Calibrating a machine like this is a true test of patience and perseverance. Many hours I have spent trying to get the myriad of software to work together before I could even make the printer move, let alone extrude plastic. Being an open source project, there are frequent updates and hybrid versions of the operating software available for this printer and they don't always work well together or even at all.
Once I got a working package together, then the actual calibration took place. Fine tuning the movement of the axes and the extruder with the delicate flow of material at just the right temperature in order not to extrude a mess or even worse a jam in the hotend, took weeks to to accomplish.
Now with a somewhat decent setup, I was ready to find out what this printer could do. The following pieces are my more interesting results. They are straight from the printer with no cleaning or reaming.
I was curious about bridging and ran a test of an open cube in order to see how well my setup would do.
Next, I wanted to run a test of a tall and slender form that has some complexity.
Last, I needed a good idea what to expect for an organic form.
All of the above were printed with the MakerGear Brutstruder and hotend. All except the devil head were printed with a .35mm nozzle, the head was printed with
a .5mm nozzle. I started my initial testing with the Wades Extruder and Budaschnozzle hotend, but after frequent jams while doing my initial calibrations, I was unsure whether my problems were my settings or a hardware design of my extruder system. I then began shopping for other solutions. A later blog entry will cover 3 different hotends and extruder systems that I now have.
I'm going to end this entry with some basic information which may help others who are trying to calibrate there own machines.
Not all systems are compatable it seems, so I will start with a basic breakdown.
I'm running Windows 7 32bit OS on an AMD Dual Core System
My choice of printer software is Printrun/Pronterface with Skeinforge
The following is the stream of programs, drivers, and dependencies needed for the software to work. Please make note that all is 32bit and some versions are not up to date because the newer version is not compatible with the "core group" (this especially holds true for the Arduino program! I could not get the latest version to upload my firmware).
arduino0023.zip install the program and accompanied driver
upload the Kiliment-Sprinter-a352585 firmware (included in the Renosis package that's listed later down this list) to the Arduino Mega
Download the following, and install in this order:
Install the following programs:
kliment-Printrun-7a1ccb8
MakerGear-Prusa-Skeinforge-Settings-a0ee1e7
entire contents of Renosis package is dumped into kliment-Printrun-7a1ccb8 folder
psyco-1.6.win32-py25.exe this addition will supposedly make Skeinforge run faster
The rest depends on the intricate nuances of your own machine and how well you can tune it with the software and firmware.
The best 5 sites I found to be the most useful:
http://reprap.org/wiki/Printrun
http://buggerit.blogspot.com/2011/08/hains-prusa-mendel-reprap-calibration.html
http://www.renosis.net/Skeinforge-41-guide.html
http://www.thingiverse.com/
http://www.google.com/ A full sentence describing your problem and a world of information retrieved (just make sure the word reprap is in there somewhere). I wouldn't have made it this far without it.
Next up is input. I'll begin exploring different means of creating my own content.
Addendum Aug 13, 2013:
A lot has changed since I set up my first printer. New profiles and updated software has helped tremendously. The latest version of Skeinforge is an example. If you come across this entry and would like to set up your printer, the easiest method now is to download Repetier Host here http://www.repetier.com/download/ and install. This will install all the python scripts and other dependencies for you. Also it gives you Slic3r which is an easier slicer to use, but still offers the option of using Skeinforge as well. The included profiles Durbie Normal and Fine are included which are the best profiles I've seen to date.
If you are up and running, but don't have the Durbie profiles, they can be found here
https://github.com/romscraj/Skeinforge41in the .Skeinforge folder of the software.
With this software and the Durbie profiles and the mechanical calibration information here http://www.renosis.net/Skeinforge-41-guide.html, it's a much easier road to getting a new printer commissioned when building from scratch.
Once I got a working package together, then the actual calibration took place. Fine tuning the movement of the axes and the extruder with the delicate flow of material at just the right temperature in order not to extrude a mess or even worse a jam in the hotend, took weeks to to accomplish.
