hey everyone, tom here, and while i routinelyrecommend just buying a printer kit if you want to build your 3d printer yourself, itis still very possible to source all the parts yourself and end up with a better printerfor less cash, learn about what makes your printer work and truly make it your own byadding some individual touches. but don’t get me wrong, if you’ve never built one,it can be a very daunting task and leave you
what you need to know about 3d printing, pulling your hair out as to why certain thingsjust don’t seem to work. and while i can’t help you with every single issue you mightencounter, i can try to guide you through the process, and hey, even if you don’tend up building a printer from scratch, maybe you’ll learn a thing or two in the processanyways.
so in these first few videos, i want to coverthe basic set of parts you’ll need to build a printer and what you should keep in mindwhen selecting them. let’s get right into it and start out with the most influentialpart of the printer, the frame. there are a few different options here, depending onwhat kind of printer you want to end up with. first off, you’ve got the choice betweena regular cartesian machine like most printers or a delta, basically the choice of a kinematicplatform of the entire printer. deltas look incredibly cool and do have a few advantageswhen it comes to tall machines, but in general, they are a pain to set up, they can be incrediblywobbly if built incorrectly and have a few other artifacts in their prints that mightbe pretty hard to diagnose and get rid of.
so in general, unless you know exactly whatyou’re getting into, just build a regular cartesian machine.the most popular types for those printers are the i3- or mendel90-style sheet frames,which is what i’ll be using in the form of an itopie i3, from sã©bastien mischleraka skarab, thanks for sending that over, made from a relatively thick mdf sheet, moreon that in a second. this style of printer typically has a center sheet that supportsthe z-axis, again, x, y, z, when looking at the printer from the front, this is your x-axis,this is your y-axis and this is your z-axis, when looking at movement of the nozzle relativeto the bed, and this is universally true for any cnc machine, if not, it is set up wrong.so back to the frame, the x-axis will sit
on top of the z-axis with this kind of frameand carry the extruder and hotend, unless it’s a bowden setup. more on that in thenext video. the y-axis will be the moving print bed, which isn’t optimal, since you’realso lugging your printed part around and increase the drafts around the heated bedshould you choose to add one, but it’s good enough and works for normal-sized printers.now, the other type of frame are box frames, like used in something like the herculien,and i’d consider them mechanically superior, but not in so much that the i3 frames wouldbe completely unusable. these box frames are typically made from aluminum machine profiles,like the ones from misumi or rexroth, and they are industry standard parts, so theyshould be available wherever you intend to
buy them. these printers typically rely moreheavily on printed parts than sheet-based ones, require more assembly, but offer fewerpossibilities for inaccuracies in the frame parts since the aluminum profiles are typicallycut precisely to length by the seller. you’re typically also going to need more fastenersand especially the expensive t-nuts that allow you to attach things onto these profiles.while there are some sheet frames like the mendel90 that you can cut and drill yourselfwith a jigsaw and a cordless drill, it’s probably smarter to get the frame ready touse, and like this one, cnc routed or laser cut. there are plenty of sellers that offerready-to-go frame kits. if you do opt for a wooden one, which really isn’t a bad choiceespecially if you get one that is thick enough
or has these back braces that keep the woodfrom warping, especially if you’re using plywood, it still a good idea to seal it withprimer and a top coat of paint, and i mean, it also makes it look better than plain brownmdf. the next thing that you’ll need are printedparts, these are entirely dependent on the printer frame you’ve chosen. if you’vegot as fablab or makerspace nearby, that might be a good start to printing them yourselfor having them printed - also, if you want to machine the frame yourself, that’s theplace to go as well. for the standard printers, like the original prusa i3, you’re alsogoing to find plenty of cheap printed parts on ebay. free market for the win! definitelyget them printed from abs, pla parts will
not stand up to the temperatures around your3d printer, especially those around the hotend or heated bed.the next thing you’ll need are linear guides, again, dependent on what type of printer you’rebuilding. the most popular one is still the combination of 8mm rods and lm8uu bearing,they’re incredibly cheap, they work well and practically last forever if you’re usingthe right rods, but they are not the stiffest type you could choose. again, they’re goodenough, just remember to buy proper chrome-plated and hardened rods for them, you can get thoseon ebay or aliexpress. the more high-end option are linear rails like the mgn types from hiwin,and since you can screw the rail to whatever surface you’re using along the entire lengthof the rail, they’re going to be incredibly
stiff, but they’re also way more expensiveoverall, especially the carriages are much
more expensive than lm8uu bearings.so that should have you covered for building the printer frame. in the next videos, we’regoing to dive in and look at the parts you’ll need to add motion to the frame and make itan actual 3d printer. because, at this point, you could still absolutely turn it into alaser cutter or a super-light-duty cnc router.
