Anet A8_Y-Axis Brace System

thingiverse

Designer's Note - Jan. 2019: I stopped developing this design a while back due to the numerous different A8 versions that exist. I have since come up with much more refined ideas for this, but the truth is that you should just use some aluminum to stiffen the frame. Most of the frame-reinforcing designs on this site are a complete waste of filament (second only to all of the fan ducts here), and the people who designed them need to go back to school and stop wasting their time in CAD -- or at least stop publishing their deficient designs. If you have an A8, and you want to make it look cool with printed parts, then print away; but if you value your time and want your printer to work better for the least amount of money, then buy some aluminum angle/channel/tube and be done with it. For ~20 Schmeckles, you could reinforce the rear, middle, and front of the y-axis, cross-brace the y-axis, stiffen the z-axis vertically & horizontally, tie all of those parts together square, and have plenty of places to fasten the printer down to a solid surface. Just make sure you source square/straight materials. For another ~100 Schmeckles, you could eliminate a lot of variables and convert it to an AM8. The acrylic frame on the A8 is a turd that can only be polished so much, and if you really want to get it printing good, then you're going to need to ditch the plastic all together. *****NOTE: The full implementation of this requires modification of the A8's acrylic frame. The middle bottom cross member will need material removed to make way for the threaded rods. *****ANOTHER NOTE: The location of the Y-axis motor and pulley mounting points for the Anet A8 should NOT be asymmetrical -- Anet messed up and cut the holes off center. The belt is mounted in the MIDDLE of the carriage, and centered between the smooth rods. Therefore, the belt needs to be centered at the rear (motor), as well as the front (front pulley). As many A8 owners may have noticed, the belt is crooked as a dog's hind leg with the factory setup. While the issue at the rear can be solved by relocating the toothed pulley further down the motor shaft, I didn't like adding extra leverage (stress) on the motor and it still leaves the front out of alignment. MY PARTS RELOCATE THE MOTOR AND FRONT PULLEY to center, and inline with where the belt mounts to the carriage. This is the beginning of my final solution to Y-axis stabilization for the A8. It's not so much a rework as an improvement. I've taken the best parts from various designs and combined them into something new. This design is more robust and easier to assemble than any of the previous ones. The rear brace is designed to integrate with my Motor Truss piece to prevent racking of the rear section of the frame (but the truss piece is not required to use the rear brace). I printed it with 70% infill. The motor truss serves a similar purpose as Leo_N's Rear Frame Brace, but it's shorter and has more accurate holes/slots for the threaded rod. The pulley holder is a remixed version from matsekberg's Y-axis Rework. I added some holes for M2 screws (~8mm, not including head) to retain the pulley screw, just because I was bored. It can be used as shown in matsekberg's setup. I printed it with 100% infill. The front brace is a combination of Leo_N's front brace and matsekberg's Y-axis Rework front component. I changed the orientation of the holes, and located the four square acrylic frame reference lugs off of center to match the factory mistake. Post-Printing While you've got things apart, take the time to turn your aluminum H-carriage so it is opposite what is shown in the assembly instructions. The single crossmember should be on the bottom, while the two sides that attach to the sliders are on top. This will help get the belt level between the motor and pulley. The hardware needed will be the same as matsekberg's Y-Axis Rework (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2045010), unless otherwise mentioned. Assembly will also be very similar, with the removal of some acrylic adding an extra step.