e3d v5/v6 printrite extruder assembly (FINAL VERSION)

thingiverse

This is the final version of my E3D/J-Head mod for the Printrite DIY printer. After countless prototyping and alterations, I've come up with a most self-contained practical version that's both simple, versatile, easily printed, easily assembled, easy to maintain, and easy to adjust. Simply designing parts to fit onto the existing Printrite carriage proved inefficient and less than ideal, so this design also includes a redesigned carriage replacement. This new carriage has proven more sturdy, stable, and less prone to cracks than the piece of cack plastic Collido originally used. The original carriage bearings can be used but these were undersized even on the original carriage, so I've used 4x LM8UU 8mm bearings which have reduced noise and vibration across the Z-axis and given the carriage a much smoother glide. The redesigned carriage can still accommodate the original Printrite style extruder or even dual extruders of the same type (the mounting holes for the extruder bar are still available beneath where the E3D mount stands). The Extruder mount is designed to "snap-on" and "snap-off" the carriage and is secured with 2x 20mm M5 screws/bolts on the sides. This makes any maintenance or extruder swapping/tip replacing a simpler job as the whole mount comes away from the carriage (with extruder and coolers still attached), giving excellent access to the extruder without the need for mass dismantling. The mount can accommodate either the E3D V5 or E3D "all-metal" V6 extruders. It's also compatible with the Chinese clones of both these models, often referred to as "J-head" extruders. There is a cable guide built into the design which will assist with keeping everything tidy and reduce any stress on the heater and thermistor points caused by the constant carriage movement during use. The Tip cooler is bolted directly to the extruder mount with 2x 20mm M2 bolts through the top of the mount. This gives the tip cooler a limited degree of adjustment to account for fine tuning (roughly 7-8mm up & down movement), allowing you to precisely aim where you want your cooling to strike the surface. This has proven more than enough adjustment for any of the various J-head/E3D extruders I've tested so far. I've included two versions of the extruder cooler: one is for the much slimmer E3D V6 all-metal extruder, while the other fits the thicker V5 (the V5 version also fits the clones). I'm sure there are a couple of other features I'm forgetting about, but you'll probably come across them yourselves if you use this design anyway. As said, I intend this to be my final version of this particular mod as I can't see any need for further adaptations given that I've found it works exactly as intended and required. If anyone has any suggestions for further improvements or modifications, please feel free to share them! If anyone is interested in doing this mod, I suggest opting for the E3D V6 All-metal extruder (or one of the more decent China clones available at a fraction of the price). After trying various J-head/E3D types and variants, I can unanimously state that the E3D V6 all-metal is by far the best extruder of this type. Its design features offer up a great deal less faffing about with dodgy PTFE throats and blocked nozzles while giving excellent stable temps at the hotend and the option of using filaments that require greater temp levels than PLA or ABS require (which on a standard extruder head would see the PTFE tube breaking down almost immediately and blocking the tip). This E3D V6 clone version from eBay has proven to be very capable and even matched up against the genuine print for print while costing less than a quarter of what you'd pay for the genuine version. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/162035052135?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&var=461004066674&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT