right up until the point where it starts sticking, then it's really stuck. I've used it on ABS as well with the same effect, for a pendant that was two-sided.