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SoliForum - 3D Printing Community → Filastruder → Filament Winder
I love watching the development on this Ian.
1. Thank you not only for sharing but sharing often and early.
2. Thank you for responding to people and involving everyone in the development.
3. Thank you for giving two different ways to tackle this problem.
Other than that I look forward to your design files and I'm already enjoying looking at your code and breadboard.
I have the Thingiverse page started - http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:81662
I recommend starting with the spool mount stuff, since it isn't going to change. I still need to upload the tension thing, and the puller and servo mount aren't current.
Thanks for posting everything. I've started ordering parts and printing everything. I have a few questions for you.
In your breadboard pdf I see two hall sensors and 3 pots but thats not in the BOM on your blog. Are you still using the hall sensors and if so which ones and for what? Also I assume you're still using pots to trim the motor speeds but which ones? (10k?) the puller and the tension pots make sense but the third one is unlabled...
Once again thanks for your hard work and as I build mine I will be sure to document my full build and BOM to help out.
Ian Thanks so much for all your work on this!
I'm building one now, will let you know how it goes!
Cheers,
Rob
I honestly don't know which pots I got. I don't really know how to choose them, they are only dealing with 5v. The third one is not currently implemented. I am thinking about using it to set the minimum speed of the puller. So one pot sets the speed while it is in fast mode after the bottom sensor was tripped, and the other sets the speed in slow mode after the upper sensor was tripped. At the moment I just set a minimum speed in firmware and it has been working.
The hall sensors are for detecting the rotation of the spool. You can see them in one the closeup photos in the post about the spool mount. Mouser has them for $.72 http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Hon … ZDfBdbo%3d. Get a handful, they are very useful. I would like to add some kind of filament counter at some point and they would be useful for that.
In addition to the sensors you will need a couple of cylindrical neodymium magnets, maybe 1/4" x 1/4" or 6mm. Amazon has 10 for $10. It's good to have extras around, also get a 10 pack of 608 bearings. You can use extras for a spool mount for the printer, I'm also working on a spring loaded caliper to add in somewhere that will use 2 more of them.
has anyone based in the UK got involved with this?
I had a look around online and struggled to find any local suppliers of pellets. any links guys? many thanks in advance
Ian
Thanks for all the fun. Is it possible to run the filament under the extruder and up over the extruder to the winder. I dont have alot of space for this. I am buying the bits and pieces and hope to have a winder going by first week of June.
Thanks again.
has anyone based in the UK got involved with this?
I had a look around online and struggled to find any local suppliers of pellets. any links guys? many thanks in advance
It'd be good to make a new thread for this, since it doesn't have anything to do with a filament winder.
Our beta testers have had good luck with Plastribution.
So I've got all the parts on order and I've got all the 3D prints done. I've also been looking at the sketch and loading it. So everything is moving smoothly but here are my current questions.
1. I don't see the arm for the motor on the spool end anywhere. Are you using the gear motor arm from the original lyman winder?
2. I noticed that the tensioner wheel and the mount for the tensioner pot and arm are not posted. Is that because you're still making it even more awesome? 
3. I assume the photo sensors are to monitor the filament dropping from the extruder to keep the whole thing in sync. I didn't see any prints for a mount on this. Also I was curious if there should be some dimmable LED's and have the photo sensors in a black out environment or would it make sense to get two mouser part number 828-OPB350W125Z (sorry this forum won't let me post links)
Then make a slot between the two of them facing each other. The opening is almost 5mm so its plenty wide enough.
Other than that I'm making great progress and once again thank you for working on this.
I did the mass upload before I had the tensioner arm done. I'll get them posted. I don't have a mount for the sensors yet that works. The first one was rickety, the second let the filament get too far from the laser. The problem with the optical switch is that the filament wanders around so much that you can't really get it to stay in such a small space, and any attempt to make it just makes things worse.
The spool motor arm is Lyman's, the one part that remains from the original project. The spring loaded idler is the MK1 jigsaw replacement. I used that one because it was made for the bearing that comes with the Solidoodle extruder, and I had an extra.
What I have done is mask the sensors with black tape so that there is a horizontal slit exposed that is narrower than the shadow is likely to get. I want to make sure it gets full shade. The last mount I printed was clear ABS and I think it was letting too much light in through the sides of the holes. Another thing to play with is having the sensors flush with the surface of the mount vs recessed into holes. The idea is to get the widest difference possible between shaded and unshaded. Someone at the last meetup suggested a red filter so the laser can reach the sensors, but ambient light is reduced.
The other thing I want to do with the mount is make sure there is somehow extra space below the bottom sensor. Sometimes the filament overshoots it, or the bottom of the loop moves left or right.
