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Replacing RAMPS 1.4 Controller board?

Discussion in 'Mods and Upgrades' started by Dzuy Nguyen, Sep 23, 2014.

  1. Dzuy Nguyen

    Dzuy Nguyen New Member

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    So I was trying to replace the MOSFET on the controller board to fix the issue with my heatbed temp cutting out, but i managed to damage one of the platted through hole pin on the board. So the heatbed won't even heat up anymore now. Looking around it seems like it's cheaper to replace the whole board than it is to buy a repair kit for the platted through hole.

    Are all 1.4 RAMPS Controller board the same? Or is there a specific version that I should get. Will this board on ebay work? http://www.ebay.com/itm/3D-Printer-...752?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35cd4656f8

    Thanks for the help guys!
     
  2. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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  3. Dzuy Nguyen

    Dzuy Nguyen New Member

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    You're awesome mark! Thanks for all of your help recently :D
     
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  4. SteveC

    SteveC Well-Known Member

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    Did you cut the MOSFET's leads before trying to remove it? If you didn't this it is really easy to heat up the solder pad too much.

    I'm sure you could fix the board with some wire jumpers but at $16 plus shipping a new board is probably worth it. I have bought other parts from Folger Technologies in NH and they ship quickly.
     
  5. Dzuy Nguyen

    Dzuy Nguyen New Member

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    Yup, you're correct. I didn't cut the leads before removing them :(. Luckily I bought extra MOSFET and Polyfuse to upgrade the new board once it arrives.

    The new board is $16 and it's free shipping. It should be here by Saturday, so i'm pretty excited. :)
     
  6. Robert Choban

    Robert Choban Active Member

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    I have attached some pictures of my RAMPS board problem. I would really appreciate some help. The Robo hot end heats up, but not the bed, and from the looks of the board I think I can see why. If I need to purchase a new board, where to I go to do this and can I buy a board with everything on it and ready to go. I'm not really too good at soldering and have never download the software using Ardunio. Are there any pictures or videos on how to replace the Ramps card for the Robo R1 with enclosed bottom. I bought this Robo on Aug 27, I have submitted a replacement request with Robo, but not sure how long they are going to take to send me a new one.
     

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  7. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    You can buy a new one lots of places (I bought one from Amazon).
     
  8. Mike Kelly

    Mike Kelly Volunteer

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    Ramps cards are just a shield to overlay the arduino. It just plugs in.

    You would need to buy any Ramps1.4 board, pull off the old one from the arduino carefully removing the stepper drivers, then plug everything else back in. I suggest sainsmart, but riorand is probably fine as well. Along with other chinese knockoffs.
     
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  9. Robert Choban

    Robert Choban Active Member

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    Mike where can I get one fast, and where can I get the sainsmart board. I see 2 screws holding the ramps card to the arduino card, is that correct. Any trick on getting the two cards apart without breaking something. From the pictures I sent is it just better to get a new card instead of trying to fix the existing card. There sure are a lot of wires going to this card.
    Is this board on amazon the one I should buy
    SainSmart 3D Printer controller 3D Printer Control Board Ramps 1.4 for Reprap Mendel Prusa Arduino Mega2560 Mega1280...
    by SainSmart
    $36.55$75.00
     
  10. Mike Kelly

    Mike Kelly Volunteer

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    Amazon is your best bet as you've found. That's what I would get but I don't know if spending more on a sainsmart is needed, better to err on the side of quality I suppose.

    For removing the ramps from the arduino, it just takes a bit of force. You can maybe use a small flat head screw driver to start separating the pins, but on the arduino I've never had a problem getting them apart. The first time is a bit nerve wracking but it's not too bad.

    Removing the stepper drivers is much harder. Don't have much advice there other than have strong hands. I used an adjustable slot wrench but ended up slipping off the board and breaking off a chip. I was able to solder it back working but still not the best method.

    You could ship me your old board if you're just gonna trash it :)
     
  11. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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  12. Ziggy

    Ziggy Moderator
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    Robert,

    Are your pics showing that the MOSFET actually fell out of the board when it got so hot the solder melted!!!!

    If so, I am stunned that could actually happen. It appears the MOSFET failed to protect the fuse in this case!!!


    I don't think you need to spend $75 to replace the Ramps. A decent one (without drivers) should be less than $30 IMO.
     
  13. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    Yea, that kit is a RAMPS the Arduino Mega and the stepper drivers. Not just a RAMPS.
    I wanted spares for the lot.
     
  14. Robert Choban

    Robert Choban Active Member

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    Ziggy, the part that came un-solder is what plugs into Q3, not sure what this does, but has something to do with the heated bed. The mosfet did show a little discolor in the corner, but was still connected.
    When I go to replace the Ramps card, any suggestions on how to keep track of where all the wires go.
    Also when I get the card replaced, I assume I will need to flash the card with the correct software??
    Mark I decided to buy the kit, can never have too many spare parts.
     
  15. Mike Kelly

    Mike Kelly Volunteer

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    The ramps is just a shield, it doesn't have a processor or anything like that. As long as you keep the same arduino you won't need to reflash it. For wiring there's a youtube video robo3d put out, take a picture of your existing wiring, and/or use the wiring diagram from the ramps wiki page: http://reprap.org/wiki/RAMPS_1.4
     
  16. Ziggy

    Ziggy Moderator
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    Robert,

    The separate part in your pics (IMG_1351) is the MOSFET which switches power to the bed. That's the part that should be soldered into Q3 but it must have got so hot the solder melted and it dropped out!!! Typically solder melts at around 180-190C !!!! so it was obviously extremely hot for even the MOSFET legs to be at more than 180C.

    The yellow square part with the discoloration is the polyfuse which is meant to be the protection against the kind of excess current that caused the MOSFET to melt and drop out.

    What has happened here just reinforces my view that a separate solid state relay with reliable fuse protection is needed to power the Robo heated bed. Otherwise it's playing with fire - literally!!
     
    #16 Ziggy, Jan 5, 2015
    Last edited by a moderator: Jan 5, 2015
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  17. Robert Choban

    Robert Choban Active Member

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    Mike and Ziggy thanks for your feedback,
    I have been reading a post about the changing out the MOSFET and the Polyfuse, " Relay switch addition to prevent heat bed cutting out" how hard is this to do, I'm not really that good at soldering.

    Mike or Ziggy how much would you charge me for a new board with the new MOSFET and Polyfuse.

    Also I sent pictures to Robo support, do you think I will get a replacement Ramps from them, sometime in the future???
     
  18. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    It is not hard, but does require a bit of soldering practice.
    Yous should get a replacement from Robo, but I can't say how long that might take.
    They are not consistent with this sort of thing yet.
     
  19. Mike Kelly

    Mike Kelly Volunteer

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    If you bought me a couple spare mosfets and polyfuses I'd do it for free, assuming you paid shipping.

    Robo should send you a replacement, but they're at CES this week. So at best it'll go out next week unless brian is picking up the slack
     
  20. Robert Choban

    Robert Choban Active Member

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    Mike I would really like to get my printer up and running as soon as possible, I'm not sure how long it will take Robo to ship me a card. Then I still have to buy the mosfets and polyfuses and ship everything to you and wait for it's return. I'm in the middle of printing a hand for a child in Kansas.
    If you would be willing to buy the Ramps card and the mosfets and polyfuses parts, and some extra parts for yourself, let me know how much it will cost and I can either send you a check or do a pay pal if you have an account setup.
     

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