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Z-axis knob

Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 8:24 am
by jeffpowell101
The z-axis knob has room for a screw, but no screw is listed for it in the instructions. Is a screw supposed to go there, and which one?

Re: Z-axis knob

Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 8:27 am
by jeffpowell101
I also did not use the hot end/fans mounting blocks rubber feet, as I did not see this in the instructions. Should I use them?

Re: Z-axis knob

Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 8:39 am
by jsc
There is (should be) a set screw on the shaft collar within the z axis knob. It is to tighten the knob onto the z axis screw. The collar looks something like this one: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000P0QAG8 You can use one of the small allen wrenches to access the set screw using the hole.

I'm not sure what you mean by rubber feet.

Re: Z-axis knob

Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2015 6:19 pm
by Dale Reed
First, welcome to the fun!
jeffpowell101 wrote:I also did not use the hot end/fans mounting blocks rubber feet, as I did not see this in the instructions. Should I use them?
The big rubber feet (screw-mount) may be "packed with" the hot end and fans, but they are not "FOR" the hot end. They mount on the bottom of the frame. There is also one small rubber foot (stick-on) that mounts under the rail under the left front -- it's there to help prevent tipping in that direction, because the big rubber foot has to be set so far in from the corner.

If that doesn't help you, perhaps you could attach a small picture of the part(s) in question -- then we'll all go: "OHHHHH! THAT'S what you meant!!!" ;-)
Dale

Re: Z-axis knob

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2015 1:41 am
by jeffpowell101
Dale,

Thanks for the help. I've attached a picture of the parts I'm talking about.

I've printed off a few parts. When my printer is inactive, the build tray falls to the lowest point possible. In this position, a screw on the bottom of it (the one holding the spacer that triggers the endstop) hits one of the screws holding the fan to the electronics case. I have to make sure I manually lift the tray up before homing the axes. Did I assemble something wrong?

Re: Z-axis knob

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2015 2:03 am
by jeffpowell101
Also, while i'm here, I could use some help in other regards:

-how to best remove parts from build plate (mine require a scraper to get off, which dents part of the part)
-should I print directly on the glass or modify the surface?
-connecting the LCD panel
-building an enclosure (plan is to use acrylic lazer cutter but I'm trying to work in 3D printing in a neat way)
-worth buying dehumidifier for plastic? possible to use oven to dry spools out?
-minimizing noise (consider the enclosure to help)
-upgrading to dual extrusion
-printing with bridge filament, wood filament
-Is there a way to make translucent parts?
-are there useful tweaks/mods you'd recommend? For hardware or software (I use simplify3D)

I'll look through the other forums to figure out what I can on my own, but appreciate any help here. Thanks

Edit - Mods, should I put these questions in their own post? the post title is no longer relevant.

Re: Z-axis knob

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2015 2:32 am
by jsc
That bottom screw just barely clears the electronics case for me. Make sure your lid is snapped in all the way down?

Removing prints: if you're using glue stick, you can try to soak off the glue. Placing the entire glass plate with attached print in the freezer for a few minutes often helps. There are a number of razor blade based scrapers on Thingiverse (I have one up there myself) that are sometimes useful. What I've done is buy a cheap fairly stiff paint scraper from Home Depot and grind the edge into a sharp chisel point.

You can print on the glass, and it will work for a while, but eventually it will lose its adhesion as it gets dirty. At that point, you will need to give it a good wash with dishwasher detergent. Easier is to just get some hair spray, or glue stick. I prefer glue stick, as it's easy to apply (onto the cold bed). Other people use hair spray (either sprayed on the bed with something rigged up to catch overspray ), applied to the glass off the printer, or using a hairspray that comes as a liquid in a pump spray, which you can apply with a brush or roller. Other common adhesives include PVA (white) glue diluted with water, and ABS juice (ABS fragments dissolved in pure acetone; useful for ABS printing, but a bit of a mess). For PLA, you can also use blue painter's tape, which has the upside of not requiring bed heating, but the downside of sometimes being difficult to remove/replace. And for PLA, you can use the Kapton tape that came with your printer, but it is a bit fiddly to apply.

Enclosure: there are several threads on enclosures, both here and in the old Google Groups forum. One member had a very elaborate laser cut acrylic design, but also took on the task of completely redesigning the M2 while he was at it, including using different linear rails, repositioning things... it was very ambitious. Not sure how it turned out. The easy way out is to do the Ikea hack, of which there is a recent example.

There are some dual extrusion beta extruders available, according to a recent post. You might grab one. It is straightforward to install, although some of the wiring can be very fiddly. Actually using it is tricky. See my dual extruder frog thread. You will want to use Cura, which seems to have the best dual extrusion handling at the moment. If you just want to use the second extruder to lay down different filament for infill or support, that is easier in Simplify3D.

Translucent parts: you can apparently use T-glase filament along with Smooth-On XTC-3D resin to get transparent single wall objects.

See the "M2 tips" thread in the tips forum to see more tips with links.

Re: Z-axis knob

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2015 2:41 am
by jeffpowell101
JSC,

Thanks a lot, I really appreciate it.

Can you point me to the ikea hack enclosure?

Re: Z-axis knob

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2015 2:47 am
by jsc

Re: Z-axis knob

Posted: Mon Jan 19, 2015 3:01 am
by jeffpowell101
Also, I cannot find files to replicate the 3D printed parts on the M2. I broke one half of the wire wonder above the extruder motor.