SJ01
My own printer
After years of collecting new parts, experimenting and investigating, I have now created my first 3D Printer. It is called the SJ-01, read on below to find out why!
BELOW IS A LITTLE JOURNAL OF THE BUILD!
STAGE 1
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So far, I have added the AM8 frame and the wiring but it is quite stiff. I upgraded the bearings to igus drylin bearings and I don't think that they are working very well. Therefore, the next stage is to replace them with brand new LM8UU bearings.
I also need to print some cable chains for the bed wiring and design a piece to attach it to the frame.
So far, I am very happy with the frame, it's very rigid and the wires fit nicely. The only thing was that the aluminum extrusions weren't perfectly flat so I had to add some washers to one of the feet to make it sit well on the table.
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Stage 2 is going to be the bearings, wire chain and also update the firmware.
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This is a quick photo of stage 1.
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STAGE 2
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I replaced the bearings and it made a huge difference. Therefore, I, personally, would not recommend the switch to igus Drylin quite yet! Maybe in a few months, when I have some more time I will do some more investigation into them.
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STAGE 3
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I have now been running the 3D Printer for a while and am delighted with the results. It prints quickly but smoothly, it is almost silent and the print quality is brilliant. I learnt a lot along the way and I hope to put that to good use during my next project which I am about to announce.
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STAGE 4
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I have been experimenting recently with printing in ABS but to do that, you ideally need an enclosure. So I built one!
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I based my enclosure on the Prusa Lack enclosure and you can see the build process below.
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WHAT I USED
My equipment
My Equipment​
E3D Titan Aero Hotend
E3D Stepper Motors
BuildTak FlexPlate
Astrobox Touch with a 7" Raspberry Pi Display
Logitech 720p camera
Customised frame
LM8UU and LM8LUU bearings
SO WHY SJ-01?
Well, it is actually named after the two people who inspired me the most with my design.
The 'S' stands for Sandford. Sandford is the middle name of my grandfather who was an engineer. Every since I was a young child, he would build stuff with me and build a creative flair within me, which ultimately inspired me to make this.
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The 'J' stands for 'Johnson'. That is the surname of my DT teacher from 1st year (year 7). He created an after school club about design so I joined. I was the only one who stayed after a few sessions but this one-on-one teaching inspired me to continue working on my design skills. Inspired me to build my first printer, and ultimately inspired me to build this one.
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The '1' is because this is the first of, hopefully, many to come. I have a few plans but I'll have to check back in with you guys.
BLURB
I look at my 3D printer project as a rollercoaster.
I started off two years ago (13th birthday) with a kit to build an Anet A8, which is basically a copy of the Prusa i3. One of the great things about building your own printer, is that you have a greater and deeper understanding of how things work, and how you can make them work better.
HOWEVER, things do not always go to plan and sometimes you need a little extra help. The problem is that 3D printer repair services are extraordinarily expensive but I found an amazing guy called Alex Gibson and he has helped me along the way.
The first ever upgrade that I made was to improve some dangerous safety issues (or lack of safety, issues). I bought a kit from Alex which enabled me to change a lot of the dangerous connections, especially between the hotbed and the wired supplying power etc... to the hotbed. This is why some Anet A8's have previously caught fire.
The upgrade previously mentioned was a rather small upgrade however my first major upgrade was when I completely changed the whole extruder system. I received for my birthday the E3D Prusa i3, Titan Aero upgrade kit. Although this was to be a very beneficial upgrade there were more problems than I expected but Alex helped me through it. By the time I had changed the bearings from bearing blocks to bearings and had solved all the wiring issues, I was ready to print with it.
After that, I completed a few small upgrades all of which are listed below and I would highly recommend.
My latest upgrade is to integrate the Astroprint technology into my printer via the recent addition of an Astrobox. This completely turns my printer online so that I can print, view and control my printer from anywhere in the world via wifi.
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My next update was adding a 7" touch display to the Astrobox giving my printed a delightful user interface and got rid of the need to have the old display.
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I then decided to get the AM8 frame but as I've upgraded my printer so much I decided to take this opportunity to essentially build my own printer. I used a few pieces from the old Anet A8 such as leadscrews and guide rods. I used igus bearings but the rods are quite stiff so I am going to swap them for classic LM8UU bearings.
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My new printer is now out it is called the SJ-01!
THE LINKS:
Alex Gibson's Website: http://admg3d.com/
Anet A8: https://us.gearbest.com/3d-printers-3d-printer-kits/pp_337314.html
Astrobox: https://www.astroprint.com/products/p/astrobox
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OTHER SMALLER UPGRADES I'VE DONE:
