Quick update – I have completed the main wiring of the printer. I have also started working on the hot end mount and extruder side of things while I wait for my GT2 belts to arrive.
I’m a big fan of very clean, modular wiring It’s good for debugging issues, quickly testing specific things, it increases the safety of the system, helps to avoid electrical interference and much more.
I used wire mesh to cover most every wire, any that I didn’t got wrapped with spiral wire wrap. I made sure to keep my stepper motor wires well away from any digital limit switch wires to avoid any nasty interference issues that can be a real pain to fix.
All wires coming from the base up to the top of the machine have quick connect/disconnect connectors so I can easily work on the machine in the future.
Again with help from Bert from protoneer.co.nz I was able to quickly make my Makergear hot end mount and bowden tube clamp. The hot end press fits into a 16mm hole on the bottom of this part and the 4mm diameter PTFE bowden tube fits into the top, going down and hitting the top of the hot end.
The clamp part works by strapping two small zip ties around the shaft and squeezing them tight with the PTFE tube inserted. This clamp holds the tube in place firmly and ensures the filament will have a nice ride all the way to the hot end’s nozzle.
So that was the update. I’m working right now on the bowden extruder, it is my own custom design that I put together. It’s a little different from what’s out there so when it’s done I’ll put up a nice dedicated post and some photos to show how it works.
Other than that, I’m just waiting on my GT2 belts to finally arrive so I can start getting this printer together and finished. If all goes well and I get these belts within the next week I should be printing my first part before the month’s end.
Stay tuned in for more updates!