A good start

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willnewton
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Joined: Wed Apr 09, 2014 8:32 pm

A good start

Post by willnewton » Thu Apr 10, 2014 4:56 am

Well, I got the first step out of the way. :D

-UPDATE-7/15/16-There have been a lot of changes in the MG printer and manual and company since I started this thread, all of it is towards the good. I still use my MG all the time and with a bit of maintenance and some upgrading along the way, it performs just as well as it did on day one and is even better than new in others. Enjoy!
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Last edited by willnewton on Fri Jul 15, 2016 10:18 pm, edited 2 times in total.
I'm finally back to where I started two days ago!

A thread with some stuff in it I update every once in a while. viewtopic.php?f=8&t=9
See some of my stuff http://www.thingiverse.com/willnewton/favorites

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j-rod
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Re: A good start

Post by j-rod » Thu Apr 10, 2014 9:02 pm

the most important one!

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willnewton
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Re: A good start

Post by willnewton » Fri Apr 11, 2014 2:28 pm

Happiness is......seeing a box with the Makergear logo waiting on my porch!

Frustration is.....it's only the filament!

;)
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I'm finally back to where I started two days ago!

A thread with some stuff in it I update every once in a while. viewtopic.php?f=8&t=9
See some of my stuff http://www.thingiverse.com/willnewton/favorites

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jimc
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Re: A good start

Post by jimc » Fri Apr 11, 2014 3:33 pm

haha how is that for a tease!! lol

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willnewton
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Re: A good start

Post by willnewton » Sat Apr 12, 2014 4:54 pm

Ah, your big brother showed up!
friends.jpg
Labeled with many warnings. Good!
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Due to USPS wierdness, I had some small hiccups. I have been trying to track the packages after getting the shipping notice from Makergear, but could not get it to track. I wasn't too worried because USPS tracking is hit or miss sometimes. :roll:

Then I figured out why it would not track correctly. Normally, clicking the link in the tracking e-mail sends the tracking # to the USPS website and gives you back the tracking info. However, the USPS site did not like getting TWO package tracking #'s at once and combined them into one unreadable, untrackable #. A little cut and paste separating the numbers and I saw that one package was at home and a delivery attempt on the other package had been made. Great!

However on getting home, there was no notice left behind about the attempted delivery of package two and no location given on the tracking website either. Man, where is my package with the printer in it? I decided to wait until the next day to see if it showed. I checked the mail yesterday and found a delivery notice dated from the day before. I think the postman forgot to leave it and brought it by today. He had left the printer was at the main Post Office, so I went down there immediately!

No problems with MG service, just the a bump with USPS. I was nicely surprised to see how fast it arrived. I ordered Sunday night and had everything in my hands Friday (Ohio to NC)
I'm finally back to where I started two days ago!

A thread with some stuff in it I update every once in a while. viewtopic.php?f=8&t=9
See some of my stuff http://www.thingiverse.com/willnewton/favorites

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willnewton
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Re: A good start

Post by willnewton » Sat Apr 12, 2014 5:03 pm

openbox.jpg
What's in the box?
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I'm finally back to where I started two days ago!

A thread with some stuff in it I update every once in a while. viewtopic.php?f=8&t=9
See some of my stuff http://www.thingiverse.com/willnewton/favorites

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willnewton
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Re: A good start

Post by willnewton » Sat Apr 12, 2014 5:09 pm

bagged.jpg
Nicely packaged overall, they really make sure it will survive the trip.
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I'm finally back to where I started two days ago!

A thread with some stuff in it I update every once in a while. viewtopic.php?f=8&t=9
See some of my stuff http://www.thingiverse.com/willnewton/favorites

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willnewton
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Re: A good start

Post by willnewton » Sat Apr 12, 2014 5:33 pm

As I opened the various packages, I was IMMEDIATELY IMPRESSED with the attention to detail. Each set of items is bagged with other items that may be related and they are clearly labeled. The picture only shows the first unpacking. Each of these bags contains other bags full of hardware, etc. It turned into 20-30 packages by the time it was all opened.

The M2 is a small machine, but it is more than a toy. I know I am new to 3d printing and this forum, but I have scratchbuilt a 4 axis CNC hotwire foamcutter for making R/C airplane parts and have a 4 axis CNC mill for carving jewelry waxes at my store. It is obvious the M2 is quality machine has a very sturdy frame that is just a marvel of efficient engineering. That detail, along with actual industrial quality linear motion components is one of the reasons I chose the M2. You get an amazing level of quality for a very fair price.

There are cool little details you will discover all along as you build the M2.
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unpacked.jpg
Here it is, basically unpacked.
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I'm finally back to where I started two days ago!

A thread with some stuff in it I update every once in a while. viewtopic.php?f=8&t=9
See some of my stuff http://www.thingiverse.com/willnewton/favorites

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willnewton
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Joined: Wed Apr 09, 2014 8:32 pm

Re: A good start

Post by willnewton » Sat Apr 12, 2014 5:53 pm

I did the first part of the build last night, which was the main chassis and components.

