Makerfarm Prusa 10" i3v Available!

[dacb]

Just got my 10" up and running. One great upgrade you can do in your second print for the 10" is the i3v 10" Z Endstop Brack by MiniMadRyan. This makes bed leveling, starting at the nylon spacer corner, faster. Stock, I found the M5 T-nut bolt was obstructed by the Z-axis coupling and was a clumsy way to adjust with precision. I was up then down then up then down as the stop would shift up and down while I tightened it. In contrast, I found bed level Nirvana when combined with a set of small thumbscrews for the other 3x M3 nylon locknuts at.

As an aside, my 10" kit came with extra T-nuts for the aluminum extrusions so mounting the bracket was didn't require any hardware purchases. It also had extra M3 screws to use for the adjustment screw. I find that the head to the adjustment screw is mostly blocked by the top idler which means the hex driver is difficult to use, but I was able to fine tune from the side using a pair of needle nose pliers.

[clough42]

clough42, I'm interested to know if you are planning to switch to the new motors if they are available.

Do you think it's worth a complete or partial swap?

If you're struggling with the extruder motor, it's probably worth it. The other motors get hot, but seem to work okay. I'm using a different extruder already, so I'll probably wait for something to fail.

[printbus]

gmay, you wouldn't have to get replacement motor(s) from just MakerFarm. Starting with the info here - http://reprap.org/wiki/Stepper_motor, you'd want a two-phase NEMA17 with specs of 3-5 volts, 1-1.5A, and a holding torque greater than 40 N-cm (or 56 oz-in). You'd want a 5mm diameter shaft, preferably flatted. I bought a 76 oz-in Kysan 1124090 on eBay to use for the extruder so I won't have to worry about heat or the weight and bulk of the motor fan & shroud, but I haven't installed it yet. You'd likely want to keep the two Z-motors identical, but other than that all the motors don't have to be the same.

[RaySuave]

As an aside, my 10" kit came with extra T-nuts for the aluminum extrusions so mounting the bracket was didn't require any hardware purchases. It also had extra M3 screws to use for the adjustment screw. I find that the head to the adjustment screw is mostly blocked by the top idler which means the hex driver is difficult to use, but I was able to fine tune from the side using a pair of needle nose pliers.

You should be able to make adjustments using a ball ended allen wrench, I use this type to adjust the screw easily. Adjusting using pliers sounds like a pain...but it sure still beats the stock method.
ballend.jpg

[gmay3]

Ok thanks for the info guys, I don't think I'll need to upgrade quite yet!

[MiniMadRyan]

Thanks everyone for the comments on my endstop! Maybe I'll get around to revising it one of these days. Finally got the i3v calibrated half-decently and printed out a calibration cube last night. Aside from my steppers running a bit warm (which I'll adjust the pots for) it ran very well. The overall speed was a bit slow (around 20 minutes to print the cube) so I will be playing with that in the next few days...

.IMG_20140904_204925.jpg

[dacb]

congratulations!

[jtice]

Well after some more research I decided on the Prusa i3v 10"
Placed my order on the 31st. Now I am watching for an email saying it has shipped, very excited !!!

I have ordered both PLA and ABS filament, seems PLA is easier to work with, but I think I might start with ABS,
only due to the fact that there are some printer parts I want to get printed right after I do a few test prints.
Improved Hex Cooling
Stepper Motor Cooler
Additional Fan Cooling Duct
End Stop Adjustment Bracket

What other replacement printer parts should I print first? And where can I get the files for these?

Also, what is the main programs you guys like for the Prusa?
I have played around with some of the software, I think I like Sli3er the best, but wasnt sure if it liked the Prusa ?
And are you choosing the RepRap printer as printer type in these programs?
Didnt know if there was anything in particular I needed to do as far as settings for this particular printer. (aside from the typical trial and error tuning)

[printbus]

Well after some more research I decided on the Prusa i3v 10"
Placed my order on the 31st. Now I am watching for an email saying it has shipped, very excited !!!

I have ordered both PLA and ABS filament, seems PLA is easier to work with, but I think I might start with ABS,
only due to the fact that there are some printer parts I want to get printed right after I do a few test prints.
Improved Hex Cooling
Stepper Motor Cooler
Additional Fan Cooling Duct
End Stop Adjustment Bracket

What other replacement printer parts should I print first? And where can I get the files for these?

Also, what is the main programs you guys like for the Prusa?
I have played around with some of the software, I think I like Sli3er the best, but wasnt sure if it liked the Prusa ?
And are you choosing the RepRap printer as printer type in these programs?
Didnt know if there was anything in particular I needed to do as far as settings for this particular printer. (aside from the typical trial and error tuning)

You may not need the shroud for the extruder motor. Sounds like the newer kits come with motors better suited for the printer application, and these don't get so hot.

Files for replacement printer parts are available through links Colin provides in the build guide.

Yes on the rep rap printer type. Slic3r v0.9.9 is a good choice to start with since MakerFarm provides pretailored configuration files that give you a jump on getting started, although some of the settings undergo second-guessing here. Again, these files are available through links in the build guide. Slic3r has its nuances, and some move on to another slicer shortly after getting the printer up and running.

[dacb]

I can confirm printbus's comment about the new motors. My extruder motor hardly gets warm even towards the end of arduous 6 hour prints.

I would also recommend getting your settings squared away with some test objects, e.g. the LFS elephant is fun print and give away (even if it isn't perfect). Then print a backup extruder using the STL file links in the build guide, as printbus mentioned. In my experience, I had to do totally separate optimization processes for PLA and ABS, so I might expect that you will want to spend some time with each material. I started with PLA and blue painter's tape and MakerFarm's settings for Slic3r v0.9.9 and my hollow cube first print "just worked," so I might recommend you start with that. No so much for ABS: getting the prints not to warp was a huge trial and error process that ended up with me using ABS slurry on straight glass and using Cura as the slicer.