DIY 3D Printer

by Piyush kushwaha in Workshop > 3D Printing

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DIY 3D Printer

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Making a 3D Printer

3D Printer, A Miracle of 21th century.


It can create any type of 3 dimensional solid object from just a digital file.


Engineers, designers, even hobbyists are elaborating innovative applications of this cutting-edge technology.


3D printing is a technique which builds objects layer by layer from a 3D file.


But when it come to owning a 3D printer, we have two choice: Buy or DIY


A good 3D printer cost more than $1000 or build one by yourself for about half that price.


The most basic and simple 3D printer design is cartesian printer.

That's why i am choosing it for my DIY 3D printer.

This 3D printer will not based on RepRap('replicating rapid prototyper') because i don't have a 3D printer (that's why i'm making one). Every part of this printer is made with either plywood or alluminum profile(L shape)

Supplies

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All the hardware part i used in this printer:

  1. Arduino Mega 2560
  2. Ramps 1.5
  3. Raspberry Pi 3B (for octoprint)
  4. 4×A4998
  5. 5×NEMA17 stepper motor
  6. MK8 Extruder
  7. E3D V6 hotend
  8. 0.4mm Nozzel
  9. RepRap MK2B 3D printers Heat Bed
  10. 4×1 mm SS Heatbed Spacer Compression Spring
  11. Timing belt tensioner spring
  12. 3×Limit Switches
  13. Some Toggle switchs
  14. Some LEDs
  15. ATX computer power supply
  16. 2×Alluminum Flexible Coupling Coupler, bore 5x8mm
  17. 2×GT2 Timing Idler pully
  18. 2×GT2 Timing pully
  19. GT2 Timing Belt-2meter
  20. 2×500mm Trapezoidal 4 Start Lead Screw 8mm Thread 2mm Pitch Lead Screw
  21. 2×Lead Copper Nut for 8mm Screw
  22. 2×8mm Inner Diameter Zinc Alloy Pillow Block Flange Bearing KFL08
  23. 4×SC8LUU 8mm Linear Ball Bearing Slide Unit
  24. 12×SK8 8MM linear bearing rail support
  25. 6×8mm chrome-plated high-carbon steel smooth rod
  26. 4×LM8UU Linear Bearing
  27. Bowden Teflon Tube
  28. M3 Allen bolts and nuts
  29. M5 Allen bolts and nuts
  30. 16×M4 Allen bolts for SC8LUU
  31. 24 AWG copper wire for motors & endstops
  32. PC Cooling fan
  33. 10kΩ NTC Thermisters (for heated bed)
  34. Lots of plywood 20mm
  35. Plyboard 5mm
  36. Zip Ties
  37. Fastener screw for wood
  38. Some Plastic L Bracket
  39. Glass for heated bed
  40. 4×Binder clip(for heated bed glass)
  41. Web Cam(for octolapse)
  42. Alluminum L profile (Only few inches)


For making these types of machine some essential tools you need are:

  1. Drill Machine (or Screw driver machine)
  2. Some drill bits(3,4and 5mm)
  3. Screw set
  4. Vernier Calliper
  5. Hacksaw
  6. File
  7. Soldering iron
  8. Some basic tools
  9. Super glue

Desinging 3D Model

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Making a CAD design before building a project help's alot.It will just make whole build process very easy.

I designed the whole printer in Fusion 360.

I first started by designing each component separately, then assembled all separately.


Link for CAD model :- https://grabcad.com/library/3d-printer-model-in-fusion-360-1


Generating 2D Drawing

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I made whole frame based on these dimensions given in .zip file.

It helps drilling accurate hole in the frame.

All you have to do is to print these, then paste it into the plyboard for drilling.


ALL DIMENSION ARE IN MILLIMETER.

Downloads

FRAME

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The whole frame of my printer is made of plywood. Plywood offer good mechanical strength and easy to work with.

As mentioned above, no 3d printed part is used in whole printer.

some overview, how i made the frame:

  • First cutted all the parts from the given dimensions.
  • Laminated all the plywood with mica (just for look).
  • Drilled accurate holes with help of drawing.
  • Assembled whole frame with the help of L brackets and fastener screws.

And that's all for the frame.

Making Other Parts

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It's very important to make accurate parts, otherwise the component will not fit into the frame.

That's why I

  • Printed the required drawing from printer
  • Cutting and Pasting it on the plyboard.
  • Drilling holes into the component.

Then, I assembled all the smooth rod holder and linear bearing block with nuts and bolts.



