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DIY'ing a 2nd printer, advice?

  • 14-05-2023 8:15pm
    #1
    AirBiscuit
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,062 ✭✭✭


    I have a spare Creality 4.2.2 board, a working 3D printer, and I'm a cheapskate with a decent set of tools: What kind of 3D printer could I put together from parts?

    Frame: Have we totally moved beyond the days of using wood for frames? Aluminium extrusion is difficult to come by in hardware stores here, and the kits you can get online have some serious markup. Are these the only options that have the rigidity to get the job done or is there something else I'm overlooking?

    Bed: What ways of getting bed heating in place are cost effective, or is it better off ditching the hassle and just getting a premade one? The prospect of having a bed as large as I please would be nice.

    Motion components: Linear bearings and rails vs belts and rollers vs linear rails: If I'm doing this on the cheap, would belts and rollers be the play? I don't mind getting the linear bearings, but with those and the rails I would need enough of the metal rod / rail respectively to match the size of the frame I want

    Motion System: If I'm going to the effort of sourcing from scratch would it be viable to look at something beyond a cartesian like Core XY or Polar? For example why are Vorons so expensive, the sheer number of parts or the cost of kits?

    I accept there are some parts that I'll just have to buy. Steppers, a hot end, a power supply and the parts for whichever motion system I go with. Others I can print, like hotend carriages, electronics cases and mounts, maybe some structural parts etc.

    I have a spare PC that I can use for Klipper.


    TL;DR - I have a motherboard and a printer. What printer would you reccomend I try to aim if I wanted to make one myself?



Comments

  • #2
    AdamFrench
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4 ✭AdamFrench


    https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058296476/diying-a-2nd-printer-advice

    If you wanted to go a slightly more unconventional route, I have used standard Aluminum 15x15x1.5 mm square tubing for frame material, and it works quite well. You can either bolt it together, or as I did, print connection blocks and clamp and screw them together. Miko metals in Cork or many other places does it cheap, I got 4m of it for less then a tenner.



  • #3
    Padre_Pio
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 5,488 ✭✭✭Padre_Pio


    3d printers are so cheap that the diy route is a waste of time unless you're looking for something bespoke.



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