Caliper Bed leveling holder for Geeetech I3

thingiverse

Looking for a cost-effective way to utilize an inexpensive electronic caliper to level the bed on my DIY I3 Pro B, I stumbled upon a "thing" that needed to be screwed onto the extruder carrier and was proving difficult to use. I had seen similar setups using a "clock" measurer attached to the smooth bars. So I came up with a way to replicate this method. The caliper is simply secured to the "thing" with elastic hair bands, as shown in the photo. There's a bump on the back of my caliper that determines how low it goes into the slot for it in the "thing". To Use It: 1) Set one corner of the bed manually. 2) Move the extruder to the middle. 3) Attach the caliper holder (with the caliper!) where the extruder was, and ensure it's zeroed when closed. 4) Open the caliper until the small slider comes out of the bottom and touches the bed; then read the value. 5) Slide the bed and close the caliper; reopen it and read the value. Adjust as necessary (My cheap Chinese caliper requires being opened and closed a few times to re-read the gap, so open and close it a few times to be sure!). 6) Remove the "thing" and attach it to the other side of the bed on the smooth bars; test that side (and adjust as required) front and back... 7) Take it off and print! Notes: * You can check anywhere on the bed with this method, of course. * My digital caliper cost about £5 on Amazon (compared to a clock meter which costs hundreds). * I'm no expert and this was my first attempt at 3D modeling; if it ain't perfect, I won't worry. Extra Notes: * Keep in mind that the actual value shown on the caliper is irrelevant; what matters is that it's consistent. If you "home" the z-axis before starting, you can write down the value as it should remain the same; but there's no reason to home the z-axis, it can be at any height if you know that at least one corner is the right distance from the extruder. My limited experience shows that it's essential to ensure the heated bed is up to temperature before setting the gap, as something must expand due to heating (maybe the glass?).