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New Kickstarter Robo 3D owner with questions

Discussion in 'General Questions' started by Paladin, Mar 19, 2017.

  1. Paladin

    Paladin New Member

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    OK, I've spent the day doing some work on my recently purchased, used kickstarted Robo 3D. The learning curve is steep but I'm making progress. I've managed to print a few pieces of a top mounted spool holder although after completing the first piece I read some posts on here mentioning that they're a bit of a risk as the spool may fall and break the bed. I'm continuing to print the parts as a way to learn how to use the printer combined with the fact that it didn't come with any type of spool holder other than the clear acrylic rod that came with the kickstarter spool holder, which is only part of that spool holder..

    Forgive me if I get my terms mixed up, I'm still a noob! Also sorry for asking so much in one post.
    For reference, I decided to follow the Robo video for how to set up the printer so I'm currently using Matter Control for software.

    Anyway, now for some of my observations and questions.

    The printer has:
    'drawer slide' Y axis
    non metal J-Head
    glass heated bed
    single Z axis switch on right side

    Some questions:
    The heated glass bed doesn't work. I have checked the option in Matter Control, but it won't heat. I unplugged the wires and have about 1.4ohms resistance between them. I plugged the wires back in and clicked pre-heat in Matter Control, but there was no voltage on the wires. I tried this with the hotend and it does show 12v across the wires while heating. I swapped the thermister between hotend and bed, and proved that part works. I'm thinking maybe it's a firmware or software issue but I don't know what to check next.

    The printer came with parts of an E3D V6 hotend, but not the complete kit.
    E3D_1.jpg E3D_2.jpg
    The picture shows the heatsink and heatbreak, there is also the translucent blue fan holder and a brass nozzle.
    I have already ordered the 'block and sock' upgrade kit, so I'll be getting those pieces soon. The few installation videos I've seen show a white tube that goes into the top of the heatsink, but there is no place for that in the one I have. I also don't have a new heating element and don't know if I need one. I do know that I'll need a new fan setup but don't know which one people prefer or if I can print it with the current state of my printer.

    The printer came with an LCD but once again, not a complete kit. It's a reprap discount smart LCD with SD card slot but not the XXL that is more common for Robo owners. This one has the controls to the right of the screen, not below. The LCD did not come with the adapter to fit the Robo PCB, so I have ordered one and it's on the way. Not really a question here, other than I can't seem to find an STL file for a nice case with mounting setup for this screen that fits on the front of the Robo like the type commonly used for the XXL.

    While printing spool holder pieces tonight, I eventually noticed melted filiment around the bottom of the hotend. This lead me to discover the cooling fan for the hotend is missing. I did remember the seller mentioning something about it, and he included some 3D printed pieces that look to be a modified version of what the fan mounts to along with a couple extra parts to cool the parts on the bed. I'm thinking that some of my current printing issues are being caused by the hotend getting too hot due to a lack of cooling. I'm thinking I shouldn't use it anymore until I can get a fan in there. I've got the printer cooling down now, so I haven't looked to see what I'm missing other than the piece that holds the small stock fan and probably the screws that hold it in place. What type/size screws are these?

    I've got all the hardware to upgrade to the R1 bed leveling (compensation) system, I just need to print the new Z brackets and start assembly.

    I guess that's enough for this post! Thanks in advance for any assistance!
     
  2. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    Bad RAMPS board (the one the wires run to). It is (sadly) not uncommon for the MOSFET that runs the output for the bed heater to die (Q3) but on the good side -- a generic RAMPS 1.4 will work and they are cheap.

    I have never seen the heatbreak on an E3D look like that. Seems to be a bit of PTFE inside of it and the E3D does not use PTFE liner in the heatbreak. Yes, the v6 uses a PTFE liner in the cold section, but not the heat break. You can buy generic 2mm OD PTFE tube to replace the one E3D provides if you want.

    The reprap discount is more common and require no firmware modification. Look here for a case:

    http://www.thingiverse.com/search?q=reprap+discount+lcd&sa=

    There is/was no cooling fan for the j-head hotend. There is a PARTS cooling fan, but not for the hotend.
    Only the all-metal hotends use cooling fans.

    If you are missing the parts cooling fan, print one :)

    Here is the one for the E3D:.

    http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:186027

    Here is a link to all of the BETA stock parts (including the parts fan bracket):

    http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:69794/#files
     
    #2 mark tomlinson, Mar 20, 2017
    Last edited: Mar 20, 2017
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  3. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    Pretty sure the parts fan was a 40mm fan (12v DC) if you need to buy the fan as well. You will need to route it back to the ramps (D9) if that wiring is missing.
     
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  4. Paladin

    Paladin New Member

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    Thanks for the info!
    I was able to unscrew the heatbreak from the heatsink. Should I replace the heatsink and heatbreak? Is the heatsink fine with the 'direct' opening that doesn't allow for a PTFE tube?

    Something's going on with the J-Head as well. I'm getting melted filiment oozing out and occasionally I have to take a hobby knife and run it under the heat block to prevent a filiment drip. I'm a little nervous about taking it apart until I have a replacement E3D setup.

    I was able to print a spool holder although the parts didn't fit together without a lot of trimming with a hobby knife. Not sure if that was due to using medium quality in Matter Control or something else. I then printed 2 brackets for upgrading to auto leveling on high quality and they turned out great. The coupler nuts fit nice and snug and the openings for holding the 3m nuts came out sized perfectly. E3D_5.jpg hotend.jpg
     
  5. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    That is not an E3D v5 or v6, I have no idea what hotend it is :)
    It MAY be an E3D LITE v6, I have not used one of those:

    http://wiki.e3d-online.com/wiki/E3D-Lite6_Assembly

    If it is a v6 lite then it is missing some PTFE tubing since the assembly docs show that going all the way from the nozzle to the top of the cold section.

    The regular E3D does not have the PTFE tubing go beyond the cold section.

    It may be a Chinese knock-off or it may be something else entirely.

    Next:

    The J-Head is probably coming apart. There is no real way to repair them so for now keep doing what you have been doing. Best bet is to replace it. If you don't want to get an E3D, the Hexagon is available from Robo.
     
  6. Quest

    Quest Member

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    It's a knock-off v6. Looks like the one I bought a year or so back.
     
  7. Paladin

    Paladin New Member

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    Just my luck. I already ordered the sock and block kit. Guess I should check the prices of ordering the other parts I need individually vs a whole kit.
     
  8. mark tomlinson

    mark tomlinson ༼ つ ◕_ ◕ ༽つ
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    @Printed Solid (www.printedsolid.com) will sell you an authenticate one or parts and if you are US based that is better than E3D direct (since they ship from the UK).
     
  9. Paladin

    Paladin New Member

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    Well, I guess I'm all in now! I just ordered the complete kit from Printed Solid. That means the 'block and sock' kit I ordered off Amazon a couple days ago will just be for spare parts if I ever need them. I supposed I might be able to turn the knock off parts and removed original heater into an emergency spare hotend.

    I have to say, it'll be nice not to have to use a hobby knife every once in a while to wipe the drool off the heat block!
     
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