Folgertech Prusa I3 X-axis upgrade NO LM8UU BEARINGS

thingiverse

This is an X-axis upgrade for the Folgertech Prusa I3 variant. The x-axis has been modified by moving the x-axis extruder up in the z-direction, allowing more z-distance for the ED3 hot-end installed on my MK-8 extruder. The LM8UU bearings from both the x-axis carriage and x-axis holders have been removed due to noise issues. The printer functions well without them, with the plastic serving as a bushing instead. A wrap-around belt design with a zip-tie has replaced the original x-carriage design to prevent belt detachment. Key aspects of this design include embedded nuts on both the x-axis holders and carriage for improved stability. These nuts must be inserted during the printing process by pausing the printer at a specific layer, then resuming the print. Holes in the design are intentionally undersized to facilitate easy drilling to the correct size. The top rod hole of the x-carriage requires about 8.2mm drilling, while the bottom slot needs similar sizing. This allows for adjustable tension on the rod to set optimal "slide friction". Similarly, all holes on the X-axis carriage holders should be drilled out to approximately 8.2mm. Misalignment issues were encountered with Nylon printing, leading to over-sizing of these holes to achieve a proper fit. I printed this upgrade in Nylon but faced warp issues that required more massaging than desired to achieve functionality. PLA might be a better choice due to its reduced warp but may offer less friction. So far, I've put about 40 hours into printing with this setup without major issues, using ABS, PLA, and Nylon without any problems. The build quality is excellent and significantly reduces the variability in printing. This is a work in progress, with future updates planned for improved GD&T considerations to address over-constraint issues that require oversized holes to function properly. Also, I plan to remove LM8UU bearings from the Y-axis carriers as they seem to be good candidates for such removal. Lastly, I've integrated the Fan shroud/mount for the ED3 hotend on the Folgertech extruder and intend to update this design to accommodate a cooling fan for the part instead of just the hotend.