Where to source reliable GT2 30T 10mm belt width pulleys?

tristanryerparke

Hi All,
I've got a large format printer that uses gates G2 belts (10mm) with 30t pulley idlers. So far I have only been able to source this size of pulley from aliexpress as it is somewhat off from the normal 20t style. After several weeks of printing these pulleys start to make a crackling noise on rapid movements, and upon inspection I can observe degradation (sometimes to the point of ball bearings falling out upon disassembly) of the bearings on the idler.

I could get the 20mm variant from gates brand through filastruder and adjust my design to fit, but I thought it might be worth asking on here if anyone has a good source for high quality idlers.

Best,
T

usinjin

@tristanryerparke MISUMI has a lot of good quality transmission components, I checked and the closest they have is GT2 30T for a 9mm belt.

jay_s_uk

@tristanryerparke Mellow on AliExpress sell gates pullies for 10mm belt. They're the same ones that are compatible with 9mm belts

o_lampe

Whenever I need pulleys or toothed idlers, I use an openScad library which is able to generate all sorts of pulleys for various belts.
When I print them in resin, their dimensions are spot on. All it takes are good bearings.

Maybe not suitable for your use case, but I thought, I mention it.

droftarts

@o_lampe said in Where to source reliable GT2 30T 10mm belt width pulleys?:

I use an openScad library which is able to generate all sorts of pulleys for various belts.

Is it my one?! https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:16627
I keep meaning to upload an update (I reorganised it so it built pulleys much faster and better, and without holes in the stl, and with some extra features), but now there are really good ones in Fusion360/OnShape/all other 'proper' CAD programs. Also pulleys are so much cheaper and more available than they were back then!

Ian

oliof

@droftarts please publish yours, some people cannot use Fusion360 (I tried ...)

o_lampe

@droftarts Yup, that's the one
It's a bit outdated, using captive nuts. Maybe an option to use melt_in brass inserts would be welcome? (not for me, since resin doesn't work this way)

achrn

@droftarts said in Where to source reliable GT2 30T 10mm belt width pulleys?:

Is it my one?! https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:16627

Thanks. I used that library for my sand table - for some reason I had trouble finding a 288 tooth GT2 pulley to fit a 125mm OD bearing.

mrehorstdmd

My experience with cheap pulleys sourced from China is that the holes are either too large or off center resulting in unwanted motion of the printer mechanism. Idlers that have built-in bearings typically have very small, low quality bearings that won't last, and are likely to have the same off-center hole to mount the bearings. Filastruder sells Gates pulleys that are properly drilled for about $5 each.

If I wanted a toothed idler I would probably buy a Gates pulley, insert a shaft, and mount it in an assembly that uses larger ball bearings. Otherwise, if you don't need toothed idlers, stacked F608 bearings make great pulleys for 10mm belt. They are cheap and will probably last forever in a 3D printer. I've been using them in my printer for 6 or 7 years and they show no signs of problems.