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Showing posts from June, 2017

My first shared "Thing" on Thingverse

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They are legs for the Tronxy X3, I shared them on Thingverse here .   They came out pretty sweet because I created that I also created some end caps for the top extrusion in the same style .  Here are the Endcaps: The endcaps seem to be the most popular!

Tronxy X3 Melzi 2.0 to Ramps 1.4 Upgrade

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So a while back I was printing a rather large part, specifically my version of the bed support for this thing . While printing this 5 hour part, around the 4th hour the stepper started skipping... then it got worse and worse the MOSFET heated up and the board burnt out. Because Tronxy was CHEAP they put the MOSFET directly on the controller board so they can't be replaced. So the Melzi board died... I looked online and the cheapest I could find was for about 35$,  not cool man, not cool.  So I started looking for alternatives and the most common fix for The Tronxy X3 was a Ramps 1.4 replacement.  I found one on eBay for about 45$ and they could ship it fast here is a link to the one I bought . Here is an image of all that came with it...  pretty sweet deal came with everything I need plus the LED Smart Controller and 3 end stop switches. I just needed to burn the EEPROM I decided to stick with Repetier-Server and then ... about 3 to 4 days getting the settings correct I am

The Hardest Working Servo on your 3D Printer - The Extruder Servo

This servo is active all the time... Well really when you think about it all the servos are on all the time even when they are not moving, they are maintaining their position.  But the extruder servo is doing the most jagged oscillating movement (back and forward a lot and fast).  X and X servos being the next most active and then there are the Z servos that really don't do much. I am bringing that all up because you really need to pay attention to the Extruder servo.  Depending on the controller board you are using the MOSFET could get VERY hot.  When I had a problem I was using the Melzi 2.0 controller that comes with the Tronxy X3.  It's inability to deal with heat in general, this includes the bed heater MOSFET.  You really need to add some sort of extra cooling for the controller.  Those tiny heatsinks that come with the stock Tronxy X3 suck hard. Megreth

Learning how to 3D print... blood, sweat and tears....and burns

After getting my Tronxy X3 I, of course, started printing like crazy... I immediately found it was not easy.  The biggest problem was first understanding the basics, material flow, extruder heat, extruder stepper, g commands... etc.  The second was leveling the bed.  That sucked...    Also learning the nuances of the machine, like end stops, belt tension, what tools I needed,  parts popping off, the printing surface, etc. I am going to list here the things I suggest to fix some of these issues. Tools There are some tools I found that are absolutely needed to run a 3D printer, they are: Calipers: Harbor Freight has a good one for 20$ . You need one that has a resolution down to .01 mm.  This is probably one of the most important for me. From measuring the Horizontal bar distance to the bed to checking part dimensions... so very helpfull. A spark plug gapper: One like this  I bought one at Harbor Freight but I can't find an online link for it. I only paid 3$ for it.  I use t