Core A8 Lite

thingiverse

A CoreXY upgrade of Anet A8, with a 31×31×31 cm build volume design. It is a remix of [Core A8 Slim (20mm) by IIZEROXII](https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3588785). **Detailed descriptions and guidelines are attached as a PDF file, because Thingiverse's Thing Pages have been problematic for a while.** Fusion 360 design project & STEP file attached. 360° preview of 3D renders attached as a HTML file. #Features of Core A8 Lite I have never fully assembled a Core A8 Slim, therefore my comparisons with the Slim (20mm) are merely based on its design and issues I have with the Lite. ##Improvements Compared to the stock Anet A8, Core A8 Lite, as a CoreXY printer with a Bowden hotend, can manage higher printing speed because of its lighter moving parts. It also offers a larger building plate. The Lite aims to improve the Slim in the following aspects: - Thinner and simplified parts. It should cost less materials. It also makes good use of some Anet A8's acrylic plates and the long M8 screw rods. - Easier-to-print parts. Only 5 out of 48 unique parts (totally 8 pieces, including duplicates) require supports. The supports will be easy to remove. - Faster-to-print parts. All parts are designed to be printed with 0.4 mm layers. Most parts are good with only 2 walls. - More accurate pulley specifications, while the Slim's carriages are designed for 20T toothed & smooth idler pulleys (see Section 5.2.1 “Y Carriage Parts”). - Likely more rigid frames, with all the reinforcements. - Maybe more stable Z axis. The print bed now starts from near the Z motor instead of from the other end. ##Shortcomings - Because the Lite has no Y frames at the top, there is no perfect reinforcement to completely eliminate shearing at the top XY plane. - Not highly compatible/interchangeable with the Slim (20mm). See Section 1.3 “Compatibility with the Slim (20mm) and the stock Anet A8”. - No hiding-belts-in-frame, like the Slim (20mm), which is a desirable feature of other Slim versions. - Only E3D V6 style Bowden hotends are supported. Because I struggled too much to adapt to the stock carriage, and I doubt a direct extruder is sensible for a CoreXY printer anyway. - The E3D V6 X Carriage is still not conveniently accessible. - A lot of small parts to be printed and assembled, as a trade-off for easier and less printing. Although the small parts can be assembled with great stability. - Requires extra fasteners like M3 50 mm screws, which are not included in the stock Anet A8 package and may cost dozens of US$, as a consequence of many small parts. ##Compatibility with the Slim (20mm) and the stock Anet A8 The extra parts (to-be purchased) are hopefully compatible: - Although the required lengths/cuts are identical for the square tube extrusions, only a specific wall thickness (1.6 mm) is accepted. For square tubes of other sizes (including non-20-mm), see Section 7.1 “Fusion 360 design parameters” for model modification. - All idler pulleys (toothed & smooth, 16T & 20T) combinations are provided with corresponding carriage variants. - Both 31×31 cm and the stock 22×22 cm heatbeds are compatible. - Only E3D V6 style Bowden hotends are accepted. - otally 8 pieces of LM8UU, or 4 pieces of LM8LUU (recommended), are required for the X & Y axes. - Likely some extension wires are required to connect the Endstop X and the hotend cooling fan. The printed parts, however, are mostly incompatible and NOT interchangeable with the Slim (20mm): - The Top Corner Parts, E3D V6 Carriage Parts, Z Axis Parts, Bed Carriage Parts and Top Corner Clamp are NOT compatible with the Slim. - Because of the close dimensions, the following parts in Accessories are likely compatible and CAN be used on the Slim (20mm): 40 Fan Convert, Board Supports, Spool Parts, Bottom Corner Clamps, Extruder Mount, Miscellaneous parts, Support Plates Clamps (for the acrylic support plate reinforcements). # Updates not included in PDF manual ## 2020-11-29 Recommend extra pair of PTFE tube push fit connector to have an access point to filament above the X carriage (optional) ## ~~2020-12-01~~ ~~The blower fan duct neck should be cut short to (greatly) reduce the high-pitch noise.~~ ## 2021-02-12 1. Updated blower fan duct design, which now envelops the fan instead of inserting into it, trying to reduce noise by maximising the in-take cross-section. Double-sided tapes are again expected for mounting the fan. 1. Slightly modified the Y Carriage "ears" for the X Rods. Try not to over-tighten the screws on these Y Carriage ears, as the X/Y Carriages & X Rods are mainly fastened by the tensioned belts but not by the screws. The old version STL files are replaced. New version (68) of Fusion 360 design project & STEP file attached. The previous version (66) project files are still kept.