LilPushy Cold-end Extruder

A project in Springfield, IL by Nathaniel Stenzel
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A remote driven filament selecting extruder for 3D printers.
Backers: 12
Average Pledge Per Backer: $13

Funded: $161 of $21,400
Dates: Nov 22nd -> Jan 15th (55 days)
Project By: Nathaniel Stenzel
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$161

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Last Updated: January 15 @ 13:08 -0500 GMT

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Latest News

Funding not met.

January 15th - via: kickstarter.com
The funding was not met.  This Kickstarter is over. I will try to figure out what to do with the results of my work after I finish it.  (Read More)

Careful with the circuit boards on geared motors

January 12th - via: kickstarter.com
The geared motor from Adafruit has a loose connection or something now and I need to manipulate the circuit board a little to get it working. Please be careful if you buy that motor. Maybe the Amazon one without the board would be better considering... (Read More)

Motors

January 11th - via: kickstarter.com
I got the motors from Adafruit in. The 12v Small Reduction Stepper Motor looks like it is a little smaller than the geared DC motor that I was messing with but I have my doubts that it would have the required power. The geared DC motor is a little... (Read More)

Adafruit package incoming

January 11th - via: kickstarter.com
My order from Adafruit is supposed to be coming in today. I should be able to design around some more standard motors for the selector system soon. In other news, I came to the conclusion that if I use a couple of endstop circuits on the controller... (Read More)

Tolerances

January 11th - via: kickstarter.com
I have come to the conclusion that I will probably want to make the tension on the selectors adjustable sooner or later to compensate for differences in tolerances for different machines.  (Read More)

Selector motor for one of 3 main designs

January 7th - via: kickstarter.com
It might slow down a little but it works. This is just a geared dc motor that I had on hand. I can refine things later. You'll need an HTML5 capable browser to see this content. Play Replay with sound Play with sound 00:00 00:00  (Read More)

Gear algorithm corrections

January 7th - via: kickstarter.com
I corrected my gear algorithm. When I go to print them again, I will need to test teeth meshing again.  (Read More)

improvised solution weight for one design

January 7th - via: kickstarter.com
I took a geared motor from some toy that displayed a pattern on the ceiling. I am not sure if it is strong enough for the smaller square shaped version of the original design or not, but I made part of the mount for it. It weighs in at just 80 grams.... (Read More)

More progress but I will probably not make it and neither will the funding goal

January 5th - via: kickstarter.com
I have a submicro servo and it came with arms but no gears. I am trying to design 2 gears. One just snaps on a set of arms that are trimmed. The snap on version works. The other one probably requires more resolution than I can get out of my 0.4mm... (Read More)

BB version progress and some thoughts

December 28th - via: kickstarter.com
I made some progress on the version of the extruder that I set up to use BBs. A number of these designs should be easy to injection mold. Some numbers may have been off by 0.05mm or so. I may need to reprint a full set of the one design. I need to... (Read More)

A BB version of one of the non-v8 versions

December 25th - via: kickstarter.com
I made a rough draft for a BB using version of one of the non-v8 extruders. I still need to design the matching selector for it though. It is a 30x30 shell size which is slightly larger. Keeping things small is hard and it really does not need matter... (Read More)

BB's as bearings?

December 18th - via: kickstarter.com
I think I may end up using 4.5mm BBs (like from an air rifle) as bearings for some of my designs. This may require enlarging some parts some. A benefit to using them is that they are easy to find and you get a ton for cheap. This means that even if... (Read More)

Some issues to overcome

December 15th - via: kickstarter.com
I printed some more prototypes and did testing. It seems the gears that I am using do not have enough of a tooth count and the gear teeth are actually about a 90 degree shape when a 45-60 degree shape would be better.  I could not get the 1/8mm... (Read More)

Back on track

December 7th - via: kickstarter.com
I had managed to get the pressure points misaligned but I fixed that today. I also started work on a 2nd selection method for the v8 motor. I need to do some shopping and get the parts for the two different v8 selectors.  (Read More)

V8 design work

December 5th - via: kickstarter.com
I worked on the fit of the V8 design and some extrusion tests. It pushed filament well enough for a little bit and then got a little weaker about it. It could be due to the hollow tube that I was using deforming. The hollow tube was just a temporary... (Read More)

V8 motor mount

December 3rd - via: kickstarter.com
I designed a mount for the v8 version so that I can put it on a nema17 and test it better. I will print that tomorrow. That should allow me the chance to test tolerances while I am designing the selector. I have two options in mind for the selector.... (Read More)

Reboot and testing

December 3rd - via: kickstarter.com
A reboot, of all things, fixed some serial communication issues that I was having. The power supply seems to be holding steady even though it is a bit weak.  The V8 version had a few iterations and prints with no support material. I did a simple... (Read More)

Electronics issues and the V8 variation

December 2nd - via: kickstarter.com
I can't seem to not have problems with my electronics. The controller board, the wiring and the power supply are all unreliable, it seems. Maybe I should just order a whole new printer at this rate. I started print tests of the V8 variety today.... (Read More)

Firmware and display issues

December 2nd - via: kickstarter.com
I am having issues getting strong, quiet and smooth motion. I can not get the display on the printer working either. I would settle for at least strong and smooth motion at this point. If anyone has tips on configuring TMC2608 stepper motors that... (Read More)

The controller board works some after all

November 30th - via: kickstarter.com
After giving up on it and disconnecting it, the controller board decided to  work to a degree. I now have some rough movement and it seems that I need to redo some wiring. I still have no display working on the printer, but this controller may work... (Read More)

A bad controller board delays things

November 30th - via: kickstarter.com
I got my SKR2b from Bigtreetech but I finally realized that it was a bad board. At least I think I finally figured out the new way to compile Marlin firmware. I was not used to platformio and they moved the configuration files. It should not take me... (Read More)

Cable system work

November 26th - via: kickstarter.com
I fixed some gear meshing issues with the motor end of things by decreasing a gear count from 31 to 30. I clipped some length from the cable. I am assembling the other end of my cable. I got my hobbed gears in for the V8 version and did some work on... (Read More)

Test machine

November 25th - via: kickstarter.com
The test machine is wired up most of the way and I have started testing the cable system. Some jumper settings and a thermistor plug will finish the wiring for now.  (Read More)

Preparing a test machine

November 23rd - via: kickstarter.com
I started replacing the controller board in my big delta printer. It is the machine that I will be doing testing on.  (Read More)

Drive gears are ordered

November 22nd - via: kickstarter.com
Some 11mm drive gears are ordered for a completely different design because I like having multiple options.  (Read More)

Launching

November 22nd - via: kickstarter.com
Perhaps I should not have launched yet, but here it is.  I unfortunately have a dull brass part in a spot where I need a sharp steel part and the cable that I made for the meantime is not up to the task so I am using a cheap handheld screwdriver... (Read More)

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