As for stacking the winder and the extruder, it could work. The puller should be the same distance from the extruder, but you can turn the winder around so it goes left to right. You could look into setting up some wire shelves, and run the filament down through the shelves, with some of the wires cut away to give it room. Another possibility is setting the winder on end and turn the puller 90 degrees. Then the filament would go through the puller, up to the spool above. You could look into mounting the Filastruder vertically as well. I made a 90 degree adapter for the hopper, but it didn't clear the wood support. I never got around to a v2 since I just drilled the nozzle through the side instead.
Maybe a mechanical switch above and below the sensor so of it over/under shoots then the backup switch kicks in and just put it across the sensors contacts...
Ian, do you have a drawing of your
I made a 90 degree adapter for the hopper, but it didn't clear the wood support.
?
Thanks,
Ralph
Ian, do you have a drawing of your
I made a 90 degree adapter for the hopper, but it didn't clear the wood support.
?
Thanks,
Ralph
My interpretation (attached image).
I did a trial of this option/solution (vertical mount on the wall) long time ago and it did work. The gravity force is affecting the diameter in an inconsistent way.
Ralphxyz wrote:Ian, do you have a drawing of your
I made a 90 degree adapter for the hopper, but it didn't clear the wood support.
?
Thanks,
RalphMy interpretation (attached image).
This setup is going to have very inconsistent pellet feeding and therefore inconsistent filament diameter.
This setup is going to have very inconsistent pellet feeding and therefore inconsistent filament diameter.
What if we put a weight in the hopper?
Possible another powered screw?
It just seems logical, to me, to mount the extruder vertical. But then again I don't have any idea what I am talking about, he he he.
Ralph
I got the spring loaded caliper up and running, here's the first test - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5McuJHo6_Bc
It uses this caliper, which is also sold at Lowes - http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002RH … d_i=507846 It has a smoother slide than the metal ones from Harbor Freight.
The reading isn't accurate at the moment. I tried bolting the parts to the jaws so the caliper could still be used on its own, but there is still some wiggle. I'll need to glue them together, or solvent weld (I believe the caliper is made of ABS).
You will need some M8 20mm bolts and nuts and 608 bearings.
I don't seem to have the option to post more than one file. Here is the guide piece for the other side, to help keep the filament on the bearings.
This setup is going to have very inconsistent pellet feeding and therefore inconsistent filament diameter.
What if we put a weight in the hopper?
Possible another powered screw?
It just seems logical, to me, to mount the extruder vertical. But then again I don't have any idea what I am talking about, he he he.
Ralph
The trouble with a weight is that pellets don't act like a fluid - that is, their pressure is not uniform. If you press down on a cylinder of pellets, the pressure on the outer edges is not equal to the pressure on the bottom.
Another powered screw might be doable, but would increase the cost by around $50, and why? A 90deg nozzle is $5 and accomplished the same task without significantly added complexity.
A 90deg nozzle is $5 and accomplished the same task without significantly added complexity.
Yeah it seems as if Ian just drilled a hole in the side of the nozzle, Interesting.
Ralph
A 90deg nozzle is $5 and accomplished the same task without significantly added complexity.
Yeah it seems as if Ian just drilled a hole in the side of the nozzle, Interesting.
Ralph
Yeah, that's all there is to it - I've made them also.
You don't have to drill all the way through and use a bolt like he did early on, either - just set the depth on your drill press/mill appropriately.
Ralphxyz wrote:This setup is going to have very inconsistent pellet feeding and therefore inconsistent filament diameter.
What if we put a weight in the hopper?
Possible another powered screw?
It just seems logical, to me, to mount the extruder vertical. But then again I don't have any idea what I am talking about, he he he.
Ralph
The trouble with a weight is that pellets don't act like a fluid - that is, their pressure is not uniform. If you press down on a cylinder of pellets, the pressure on the outer edges is not equal to the pressure on the bottom.
Another powered screw might be doable, but would increase the cost by around $50, and why? A 90deg nozzle is $5 and accomplished the same task without significantly added complexity.
A small vibrator type motor mounted on the hopper would probably work to keep things even... but not sure what other implications it would have...
Well your girlfriend might get mad at you and take it back, for one.
I made an update for your winder so it will use 50mm spools some people have laying around.
Go check item 87653 on thingiverse. (This forum still won't let me post links)
That's a good approach if you have plenty of the one kind of spool. I'd like to see some spool hubs that adapt the bore to the 3/4" pvc and have a disc on one side that mates with the bolts on the gear. Then you can use a variety of spool types without changing out the mount/gear. I have a mix of 50mm spools and the small Chinese spools you get from Octave/Repraper myself.
I want to make an accessory spool holder that has the same spinning pipe mount, a wheel instead of the gear, and a latex covered knob on an arm instead of a motor gear to act as a brake. That would make it easier to transfer filament between spools by hand, and the brake would keep some tension on the outgoing spool so it doesn't outrun the incoming spool.
SoliForum - 3D Printing Community → Filastruder → Filament Winder
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