A few years ago, I planned on making a RepRap from Thingiverse
A RepRap is a 3D printer (or other types of CNC machines) designed to be made by DIYers and hobbyists.
The one I chose was the Clover v2 printer. It’s a delta printer. I printed the various 3D printable parts and then bought the other individual parts – and then sat of it for a few years… But recently, I finished wiring it and got a successful(ish) print!
The Clover
The design I chose to try was the CloverPlus v2. It looks pretty straightforward, but the idea of attempting to making a delta seemed interesting. The ball joint works by using large ferrous ball bearings and 3D printed arms with tiny-yet-strong rare earth magnets at the end. A type of joint called a magball.
The machine’s dimensions are about 16″ tall, and 9″ in diameter.
The Parts
3D Printed Parts
Pretty self-explanatory: download the files on Thingiverse and print the ones that are needed.
The parts were printed in PLA, which I wouldn’t recommend. But, long ago, I decided not to mix different plastics with the same nozzle, and switching out the nozzle is tedious. And PLA is what I currently have loaded. For some parts, it’s fine, but for parts touching to the heating element or the motors, there is the risk of warping and deforming over time.
Electronics and Mechanical Parts
Commercial 3D printers can’t create electronics or high-performance parts, both because they’re limited to printing certain thermoplastics and because of their precision. Because of this, a lot of the parts were purchased.
There are 3 main sources that I go to for these types of things:
Depending on how specialized the part is, there may be long shipping times and shipping costs if the part comes from overseas (such as from China).
For some of these parts, it’s difficult to buy the exact number of parts needed. They often come in a defined set, and you’ll probably have a random number of extra parts afterward. Especially because the delta printer has 3 corners, and 3 is such an uncommon number of stuff.
Aluminum Extruder
A commercial aluminum Bowden extruder was used, the Redrex MK8. While the Thingiverse plans borrow a 3D printed Bowden extruder, the entire extrusion assembly was constantly failing because I refuse to switch from PLA plastic. The extruder kept failing mid-print. In the end, it was easier to get a quality extruder than to get PETG or ABS filament and switch out the current filament and/or nozzle.
Before this, I never realized how stepper motors are receiving electrical current even when they’re not moving, and how hot they can get (even when not moving). While the motors didn’t get hot enough to melt the PLA, it got hot enough to glass transition the PLA – and warp because the extruder is actually under tension (so that the gear teeth can grip the plastic it’s feeding).
The Glass Bed
I had a spare pane of glass from when I was replacing a window. The glass didn’t break cleanly, so there are some circular breaks, and then some jagged areas. I didn’t have confidence I could clean the jags, so I just left it, because I don’t have another spare pane of glass on hand.
The bed is sprayed with a coat of antiskid spray. It works well as far as providing adhesion and remaining easy to release prints. But, it’s hard to reset the surface when preparing the bed for another print.
The Electronics
The Controller
The control board used was a KINGPRINT v1.3 board that was chosen because it was a Smoothieboard, a controller board that supports the Smoothieware firmware. This was chosen because Smoothieware is what the Thingiverse author recommended.
But I’m sure any board and firmware could be used, as long as it supports delta kinematics. But, Smoothieboard was preferred because the author specified how to change the configuration of it for the Clover. Not having to figure this out while juggling everything else makes things saner.
Wiring & Organization
Wiring the elements to the controller board was the biggest learning curve. It involved going through the Smoothieboard documentation of stuff I wasn’t too familiar with, reading through doom and gloom safety warnings, and how wrong mistakes will destroy the electronics.
Some cables were already in my collection or came with purchased hardware. Other cables were made from stranded 22 gauge wires that were crimped to JST connectors. Probably the biggest lesson I learned across this entire project was how to cut and crimp cables properly. And this is because there were some painful lessons involving shoddy work with connectors falling out when pulled and wires that were breaking apart.
Electrical PVC tape and loom harness tape was used to organize the wires. Smaller organizations used small PVC loops. Larger collections of wires and cables used loom harnesses.
The Spool
To feed the spool, a set of rollers were made, with the plans taken from Thingiverse. I have a drawer full of 608 bearings, and they help the spool roll silky smooth.