Hi,

I am new to this forum and have been following the Peachy Printer for a long time. I love the concept and the approach, but given who I am I couldn't help thinking about the Z axis - dripper mechanism. In it's simplicity and function it is perfect for this sub $100 printer, but I have been thinking if there is a cheap more traditional alternative.
My thoughts are around building a Z axis based on a small stepper motor with an M3 screw driving a simple light weight platform mounted on to two 3mm steel rods via dual linear bearings. Attached to this would be a build platform that would enter the build vessel.

The key is the use of Micro/PIC to control the stepper and set the appropriate response to the mic / dripper cable.

Given a thread pitch of the M3 screw (0.5mm) and stepping angle of (7.5 degrees) we get 48 steps per revolution which equals 0.0104mm height difference per step. 7.5 Step angle is conservative so in theory the resolution could be better. The size of the container would not matter and would require no changes.

A bit of interfacing to the printers code through the mic cable would enable an appropriate signal to be sent once the platform has been moved down. (Emulating the dripper signal)

My view would be to still use resin floating on Saline and to lower the platform into the saline as the print is built. This enables the same support to the print as if you were using the usual dripper mechanism.

As far as cost I think it could be done for about £25 and a bit of time.

OK there are questions that I would ask about this?

How do you configure the start position in relation to where the printer is focused?
Calibration should be strainght forward once the focal point is understood. Is the focal point changed as the print is printed to account for the different distance to the resin? This may have to be changed as the distance to the resin would be constant.
How much time is required between steps to allow the printer to describe each layer? Could this be fed back to the Micro from the printer?

Please excuss my ramblings but I thought that it might be worth a discussion.

So hopefully now I can sleep again! Ivydene25