Material Switching Bowden feeder

thingiverse

Important Notice: The user is currently occupied with exams, thus the experiment's progress has been delayed. They will create a video as soon as they complete their exams. The "Y" joint setup allows for single nozzle use of two different filaments. With firmware adjustments, it can extrude multiple colors/materials through one nozzle. However, material switching remains experimental and demands fine-tuning. Precise cold retraction is necessary to clean the tip, and distances must be calibrated to avoid filament mixing. Despite challenges, this setup may be the precursor to future multi-colored 3D printers. Successfully tested on a Prusa Mendel i2 with customized firmware, an E3D nozzle, and two jonaskuehling extruders, generating gcode using Kisslicer. Instructions: The setup requires 2 "Y" joint halves (3D printed), 2 M5 bolts & nuts, 5 M3 bolts & nuts, PTFE tubing, a cutter, caution, and faith. Physical mounting necessitates cutting PTFE tubing to fit the joint's shape while covering its inner surface entirely. Afterward, tighten everything together. The upper tube connects to extruders, and the lower one links to the nozzle. Software-wise, tweak firmware for the printer to recognize a single nozzle with two stepper extruders. Use this Marlin version: https://github.com/gvJaime/Marlin/tree/DualFeed. Modify extruder change gcode routines as needed. Further experimentation is required to avoid mixing different plastics.