Quick Change HIC Prusa i3 X-carriage Base Plate

thingiverse

I Purchased an off-the-shelf 3D printer and then Realized it had many more uses if you can Change tools quickly. But that would be Time-consuming and Involved, so I Decided to design a Quick Change Carriage. This is a Base plate which Stays fixed to the Slide bearings on the X-axis carriage. It has a Connector for quick disconnection of Cables, and a Bracket which Accepts quick-release Clamp for Different tools can be mounted, ie single-head or Multiple Head or a Paste extruder, or even Dremel. I had a blocked Nozzle and quick removal of the entire tool Made Changing the part so much Quicker. Instructions You may want to Print Solid I use a Bowden tube system, So I have used an 8-pin cable connector for Quick disconnection and change of tools. If you want a Stepper Motor on the carriage then you may need a 12-pin Connector. 1 Head Heater +ve 2 Head Heater -ve 3 12v +ve 4 12v -ve 5 Fan +ve 6 Fan -ve 7 Head Thermistor 8 Head Thermistor Then using a Mating Female Chassis connector for each of the changeable Heads. If the chassis Mount is connected to this carriage, it would Get in the way. The Base has 8 holes to Bolt it to the Slide bearings, 2 Holes for 2 Belt connectors (I pushed these into place and glued them using Acetone) and Further Large holes to reduce material. I remixed the Extruder and made a Bracket for a 4-pin DIN connector, Just in case. See my Thing: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:832550. My Stepper motors are colour-coded: extruder0 Green X axis Red Y axis Yellow Z axis Blue When Printing, The slider (I use ABS) I would recommend Support. After I Printed these parts, I found it was too tight a fit and Scarping some material off Some edges helped. It needs to be a Tight fit though.