AO Igus Pillow Block X-Carriage (1.5mm slimmer & 20mm wider)

thingiverse

I created a modified version of the AO-101's X-carrriage based on the original part that came with my printer. My Lulzbot A0-101 was previously owned, and it had an E3D v5 hotend fitted. However, the E3D Moulded Fan Duct for the V5 did not fit due to lack of clearance, so I attached a 30x30x10 fan to the heatsink using plastic ties. One of my first modifications was replacing the hot end with an E3D v6, which is slightly shorter than the V5. This gave me some extra print height and made it easier to install other upgrades. To further improve the design, I replaced the E3D v5 adaptor plate with a two-part design from Amplivive. This modification brought my E3D v6 down by several millimeters, and when combined with the shorter length of the V6, I gained about 12mm of print height. Next, I had to find a new fan duct for my E3D v6 since the one I was using with the V5 did not fit. I opted for DWONH's "All-in-one fan duct for E3D v6" design, which is robust and effective. To ensure proper clearance for the two 40x40x10 fans, I redesigned the X-carriage to make it 10mm wider on each side (20mm total) and 1.5mm slimmer. This allowed me to fit the new fan duct and bring the hotend further down. I also added two new mounting holes at the front of the X-carriage, with a groove for an M3 nut, in case I need to attach something to it in the future. The results are promising! After my modification, I lost almost no print volume (previously 190x200x150 and now 185x200x152). I'm very happy with how this turned out! The pictures show the new X-carriage in place and how my new fan duct will look when finished. I need to reprint it since I had trouble printing it, but the print quality is brilliant even with a small 30x30x10 cooling fan on one side. I hope someone finds this helpful!