Slim Direct Extruder for Chinese J-Head Hotend

thingiverse

Current picture showcases version six of the project. Two tiny triangular strips of tape are applied to both the drive gear and skate bearing, enabling me to closely monitor filament feed - both pieces should be smoothly rotating. Changes and improvements are noted as follows: 1/1/15 * The filament hole was carefully re-aligned to synchronize perfectly with M7 drive gear. The tension screw lines up correctly. A significant enlargement of clearance for the skate bearing is done, now it spins freely without binding. A thicker section is also added for thread insert in tension screw. Further enhancements include: Structural supports are added to bolster the mount for the stepper motor and hotend, adding much-needed stability. Minor work remains, specifically the fan mount redesign for hot end to be more compact. Brass thread inserts were used for both pinch tension set screw and clamp mount for hot-end. It's also feasible to use a nut trap in files if needed. The 3D model is created using DesignSpark Mechanical. The object is printed with PLA at four shell layers with forty percent infill, plus two millimeter brim applied for bed adhesion purposes as well as to reduce curling. Post-print cleaning was conducted followed by the leveling of the stepper mounting plate with clear epoxy. Leaving it to cure overnight on a flat piece of HDPE was an option since epoxy adheres yet doesn't form a bond with HDPE. To enhance print quality, two M3 washers were installed between pinch and stepper mount, along with another at the tension screw. At present, fan mount/clamp for hot end is reused from my vertical extruder model - until I can create a con shape design in DesignSpark.