I started at 10 p.m. (I had to start late) and moved along at a relaxed pace, taking a few short breaks. I did have a few things I assembled incorrectly and had to back up and redo, but they were trivial, and my own fault because I was getting tired. I finished up at 1:30 a.m. for a total time of 3.5 hours. Now that I have done it once, I can see that if I had to do it again, I could build the next one MUCH faster and probably not need directions other than to check the screw lengths.

Hooray MG for producing a decently written manual! I would not hesitate at all to buy the kit version of this. Did you play with LEGO? You can build this machine.

Also, there was a lot more pre-assembly done on the main chassis than I expected to see. The feet and linear motion components were already installed, saving some headaches and insuring they are aligned at the factory. The parts I had to install did not require a lot of precise alignment and I had no trouble getting the frame together.

I will not detail my entire build because there is an M2 build series on YouTube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsqSCAs3Grc I will point out a few details of my build in the next few posts.
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build1.jpg
About midway through the build.
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I'm finally back to where I started two days ago!

A thread with some stuff in it I update every once in a while. viewtopic.php?f=8&t=9
See some of my stuff http://www.thingiverse.com/willnewton/favorites

User avatar
willnewton
Posts: 479
Joined: Wed Apr 09, 2014 8:32 pm

Re: A good start

Post by willnewton » Sun Apr 13, 2014 12:08 am

As far as the assembly goes these were the issues (they were small) and comments (mostly just about the manual).

1. I was missing a 3/8 nylon spacer used as the y-axis end stop bumper in my kit. It was the only thing missing and I was able to use the extra 1/4x1/4 and 3/8x1/8 inch spacers stacked together to get the job done. There were a plethora of extra parts, which is a nice touch. (After posting this, I found the spacer I needed at Lowe's, cut it to length and installed it.)

2. Speaking of those parts, I have a small nit to pick about the belt idler assembly. It would be nice to have the slim wrench required to tighten this provided with the kit, even if it was just a cheap stamped one. I used needlenose pliers, but just wished for the proper wrench. Also, page 8 of the manual should probably double the number of components listed and state you need to make two of the idler bolt sub-assemblies. A revelation from the tips thread
Postby sprior » Sat Apr 12, 2014 9:30 pm
I'll add one - it worked out OK, but if I was doing it over again once I confirmed I knew how the assembly of the idler bolts would go I'd have screwed the bolt into the frame before I put the bearings and clip on - that way I could tighten the bolt with any old adjustable wrench instead of using needle nosed pliers because my wrenches wouldn't fit because of the bearings.
3.Be careful of the orientation of the parts when you disassemble the control box. I had to do this twice because I had the bottom flipped and it only goes together one way-which I wish I had found out before installing the Rambo.

4. In the manual you may not need page 29,30, and 31, since they have already installed that stuff for you now! Yay!

5. The spool holder page in the manual should list the screws needed as M4, not M3.

6. No instruction in the manual for the Z-axis hand knob. ;)

7. The instructions for mounting the fan sub-assembly and extruder mount to the stepper are not included. This page should be in the manual, don't you think? :o

8.The instructions for the Z-axis M4 end stop screw and jam nut are not included. There is a MG video here on setting the z-axis stop https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0Cz6jPPECM

9.If you are assembling this from a kit, do yourself a favor and print out the exploded diagrams to refer to while building. It's a big help. Hey MG staff, it would be fantastic if the exploded diagrams were integrated into each corresponding step in the main assembly manual. It would have been a great help to see how things go together. The drawings are better references to use than the photos in the manual at certain steps.

10. The SD card reader wiring in the manual is white and "marked" with correct orientation marks. My wiring harness is multicolor and three of the wire have gold marker on them....so yeah, I am going to have to email tech support about how to orient the wire going into the reader. update-I figured it out on the next page of this thread.

11. Instructions or just a picture mentioning how to clip in the glass build surface. I feel if the part is there in the kit, no matter how simple or obvious it end usage seems, there should be a picture of it installed.

12. It is a bit inconvenient to have to jump to the M2-(assembled) instructions to see how the printer setup is finished. Once you finish the manual for the kit OR the assembled printer, I feel you should be at the same place in the process.

13. No instructions for installing the Kapton tape. Again, it was included, let's document it, mmmmkay? :)

So, as I said earlier, nothing big, just a few nits to pick, mostly with improving and updating the manual a bit. I have just finished the wiring and finishing touches which took two hours for a grand total of 5.5 hours to get it ready to plug into the wall and computer.

I'm pretty happy with how it's going so far!

-update: I am updating this list a bit as I go, so there will be several edits.
Last edited by willnewton on Mon Apr 14, 2014 4:10 am, edited 10 times in total.
I'm finally back to where I started two days ago!

A thread with some stuff in it I update every once in a while. viewtopic.php?f=8&t=9
See some of my stuff http://www.thingiverse.com/willnewton/favorites

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