Direct-drive hinged extruder for E3D/J-Head hot-end (Prusa i3)

thingiverse

Designing an extruder for my Prusa i3, I sought inspiration from various sources in order to create a compact yet easy-to-print and clean design, featuring tight filament guides to accommodate flexible materials. After testing with PLA, the extruder seemed to work well. However, it has not been tried with challenging materials. The components include an E3D all metal hot end for 1.75mm filament (J-Head compatible), a NEMA17 stepper motor (40mm recommended), Mk8 Drive Gear, 50mm centrifugal fan (5015S 12V 50x15mm), a spring from an IKEA PRESSA clothespin, and various M3 and M4 screws and nuts. A recent update switched to a flat 5x10x4 bearing for better compatibility with flexible materials. Version 1.1 improvements involved modifying the idler arm for enhanced filament squeezing and strength. Flexible PolyEster was successfully printed with this updated setup. Version 1.2 offers an even tighter filament guide and is specifically designed for a 5x10x4 (or 5x10x5) ball bearing, ensuring better performance with flexible polyester and PLA, Nylon, and PET materials. A video demonstration of the extruder's capabilities can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80q71dtGmuk, while source files made with LibreCAD and OpenSCAD are available for customization. The creator has also designed a more advanced fan duct (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:151555) and successfully implemented dual extrusion on an 80mm carriage (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ca-XfL2IUWs). If further instructions are needed for assembly, simply leave a comment.