Now with a somewhat decent setup, I was ready to find out what this printer could do. The following pieces are my more interesting results. They are straight from the printer with no cleaning or reaming.
 |
| X-carriage for the printer. The linear bearings snap nicely in place. |
I was curious about bridging and ran a test of an open cube in order to see how well my setup would do.
 |
| Calibration cube from Thingiverse. If you look closely, there is only a little drooping from the bridge. |
Next, I wanted to run a test of a tall and slender form that has some complexity.
 |
| Vica Illusion Sculpture from Thingiverse. Created by chylid. |
Last, I needed a good idea what to expect for an organic form.
 |
| Devil Head from Thingiverse. Created by yzorg. |
All of the above were printed with the MakerGear Brutstruder and hotend. All except the devil head were printed with a .35mm nozzle, the head was printed with
a .5mm nozzle. I started my initial testing with the Wades Extruder and Budaschnozzle hotend, but after frequent jams while doing my initial calibrations, I was unsure whether my problems were my settings or a hardware design of my extruder system. I then began shopping for other solutions. A later blog entry will cover 3 different hotends and extruder systems that I now have.
I'm going to end this entry with some basic information which may help others who are trying to calibrate there own machines.
Not all systems are compatable it seems, so I will start with a basic breakdown.
I'm running Windows 7 32bit OS on an AMD Dual Core System
My choice of printer software is Printrun/Pronterface with Skeinforge
The following is the stream of programs, drivers, and dependencies needed for the software to work. Please make note that all is 32bit and some versions are not up to date because the newer version is not compatible with the "core group" (this especially holds true for the Arduino program! I could not get the latest version to upload my firmware).
arduino0023.zip install the program and accompanied driver
upload the Kiliment-Sprinter-a352585 firmware (included in the Renosis package that's listed later down this list) to the Arduino Mega
Download the following, and install in this order:
pyglet-1.1.4.zip For this one, you will need to unpack it, open a command terminal, and navigate in DOS in order to install.
Install the following programs:
kliment-Printrun-7a1ccb8
MakerGear-Prusa-Skeinforge-Settings-a0ee1e7
entire contents of Renosis package is dumped into kliment-Printrun-7a1ccb8 folder
psyco-1.6.win32-py25.exe this addition will supposedly make Skeinforge run faster
The rest depends on the intricate nuances of your own machine and how well you can tune it with the software and firmware.
http://reprap.org/wiki/Printrun
http://buggerit.blogspot.com/2011/08/hains-prusa-mendel-reprap-calibration.html
http://www.renosis.net/Skeinforge-41-guide.html
http://www.thingiverse.com/
http://www.google.com/ A full sentence describing your problem and a world of information retrieved (just make sure the word reprap is in there somewhere). I wouldn't have made it this far without it.
Next up is input. I'll begin exploring different means of creating my own content.
Addendum Aug 13, 2013:
A lot has changed since I set up my first printer. New profiles and updated software has helped tremendously. The latest version of Skeinforge is an example. If you come across this entry and would like to set up your printer, the easiest method now is to download Repetier Host here http://www.repetier.com/download/ and install. This will install all the python scripts and other dependencies for you. Also it gives you Slic3r which is an easier slicer to use, but still offers the option of using Skeinforge as well. The included profiles Durbie Normal and Fine are included which are the best profiles I've seen to date.
If you are up and running, but don't have the Durbie profiles, they can be found here
https://github.com/romscraj/Skeinforge41in the .Skeinforge folder of the software.
With this software and the Durbie profiles and the mechanical calibration information here http://www.renosis.net/Skeinforge-41-guide.html, it's a much easier road to getting a new printer commissioned when building from scratch.
thx for credits,
ReplyDeletenice prints and good tips.
Thanks for sharing your work on Thingiverse!
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