Hi Richard, Generally it has been positive feedback with the IR sensor on the black (matte) PB. Dave will have some to test early in the week. Possibly a silly question but any surface imperfections or scratches on the PB that might be distorting the readings?
J

Hi Msquared,

I perhaps misread your question, (synapses misfiring??). taking it as being one about print speed, as opposed to retraction speed (thought it odd). Regarding email, send again (or use contact form on website) and I should receive it, there were some (unusual) site issues toward end of last year.

re motors: Whilst motor spec is important, with the wrong order of tuning steps, an "optimal motor" will perform far below a less optimal motor tuned correctly. I have had large (long can) NEMA17s performing just as well as small NEMA14s and most others that are in between. Avoid very high inductance motors though, and use only 1.8 degree step angle type. 24v system voltage can be beneficial. Of greater importance however is the tuning. This goes from choice of microstepping, motor current and jerk set to a minimum, then dialling in on accels (in fw) and speed (in slicer).

This is simplfied but preferring to keep short on here. Ping me a message and I can assist in greater depth.

J

Hi MSquared,

If your wanting to increase printing speed using the F3D this should be as simple as turning up your print speed (and nozzle temp) in slicer settings. If you need more assistance or tips for your use case, just ping me an email or pm and ill be glad to help you dial in. The very early days of Flex3Drive development included speeds in excess of 400mms with high accels and jerk used for extended torture testing on 3mm and 1.75mm versions, but I will add that in real world scenarios, such speeds are rare due to other machine limitations.

J

Hi Markdnd,

Pleased to say the Flex3Drive SMART effector version is not a more expensive special. Its an extension of the existing wide range available, just havent gotten round to listing it as yet due to workloads, although I should prioritise this Never enough hours.

You can easily order if you wish to by selecting the Kossel or XY G4 and include a buyers note stating you require for the SMART effector (or just email me a note), and the appropriate version will be provided. This will include all mounting hardware and the compact cooling solution based on 25mm fans which are supplied and included in the cost, as with all Flex3Drive variants.

Alternatively you can use 30mm fans, utilising the standard E3D hotend fan and shroud. Part cooling for 30mm fans will be along very shortly (wip), which will mount to the effector, alongside use of the E3D hotend fan and shroud.

Feel free to pm or email me with any questions.

J

Hello lazy_mosquito,

Thank you for the interest, I am pleased to confirm that yes you can bolt a Flex3Drive onto the smart effector. The F3D-Duet design is provided specifically for the smart effector and is also being used as standard equipment by Roland on the new large Duet powered Kossel XL printer. The F3D Comes with integrated cooling for print and hotend utilising 24v 25mm fans (12v also available), and a 30mm fan version will also be available shortly.

Original mounting parts for the hotend including the fibre washer and nut are retained so no changes there. A circular mount is fixed to the 3 mounting holes through the PCB onto which the Flex3Drive is secured. Piezo bed levelling performance remains unaffected, working as normal. Firmware setup is very straight forward on the Duet config. Feel free to PM or email me for more info,

HTH
Jason

Just to update on this. I received the parts back to assess what might have been the cause given that this patterning was highly unusual from a Flex3Drive. Not seen before, anomaly!

Returned unit was fitted to a machine. Printed perfectly, Found deformation on plastics due to heavy over tightening of bolts. Was able to recreate the issue to confirm s thats good.. Steps taken to prevent recurrance.

Doug thats cool. (I only just saw these comments above).

Horses an courses for print surfaces. Oddly PrintBite doesnt actually wear out or degrade, but it must be treated correctly to maintain its performance, I think our new Black version will take care of IR issues. But also work equally well with touch probes.

If I may offer a correction for accuracy, without creating a fuss.

Lykle, no PrintBite is NOT FR4 and the comment is somewhat offensive and uninformed. Seems your "tests" were pretty basic. I wish epoxies were that simple, without so many hundreds of variants, perhaps you think they are simple? (or maybe some other agenda behind the comment). Is your carbon plate and filaprint also not epoxy based?

Yes PrintBite is epoxy based, and has a glass reinforcement instead of CF or cotton or paper. Yes a slightly elevated temp is required on the old material, due to its insulating properties. To say "much higher" as Brian puts it, is an unnecassary exageration (lets face it, probably driven by other agendas aswell). Oddly another respected member here rates it quite highly. Clearly a difference of opinion, one of which is neutral, two others which arent.

There are many happy users of PrintBite and when used correctly it is one of the best materials around. I wouldnt have researched or continued its development, nor would I be selling it otherwise. There are many surfaces available, to suit all tastes and abilities.

Peace

Y'all giving opinions without knowing facts, equipped with only one biased side of the story. I will comment later, but some lead, others copy its as simple as that.

This thread was about tuning the Flex3Drive posted by wannathermal, and hijacked into another topic.

Wannathermal, did you get my email?