from an article on Hackaday...
"The earliest home 3D printers used geared extruders nearly exclusively to push [3mm] filament through a hot nozzle. These geared extruders, like Wade’s Geared Extruder, are essentially a reduction drive. By using 1.75mm filament, the torque required from a stepper motor is three times less than with 3mm filament. This reduction in torque means a smaller direct drive system can be used, and since the drive system is smaller, the inertia of an entire print axis is reduced. This means smaller, faster printers than can also print better at low layer heights."
find the full article here: http://hackaday.com/2015/09/29/3d-print … standards/
SD4 #1 & #2 - Lawsy carriages, E3D v6, Rumba controller board, mirror bed plate, X motor fan, upgraded PSU & Mica bed heater
SD4 #3 - in the works ~ Folgertech FT-5, rev 1
Printit Industries Beta Tester - Horizon H1