v2 Jaxt 2.4 350

[Jaxt]

It took a while to get the nerve up to attempt this build. I have been struggling with speed on my other printers knowing that the limitations were due to the bed sliding back and forth. After a few months of of research and watching the speed benchy challenge, i was and am very sure i found the next printer that i was after. Building a printer is always intimidating no matter how many you have built. I got excited and went for it in the form of a Formbot kit. I looked to sourcing everything myself for about 5 minutes... maybe on the zero i will start next but i have plans for this printer sooner rather than later. I also wanted to build a larger volume printer. soooo friken sold on building this at this point!

My counterparts want me to enroll in classes.. i guess 5 printers that are all of different flavors is too much for non-hobbyists to handle in thought. These are the same counterparts that ask for random odds and ends from antennae mounts to cup holders on their off road rigs that i happily and extatically design and print for a beer here and there. 

The frame was not like anything i have done in the past.. "blind fastening"... lets try it! 

I spent a few hours getting everything together, double/ triple checking with 2.4.6 blocks clamped in place while i added Loctite and did a final tighten corner by corner. It worked well and everything measured square.  

At this point i have not gone digging for how to's on YouTube or looked for forums. I got this... next step was installing the bed... i don't got this. The manual did not specify location so to the YouTube i went. Looking at other build logs i decided to wait and install the bed very late in the build closer to the wiring portion. It does not look very complex but something worth locating after the firmware is loaded and you can move the print head around. 

 

Weekend 1 in the books! Frame is solid and true...ish...i think. The kids now have a directive to say "OOHHH" whenever i hit a personal milestone in the build when i point out what i have done. The wife shakes her head, smirks, and follows suit, then shakes head again. I am satisfied. 

[Demosth]

Looking forward to more thoughts on the build. Any suggestions on how you got over the hurdles you experienced (after you figure it out of course!)

[Simon2.4]

16 hours ago, Jaxt said:

double/ triple checking with 2.4.6 blocks clamped in place

Ahh, that's my kind of approach to this too. The more love you put in measuring and aligning everything perfectly from the start, the better experience you will have further down in the assembly.

Welcome @Jaxt. It's nice to have you with us.

[Jaxt]

On to the next hurdle..

The ABS filament arrived about the same time as the kit. I can throw down some PLA and PETG and have done a few Nylon prints in the summer months successfully. All of my printers are open air and it is now December in Colorado. My printers are in the garage running an ambient average temp of -6C. The resin printers are offline during these cold months even with an enclosure heater. Just not worth staring at the Apps and constantly checking on them. My hot ends and beds can handle the temperatures but the ambient temperature is a huge problem.

I tried making an insulated box to put over the printer with a thermostat and a relay but it was just to cold. After a few sleepless nights......i looked for a more concrete solution! What a wonderful reason to acquire a small enclosed budget friendly printer that can handle the cold temps.

After a little research i ended up getting my hands on a Flashforge Adventurer 3 Pro and I have been more than pleased. Parts are printing after the printer made a few mods for itself. I found one local that a fella no longer needed for far less than they are currently going for. I did have to purchase the higher temp nozzle just in case. with the garage at the temps is it at i am printing KD at 150C - 160C with better than expected results. Strictly ambient temp driven. 

Printing and assembling the Z drive units went smooth. no issues or work arounds to figure out. 

Up next is the AB drive units.. i made some mistakes here.. all my own fault.