Bluewing

Oh, I did that once. Misplaced the decimal on the PA. It took me far longer to figure it out than I care to admit.

Yeah, I wouldn’t want to print much of those materials either. But being able to do so when needed as safely as I can matters. Perhaps I can find other materials that would be suitable replacement in those moments. The Q2 would certainly broaden the material choices I could use. PLA, PETG, and TPU can do a lot. I’ve been using them for years. But there are times when I need something different.

I’ve already used those thoughts to get my choices down to 2 printers. So, now it gets to be more about user experiences with each machine.

But your reminders of what to think about is great. And the fact that you like your machine even as a beginner is what I want to know.

So I shouldn’t print for 6 months out of the year?

I would agree, but the cost is more than I want to spend for a second machine. Sadly, I want to replace my trusty Mk3s with something around the same size and enclosed without spending a lot.

Besides, I believe that if I want to honestly bitch about or praise something, I should actually have real experience with it. See my A1 mini combo.

The effort to build one is what keeps users from building a Voron. Otherwise, it would eat everyone else’s lunch.

I do still print a lot of PLA even after all these years. It’s a far better material than people who just parrot things know. When designed properly from the get go, it can provide excellent service. But you need to understand the material properties and how to create a proper design for it. And most 3D printer users can’t design their way out of a paper bag when it comes to functional parts.

Prusa Core One is a great machine. My first printer was a Mk3s. It’s still a real tank after all these years. But I’m looking for something a bit cheaper right now.

At this point in life, I’m more interested a “turn-key” setup than a project. I’m getting too old to want a project like that. But Vorons can be an awesome printer when done.

Yeah, the CC2 should work with ABS/ASA, the question is due to the immediate lack of a chamber heater, warpage on a larger piece could be an issue. Though one could edit the g-code to allow for some chamber pre-heat by soaking the bed for a time before printing. Air filtration is more of an issue for me really. And that would need to be added also. Which would quickly bring the cost up.

The devil is in the details…

When temps hit -20F, you ain’t venting anything outside. The heat loss becomes too expensive.

See, that’s what I like about Qidi. Users often will say they would buy another.

Yeah, that’s what I’m starting to think about filaments. ABS/ASA are about as fancy as I really want to get. I did do some reading on the Open Centauri project. They sound like they have a good start.

A very good rule is to think about the poor schmuck that’s going to need to fix whatever you design because you might be the schmuck that ends up fixing it.

Nice work!

The issue I have with the enclosures I see that most people design for themselves is the complete lack of ability to have easy access for maintenance and repairs.

It’s can be a royal pain in the butt to pull your printer out to do simple tasks for maintenance so you put things off until you end up have bigger problems that are harder and more expensive to fix.

I rocked the Lack setup for years with my Mk3s. I finally had to give it up since I needed to reconfigure my setup and the Lack no longer worked for it. I do sort of miss it though.

As an old toolmaker, that’s not as true as you think. It requires a lot of other knowledge besides running a lathe or mill. I speak from experience, having had to learn how to make repair parts for antique and collectable firearms at times.

Actually, those conversion cylinders are perfectly happy with modern smokeless powders suitable for their caliber. Though it’s more about velocities than pressure. I can load any smokeless .45 Colt for my cylinder that is listed for the standard pressures, (about 11,000psi). But it is highly recommended to keep your velocities no more than 850fps, (the original velocity for the Colt SAA). Frame stretching is the issue. Those cap and ball revolvers are made from a bit softer metal than modern revolvers. Remington’s are stronger than the open top Colts.

Enders are a fine kit from which you can build a working printer…

Jokes aside, they are the perfect machine for those people that want to tinker. Which is a very valid part of any hobby. Enjoy and carry on!

Clean sand does work. But what you probably want is granite resin for this project. It’s very popular with machine tool hobbyists and even expensive manufacturers like Hardinge.

Here is an explanation of how to use the stuff

Think of one and I’ve done it.

Yes, “bedslinging” is the proper way to build a milling machine for metals. Gantry designs exist for CNC woodworking, but are uncommon for metal.

Do not use 2 leadscrews per axis. You cannot time them well enough to prevent binding over long moves. If you are worried about moving the mass with the motors and leadscrews, buy bigger ones. The best way to drive the Y axis is with another stepper and leadscrew.

You can drive ballscrews with belts if you need to offset the motors. But your belts need to be as short as possible and as stiff as possible. Otherwise you will lose steps and make junk rather than functional parts. So no long light duty toothed belts like 3D printers use.

And when thinking about motion despite what your eyes tell you, it’s always the tool that moves and not the part.

Being poor doesn’t equal robberies and physical danger. I live in one the poorest rural areas of my state. We don’t need locks as a rule because we choose not to steal from or assault our neighbors. We understand we are in this together and we need to help each other to make it.

But you would not choose to live here because of the perceived lack of “big city” amenities. Cell service is spotty at best. Even electricity can be optional due to weather. It’s often dangerously cold. Heath care is an hour plus away. (I was just informed I need to switch an antibiotic I was prescribed just yesterday for another. I now get to make another 100 mile round trip to then nearest pharmacy to get it), Even groceries are an hour away. So we grow and forage a lot of our food. Jobs are few and poorly paid and require travel to get to. Our kids often need to leave the area and move 100s or even a 1000+ miles away to find work and higher education.

It ain’t about the money. it’s about the “want to”.

Imagine living somewhere that requires a locked door…

I have been adding those fins supports in CAD as I need and want them. This can automate the operation to a certain extent.

Scarring is mostly a matter of what you set your top z distance to vs support type chosen. Perhaps he left it too tight. And the amount of filament used by the supports can vary greatly from one model to the next. Tree supports often uses more material than you might think for example.

Supports are not a one size fits all.

Interesting. A screenshot of a random model

Image

It has placed a supports correctly at the front of the view, but added an unnecessary support on the taper in the back. And is unwilling to place any support in the vertical slots. Still, it shows a good promise to be useful.

What I find interesting here is that’s a pretty small award. Barely as slap on the fingers. But it does throw the fear of god into other manufacturers.