…I’ll get it right eventually…
https://sites.google.com/site/321soldersucker/random-ramblings/printrbotsimplemetalsheatedbed
Just a heads up, I know you are well on your way with the custom solution but you can get a free kit from PB with some extra delrin pieces to thermally isolate the wings and a relective sheet to mount under the heat plate.
http://printrbot.com/shop/heated-bed-insulator-for-simple-metal/
They also have a guide for installing it
http://help.printrbot.com/Guide/Printrbot+Metal+Simple+Heated+Bed+Insulator+Installation/193
You may or may not want to check into it, my heated bed kit came with those parts. They’re probably including it in all the new kits now.
Wow, thanks @Tom_Georgoulias ! I didn’t even realise that upgrade was available until you pointed it out!
I will order it, but I’ll keep playing around in the meantime I think - their solution looks pretty similar to mine, so at least I know I’m on the right track!
Thanks again!
Great share @Tom_Georgoulias and @Colin_Bell . I am also with a Printrbot Simple Metal with Heated Bed. It’s doing great for me except it is losing its adhesion for my normal PLA prints :(. Not sure what I am missing. Time to order some stuff from Printrbot.
No problem, glad to help out! Sharing knowledge, experience and tip is required with this hobby! 
I’ve been able to get some pretty flat prints on my simple w/o the heated bed. I use white masking tape, a shortened fan shroud for more cooling air flow, and a cura profile I’ve been tweaking and refining for months. I also spent some time making my mic6 bed really level so the auto probe doesn’t have to compensate so much. I’ve been printing a lot of space station ratchets and raspbery pi B cases for friends and everything has been coming out smooth and flat (and the ratchets work
Looks like I might need a new extruder for my printrbot simple metal but the new metal extruder is still out of stock. Do you guys know a good replacement for the ubis hot end that just be a drop in?
@Dat_Chu I’m currently swapping between the PB Ubis and all metal versions - why do you think you need a new one?
By the way, I’ve had a lot of luck with Kapton tape and glue stick on both heated and non-heated beds for PLA. In fact, since using that, I’ve never lost a PLA print due to it moving.
As always though, getting your first layer height right is critical - bad first layer will inevitably mean the print is lost. I’ve done several posts about my experiments with this, so check out my blog for more details - I’m happy to answer any questions you might have.
I had a huge clog that has the filament in between the red sleeve. I thought I broke it. But I managed to heat things up and manually remove the slag with a soldering iron. It is back to working again.
I need to get a glue stick to help with sticking the bottom layer. Right now it helps when I clean the kapton tape with alcohol and then buff it clean prior to printing.
Good to hear you’re up and running again! You’re right about cleaning the Kapton before each print - I use water and a sponge to get the old glue off and buff with IPA solvent before applying the next coat.
My wife isn’t approving having my printer in my office, citing the lack of open space and ipa vapor and burned plastic being bad when inhaling. I notice that in most videos, people have their printers in the garage. Does that affect the print quality?
Drafts and sudden changes of ambient air temperature can certainly affect both surface quality and bed adhesion. I’ve found this is more apparent with ABS than PLA though. Providing your printers environment is relatively stable though you shouldn’t have any problems.
I still use a ceramic ubis, I haven’t installed my metal one yet. The ceramic works well for PLA and its fairly well proven design at this point so I’ve stuck with it. It’s also fixable when it clogs, you can use a 7/16" wrench and vice grips to remove the plastic top section and get inside to remove the crusty clogged bits. I’ve done it a few times and been successful. Try it before you throw an old one out.
I have my printer in my office in the house. Like Colin said, the abient temp and humidity will affect printing and I like having a stable environment for mine. PLA smells a whole lot better than ABS so my family doesn’t complain.