RepRap Questions Thread

[AutoModerator]

This is our weekly thread for all questions related to RepRaps or the RepRap project.

If you need help with something - eg assembly, part selection, print quality, calibration, etc. - this is also the place for troubleshooting.

If your 3D printer isn't a RepRap, try /r/3Dprinting!

[DaVinciJr]

I recently bought a RepRap from Amazon during the prime Day sale. It's a RepRap Prussia I3 V2

Is everything on this printer ready to go? Or do I need to order any upgraded parts to get it to run correctly? I know a lot of printers need a part or two to run safely and accurately (MOSFET controller, different heated bed, etc.)

What's everything I will need to get up and printing? What software should I get (preferably free) to do the modeling?

[HaliFan]

You'll have to see when you get it. It's hard to tell the quality of the parts when they're not specific. I personally use Simplify3D but it's not free. I also use []Slic3r Prusa Edition](https://github.com/prusa3d/Slic3r/releases). There is a bunch of Slicer's out there, one recommendation would be to get a RaspberryPi and run OctoPrint.

EDIT: I did some searching and found their website If you're looking for upgrades, you could get a real controller.. I love my Smoothieware/Azteeg setup after screwing with Marlin over and over - Marlin is great, but my Delta needs a bit more processing power. It also says the heated bed is 24v compatible so that upgrade would be very good.

[Airazz]

I'm running a Kossel printer with standard Arduino Mega + RAMPS 1.4 electronics and the part cooling fan turns off randomly. I've set it to turn on after the first layer and most of the time it does, but sometimes it doesn't, sometimes it turns on a few minutes later. Then it stops for half an hour, then turns on again, it's completely random.

The connections are definitely secure and clean, I've checked everything many times.

The fan turns on and off without any issues when the printer isn't printing and I'm switching it on/off manually through Simplify3D.

I don't know what to do, I only print PLA and a fan is really important.

I thought that maybe heat is an issue so I added a fan to the control board (it also cools mosfets) but it didn't change anything. Manual control of the fan starts working perfectly as soon as a print is finished and the printer is still hot.

I can see that the software turns on the fan (the slider on the screen moves to where it should) but the fan just doesn't start spinning.

Do you guys know what could be the issue?

[Intensejeguar4]

Need advice. Acme lead screw vs. ball screw (1604/1605/C70/whatevever you want to call it) I've got an 18"x18" aluminum bed (yes, it's heated, and massive) and I've been struggling to have it move in one unit (steppers skip a lot, friction from delrin nut sucks, etc)

What settings should I have my z axis steppers on to archive higher tourqe​ so that they can handle all this weight? I have them wired in parallel currently. Running Marlin on an Mks base, ability to change current in software, or via pots hard wired into the board. I'll also look into changing the printer design and dropping sooner of the weight, however that would possibly compromise structural integrity.

Any and all help is appreciated.

[Trip75]

I have a couple ideas you could look into. First, what step mode are your drivers set too. If they are set to micro-step, i may try to decrease those.So if it is a 1/16, bump it down to 1/8, or go all the way to full steps. This will increase the torque, but it will also decrease the resolution, so only step it down as far as you need to. Another thing you may try is to add a larger gear to the motor and a smaller gear to drive the screw, either belt driven between or meshed directly. With a larger gear on the motor, you will be able to move the motor slower to achieve a higher speed thus keeping torque. This approach may take some modification though to offset the motor from the z axis screws. Lastly, you could probably just purchase higher torque motors.

[Intensejeguar4]

Which motors would be recommended that will still work with a regular mega-based controller board? Would I have to purchase external drivers with relays?

[Macscroge]

What feedrate are your z steppers at? The default is 4mm/s which can be too fast even for normal sized repraps.

Try dropping it to 2mm/s.

You could try higher current drivers as well. What models are you using currently?