Railcore II Rock Hard Z-Yokes (FEA Optimized)

thingiverse

I felt that default z-yokes were too flexible and could put a twist on lead screw nuts, which might affect print quality. Upgrade to these rock-hard yokes carved from granite instead! First, I went overboard with an overly engineered part filling the volume, then trimmed it down using Fusion 360's topology optimization tool for optimal strength in plastic. I liked the mesh so much that I decided to use it as-is, rather than smoothing it. There are two versions: one for standard rubber washers and another with a larger landing zone for washers or kinematic bed mounting systems: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3724698 Both designs are slightly thicker than the original, which helps with stiffness. This might reduce max z-height by a bit. If you're concerned about this, just sink them a few mm below the surface of the bed when printing. I recommend printing these with plenty of perimeters and generous infill. I went for 4 perimeters and 30% triangular infill. The Fusion 360 generated STLs split the object into 2 meshes. This prints fine in Prusa Slicer, but in Simplify 3D, you need to select "Separate Connected Surfaces" from the "Mesh" menu for it to print correctly. (If anyone knows how to fix this in Fusion 360, please let me know.) The Fusion 360 archive is included with the topology optimization study, so feel free to remix to your heart's content.