I’m going to use my CNC router as a base for a 3d printer, just replace the spindle with a hot end…2 machines for the footprint of 1. Downloaded replicator as a starting point, but its asking for me to download python, that’s done, but still won’t process a model…any ideas.
For all that I’d be happy to be proven wrong about this. I’m not sure youre goung to have much joy there. Just as 3d printers don’t convert well to cnc, I imagine the same applies to the inverse.
I cannot see a mechanical problem going router to printer, I can see a problem going printer to router, system structural stiffness, there can be huge loads passing through it. So I am hoping that it will work well enough to prove a particular theory I have…watch this space.
We help industrial customers set-up older or out of service CNC units as 3DP’s. The advantage is precision and repeatability. However, these are true CNC and not routers. Some routers are gantry style, something we’ve found to be problematic as you increase speed. As @Tim_Rastall mentions, depending on the base unit, it may not pay off as speed is the #1 requirement of these units. And most are not really set up for speed.
Gantry style with maximum 1200mm/min in x and y only 450 x 300 x 80 volume. Just looking to test an alternate hot end I’m thinking of.
A router should be fairly suitable for 3D printing, as long as your Z-drive is accurate enough - that being said, most 3D printers get along just fine with threaded rod for that, so you should be good there. Movement speed around 50mm/s and acceleration around 1000mm/s² should be enough to get started.
Help me out here, @Tim_Page-Brown , what is replicator(G?) being used for? The most popular slicers (stl to gcode processors) are currently Slic3r and Cura, with the host (pronterface, Repetier host) sending the gcode to your electronics (running Marlin, Sprinter or TinyG).
@Thomas_Sanladerer ah, now we’re getting to the point of the original post, so is slic3r a better bet for windows? I’m afraid I’m very much a user and designer, not a programmer, I need help with this side of things☺
I assume you meant Makerbot’s ReplicatorG - that has been dead for years. Either way, Slic3r is a good place to start and is trivial to get running.
@Thomas_Sanladerer many thanks, I’m going to start there and see how I get on.
@Matt_Kraemer1 I use mach3, from memory it can handle 100,000 lines of gcode. Many of my current projects have 30k lines plus.
@Thomas_Sanladerer just loaded slic3r, run through mach3, seems to be working ok, just got to make up the hot end and controls… let’s see what happens😀
Nice! How are going to control the hotend and extruder?
@Tim_Page-Brown , try using repetier host, it installs everything as a package so you get slicer, repetier, and all the required python, no hassles
@Thomas_Sanladerer actually, I’m working on an alternative to the conventional extruder using injection moulding technologies, so not really sure what I’ll need to control yet,
I’m doing the same.
Do you know any temperature controllers that accept 48V?
@Marcus_Wolschon not got that far yet, I’m a mechanical engineer, not electrical. My current plan is to use as much reprap tech as possible.
I have taken apart my Thing-o-Matic and want to use it’s 3rd party extruder and hotend.
The mechanics of it was foobar andmy #TravelCNC should be fast enough for reasonable 3d printing.
@Marcus_Wolschon I think your travel CNC is a great piece of packaging, well done. I’m trying to speed everything up by putting down thicker layers, the 3d printing process is too slow to be an effective commercial additive production tool yet