Extruder lower block for Deltaprintr

thingiverse

This replacement for the Deltaprintr extruder's lower section provides a guide for filament so it won't be able to push out sideways when there's slight resistance. It greatly helps for printing soft filaments, such as flex PLA or wood. Inspired by Valentin's replacement for my original extruder floor replacement. This was designed from the ground up in (freely-available) OpenSCAD and extends a little further into the gear area than Valentin's version. The OpenSCAD source file is included if you need to adjust tolerances for your printer. Everything is well-commented, making it easy to determine which numbers to modify. When assembling, try pushing the ridge with the filament hole up close to the bearing & gear while tightening the screws as tight as possible. You want this ridge pushed up there so that the filament doesn't have any play between the gear and the filament guide. If you're using the "with tube" version, you'll need to insert a short (around 13mm or half an inch) section of 4mm PTFE tubing into the hole above the push fitting. It will stick up into the V space between the drive gear and the pinch bearing. You'll have to use a knife to whittle the tube into a point that fits as closely as possible between the two surfaces. Keep whittling and testing the fit until you get it just right. Tip: You can cut a piece from your bowden tube for this; it's plenty long enough. Updates 2017.05.25 - Adds teflon tube option, which tightens up gaps around the drive gear. Print Settings Rafts: No rafts are used. Supports: No supports are printed. Infill: 20% infill is used to print a sturdy part with sufficient density. Notes: For Cura: Disable support material to prevent unnecessary overhang. Top/bottom thickness set to 1mm or higher to increase stability. Three or more shells of the part should be printed for increased strength. Fill density adjusted to 20% or higher to maintain optimal weight-to-strength ratio. A minimal layer time of 10 seconds or longer is recommended to avoid underextrusion in small top layers. Cool head lift: enabled to facilitate smooth printing and avoid blobbing on top layers.