Assembleing the Printer

Animation in Fusion 360
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Assembling the whole printer took me almost a whole day.

The most difficult part was fixing lead screw for Z axis accutation.

My first plan for this printer was with bowden tube arrangement but then i changed it to direct drive system.(In given picture it is bowden tube system).

You can refer to this animated video to see how i assembled whole printer.

Z Axis Mount

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After several try z axis actuation system completed.

I used L Alluminium extrusion prolife for mounting copper nut with x axis mount.


Assembling the Printer

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Here, I used GT2 20 Teeth Timing pully & Timing Idler pully with GT2 Timing Belt with 2mm Pitch.

For X, Y & Z actuation total 4 NEMA17 stepper motor are used(2 for z axis , 2 for other 2 axis).

Timing belt should be tensioned properly for accurate actuation.

Endstops

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Endstops are used for safe homing for X, Y and Z homing. And should be placed carefully.

Always use bolts to join the endstop to the frame( hotglue will not work properly).

Electronics

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After completing all the hardware, it's time to start with electronics.

The brain of this printer is Arduino Mega2560 with ramps 1.5 arduino shield.

For Nema 17 motor, I used Cheap A4988 stepper driver.

I don't want to connect my laptop to the printer every time it print for long hours. That's why i am using Raspberry pi as an onboard computer which will run octoprint in it.

Make all the connection as mentioned in the first image(it's pretty straight forward).

Power Supply

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Using ATX power supply has various advantages over 12v PSU power supply. First you can find second hand atx power supply very cheap. Secondly, It can provide various range of voltages :-

  • 3.3 volts for LEDs or lighting.
  • 5v for Raspberry Pi
  • 12v for motors and heated bed

To turn on power supply, simply short green wire with common ground. I used a Toggle switch, and connect it with green and black wire, to turn on the 3D printer.

These ATX power supply also provide 5v standby, which i find best for Raspberry Pi.

Firmware

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Firmware is the link between software and hardware: It converts inputs from software to an output that computer hardware can understand.

In 3D printing, that process happens whenever you send a G-code file from your slicing software to the 3D printer: The firmware “works out” the code and accordingly gives an output to the stepper motors, heaters, display, and so on.

For example, let’s consider the G-code command “G1 X10 Y20”. The firmware understands this command and then determines the output to be given to the stepper motor so that the extruder reaches X=10 and Y=20. Without firmware, the 3D printer wouldn’t understand the G-code input.

Few open source firmware available for 8bits control board are:-

  • Marlin
  • Sprinter
  • Klipper (but only with raspberry pi)

For now i am using marlin because of its easy setup requirements.


Link for downloading Marlin firmware :- https://github.com/MarlinFirmware/Marlin


For configuring firmware according to your hardware and dimensions,

Follow the guide :- https://marlinfw.org/docs/configuration/configuration.html

Use Prusa calculator for calculating steps per mm :- https://blog.prusaprinters.org/calculator_3416/

Software

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For normal controlling and calibration, I am using pronterface.

Pronterface is a GUI host for 3D printing: It can manage your printer as well as prepare, slice, and print your STL files. As such, you can use its graphic environment to easily configure and control your 3D printer through a USB cable.

Download Pronterface :- https://github.com/kliment/Printrun/releases/tag/printrun-2.0.0rc8

And for slicing ,I am using Ultimaker cura.

Ultimaker Cura is the world’s most popular 3D printing software. Prepare prints with a few clicks, integrate with CAD software for an easier workflow, or dive into custom settings for in-depth control.

Download Ultemaker Cura :- https://ultimaker.com/software/ultimaker-cura

Calibration and Testing

Calibration is the collection of mechanical "tweaking" processes needed to get exact, quality prints. 

Without calibration, prints may not be the correct dimensions, they may not stick to the build surface, and a variety of other not-so-wanted effects can occur.

Trying to print before calibration will likely result in a messy "blob" smeared over the printer bed.

To know more about calibration click :- https://reprap.org/wiki/Calibration

It took me 2 or 3 days to create my first successful 3D print. So patience is very important while calibrating because it can cause frustration.

First Print and Then Again Calibrate

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You can't fully calibrate a 3d printer before first printing with it.


In my case, The first benchy was too big (another benchy after calibration ). the fault was with the wrong steps per mm for the z axis and extruder.

A Working 3D Printer

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After so many calibration and failed print, Printer is ready and working.


If you have any question, feel free to ask through comment section.


THANKYOU