Filament pusher

thingiverse

Construct an easy filament pusher utilizing a DC reduction motor from Jaycar, alongside two microswitches and a skateboard bearing. The drive gear is formed by a brass shaft coupling hobbed with a M4 tap as suggested in this guide: http://reprap.org/wiki/Wade's_Geared_Extruder. This simple design was made to fit the components I could acquire. Soon, expect the BOM and photos once it gets off the printer! As the printer demands more filament, the microswitch is triggered, and the motor supplies more until it catches up, then turns off. I opted for a quieter, smaller motor that runs at 70 rpm from 12V. For safety purposes, a second microswitch is wired to the machine's E-Stop, so if you run out of filament or encounter an issue, everything stops! Check it in action here: http://youtu.be/An926fPPbcY. If interested, feel free to request the Solidworks files.