I put together a Folger Tech i3-2020 printer. And of course, I started making changes to it. I added a servo to kick down a Z-Probe. And because my previous printer used 3mm filament, I want this printer to be 3mm instead of 1.75mm. (Incidently... The 1.75mm filament worked great. This kit is really worth the money which is an exact opposite of what I would say about Geeetech's printer kits!)

In order to switch to 3mm filament I ordered "3mm Wire Feed Device Kits for Makerbot MK8/MK9 extruder" and the "3mm Throat Tube Pipes With Teflon" at these link addresses:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281903889879...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
http://www.ebay.com/itm/322048059374...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Everything switched over pretty easily. But when I started some test prints, I can see the filament stepper motor is losing steps. I tried turning up the power on the extruder's Step-Stick, but that did not fix the problem.

So, right now I have a higher torque NEMA-17 Stepper Motor on order. The existing stepper motor is 36 oz. inches of torque. The one on order has 78 oz. inches of torque (and is at this link):


http://www.ebay.com/itm/111827476477...%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

My questions for the Stepper Motor Experts are:


  • Is it likely I can fix my problem with a Stepper Motor that has higher torque ?
  • Will the motor produce higher torque with the same current or will the current have to be set higher to the motor?
  • Can I get a higher current version of the Step-Sticks than the standard version? (I've got the A4988 Step-Sticks)