Compact Neo Solo

thingiverse

*** Check end of Details page for Updates *** I was contacted by a fellow Thingverse contributor, TheMyThosaurProject to see if I could design a hotend cover for the Ender3 V2 Neo printer. Since I do not have this printer, but he does, he was willing to be a partner in developing a hotend cover with me. To aide in designing this part, I also ordered a complete Neo hotend assembly from Amazon so I could 3d model all of the parts. Unfortunately, the back plate is not available to buy, but I was able to download an stl file from another Thingverse contributor, https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5535608. This was a good start to the project, but I had to adjust a few dimensions from the .stl download of the backing plate based on the actual dimensions of the stock housing. At any rate, we were able to come up with a hotend housing that fit the Neo back plate perfectly, but also added some extra features over the stock housing. This design maintains the original CRT mount position and does not require any modification of the original CRT mounting. One of the main requests was to be able to raise the housing for a better view of the hotend nozzle while printing. I was also able to include a 5015 blower fan as well as dual ducts for part cooling, which is way more powerful than the stock setup. This is the 5015 fan I used, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09W5NHLDV?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details It is held in place by a single M3x20mm or M3x22mm pan head socket machine screw The housing is also designed to use the stock 4010 hotend fan, or a 4020 24V fan like this from Amazon, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07S9Q3FHW?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details This fan takes four M3x22mm pan head socket machine screws. This housing has been designed to be printed as one part, hence the name Neo Solo. There is only one part required for this whole assembly. All of the angles are designed to be printed without supports. If your slicer has the ability to add supports for the snap fits only, that would be preferable, however even a substandard snap fit should work fine. I have included two part files only because one is designed for an M3 5.7 x 3 x 4.6mm brass threaded heat set insert for the third alignment position, and the other is for self taping the stock M3 threaded machine screw. These are the brass inserts I used, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BYVZR26J?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details They are easy to install. You don't need a fancy soldering iron setup. I was able to just thread one onto a long M3 screw and heat it with a Bic lighter and press in place. I designed in a bottom out position on the housing, so you just push the insert in until it stops. Easy peasy. This single part is an advanced print that requires a well dialed in printer to get a proper result. The filament material required is preferably ABS, but PETG should work as well. PLA is not recommended due to excessive heat requirements. I have made several ABS prints of this part that have turned out excellent. The clearance for the heater core wiring is fairly tight, but has not been an issue. The heater core wires can be routed behind the hotend (preferred} or in front. The .stl file Ender3 V2 NEO Hotend Cover 3H is designed for use with a heat set brass thresded insert. The .stl file Ender3 V2 NEO Hotend Cover 3H1 is designed for an M3 screw to self thread. This part is designed to be printed with the front air grill face down on the print bed. The same applies to the Hotend Cover files 3I and 3I1 We found that using the 4020 hotend fan ran quieter than the stock fan. Also the 5015 part cooling fan was so efficient that it could be ran at 75% speed or less, instead of 100% speed, which again resulted in less overall fan noise. I was unable to completely isolate the hotend fan airflow from partially blowing on the part, like I was able to do in the two previous Ender3 / Pro / V2 housing designs. The Ender 3 Neo / Max hotend shape does not allow enough room to adequately isolate the hotend fan airflow. However, the hotend fan airflow to the part is more reduced compared to the stock Neo setup, which may work ok for materials like ABS and ASA. However, I have found that most that most users of these machines are primarily printing with PLA, which should work very well. _____________________________________________________________________ UPDATE 1 - It was called to my attention that the original grill pattern may be too restrictive and cause airflow interference and noise. I revised the grill pattern to allow significantly less ariflow restriction. The revised grill pattern files are Ender 3 Neo Hotend Cover 3i (brass insert version) and Ender 3 Neo Hotend Cover 3i1 (self threaded version). The wide open venturi style air duct opening files are Ender 3 Neo Hotend Cover 3h ( brass insert version) and Ender 3 Neo Hotend Cover 3h1 ( self threaded version) UPDATE 2 - A number of people found holes for self tapping the M3 machine screws in were too tight. I opened up the clearances on all of these holes to allow for easier self threading of these screws. UPDATE 3 - I had a few people call out some features that needed to be addressed. I have uploaded all new STL files, with new file extensions to reflect these changes. I have shortened the two snap fit tabs by .020" (.5mm) due to interference with the 2020 rail. I increased the depth of the top opening by .180" (4.6mm) to allow more space for wires when using direct drive attachments. Another feature I added that was not requested, was two side vents on the left side to allow more airflow around the hotend. As before, only one file is needed for this NEO Solo hotend cover. I have provided four files to choose from. There are two styles of grill openings and each style has two options for screw fitting type on the backplate mount. One screw type is for self tapping an M3 machine screw and the other is for using a heat set threaded brass insert. UPDATE 4 - It was brought to my attention that the part cooling ducts were not directing enough airflow to the back side of the nozzle. In some cases, this could cause uneven part cooling. I was able to modify the ducts to extend them farther rearward so the part cooling airflow is now centered evenly around the nozzle. I have uploaded all new .stl files with new file names. As before, print with grill surface face down on the print bed and turn off supports.