Ender 3 Pro PSU Mount for Dual Z-axis

thingiverse

The Ender 3 is a great 3D printer, but its flex and sag in the X-axis gantry are major weaknesses. A dual Z-axis kit makes the printer much more reliable and convenient, especially with the TH3D dual Z-axis kit (1). Later on, I adapted this kit to add a second Z-stepper motor, which requires moving the PSU. I wanted to keep the PSU mounted to the frame for better airflow and cooling. This setup allows for a bigger case and larger cooling fan (2), which most designs that put the PSU under or behind the printer can't accommodate. However, I couldn't find any existing brackets that met my requirements exactly. The CR83D bracket (3) is beautifully designed but sits the PSU too low, interfering with the ethernet cable to my Raspberry Pi LCD enclosure (4). On the other hand, the Scuddy bracket (5) places the PSU in a nice raised position, but it doesn't fit perfectly with the Ender 3 Pro PSU. To get the best of both worlds, I combined the two designs by adding some screwholes for better security and it works really well with the TH3D kit. There's plenty of clearance for the second Z-screw, and the bracket is very stiff. To mount the brackets to the frame, you'll need 5 * M4 8-10 mm screws and t-nuts. You will also need to remove one of the M4 screws that attaches the PSU to the stock PSU mount. When adding the second Z-stepper motor later on, my combined design didn't provide enough clearance. So, I switched back to just the CR83D version but with added screwholes. Switching to wireless on the Pi made cabling acceptable. It works wonderfully with the Z-motor mount from AndiArbeit90 (6). Due to the quick creation of this design in TinkerCAD, there might be a printing artifact on the surface near the screwholes; the X/Y/Z resolution of TinkerCAD is 0.01 mm, while the original files have features that measure to 0.005 mm. This difference in tolerance isn't worth fixing as it's less than what an FDM printer can achieve. Use an M4 8 mm screw to secure the PSU to the front bracket and an M4 12 mm screw for the rear bracket. 1. <a href="https://www.th3dstudio.com/product/ender-3-dual-z-upgrade-kit/">Ender 3 and CR-20 Dual Z Upgrade Kit</a> 2. <a href="https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3232346">Ender 3 - psu box for 80mm fan</a> 3. <a href="https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3742126">PSU Bracket Ender 3 Pro</a> 4. <a href="https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4096147">Ender 3 PRO LCD and Raspberry Pi Enclosure</a> 5. <a href="https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3451260">Scuddy Dual Z Upgrade Kit for the Ender 3</a> 6. <a href="https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3434253">Ender 3 Z-Axis Damper Mount</a> This is a very easy print, but its geometry is prone to warping and lifting. When using Magigoo as an adherence aid on glass I didn't need a brim or raft, but YMMV. These are structural parts, so print thick and heavy; I used 4 * 0.4 mm walls and 1.2 mm top and bottom layers with heavy infill. The rear bracket from Scuddy is designed to slide into the extrusion, which is a very tight fit, especially if you print with thick walls. I used -0.1 mm horizontal expansion in my slicer to help it fit, and even then I still had to use some percussive maintenance to fully seat the rear bracket into the extrusion.