Jonathan!! This is a marathon of comments you left and I LOVE IT!! I am so sorry it took me this long to respond to them lol This belt setup is my favorite of the 3 ways I have set up the dual z axis. I am going to wrap all these dual videos up with a comparison and I'll keep your comment in mind when I do! Thank you!
Just the right amount of detail. Love the pauses that show you doing each step after you describe it. Makes it much easier to follow. This is a really great video ❤
Thank you so much !!! It's tough to balance pertinent information with timing, as a lot of my videos can be pretty long. So I'm always looking to strike the right balance, and I appreciate you giving some feedback on that, so I know what works! Thanks again!
Kevin is the one to thank for that! It took a lot of time and effort I'm sure to get this right for all of us to use! I'm just happy so many people are seeing this mod and able to benefit from it!
@@PrintsLeo3D it and the Voron design of belt driven is the way to go, lead screws are just not precise enough.. and it really shows, Kevin's design rules hands down.
I wish all RU-vidrs took tips from you ... Your videos are fantastic and show the time you dedicate to them. Another thing is that you aren't constantly shoving some brand bias down my throat. This is my first time giving money to a RU-vidr..(never thought I would)....keep up the great content!
Oh wow so kind of you! Not only the tip, which means a lot, it's gonna make my week :) but also the kind words. I definitely put a lot of time and effort into these videos to try and get them as packed full of info yet streamlined as possible. I'm always improving (the content and the production) and it's because of comments and kindness like yours that make me want to improve and keep spending all my free time doing this. Thank you so much, it really means a lot to me !
Kevin's documentation and website is so good, halfway through this video I wasn't even sure it was necessary lol I know people love watching it all happen though so there was no turning back! Trevor thanks for watching and commenting, and I am glad you got this mod working it's really a nice experience!
That's awesome! Rex I would love to have you stop by the Discord and share the final results!, Always love seeing another awesome build in the wild! Thanks for watching and good luck with the build !
Thanks for that video! I finally get rid of elephant's foot on my original Ender 3. Belt driven dual z was my first project like that and i really loved it :)
This is quite a review, I should say! I think belts are better than installing the second spindle. Next you should install additional interchangeable hotends to the top, and print in multicolor or multimaterial = )) Belt will allow quickly move carret to the top, switch the toolhead and get back to print. = ) I hope that Creality Ender 3 V3 created because of this idea, but who knows, will they do this, or not. Practice shows that printer producers takes ideas from community = )
MrsZoomy you're the best!!! Thank you so much for always showing support and being one of the first to watch and comment! Can't wait to see what you printing(and painting) next!
I really appreciate that! This is a really cool modification and I'm glad I was able to hold your attention for the whole video, makes me feel like I'm doing something right. So, thank you!
That's a nice looking mod. I wanted to convert another machine to belt but was thinking of a worm gear. In my first I kept the rod. But instead of lifting, it pulls a belt. I don't use the back plate and the front is mounted to linear rails. But I use the pulley wheels to capture the nut that pulls down the belt to lift the gantry. Sounds messy but actually works amazingly good. But clearly over engineered.
I'm slowly but surely moving most of my printers to this mod. I love that Kevin is making constant updates too. The version I installed last June is way older looking than this most recent one. Thanks for watching and commenting!
Appreciate the time you have taken to detail this mod step by step. Easily the best video on it. I'm having some trouble with fit on some of the parts, such as getting the M5 nuts to fit in the recesses of the left and right plates. Also my transmission and the motor mount plate are tight where yours move freely. Any suggestions on printing tips or adjustments I could make in the slicer? Using SuperSlicer and printing with Polymaker PETG.
First, thanks for the kind words I really appreciate it. I take a lot of time trying to get these videos just right, and it's nice to hear positive feedback. As for the fitment it sort of all starts at your base calibrations. Have you calibrated your E-steps? Have you calibrated your flow ? Those are the building blocks of all our prints, and getting those correct will help going forward. Apart from that all the normal recommendations apply: make sure the bed is level, adjust your z offset correctly, make sure the x axis is level to the bottom extrusion (meaning make sure both sides of the x axis are the same distance away from the bottom feet). Let me know if you need help with any of these calibrations or if you want you can send me some pics of your prints and we can go from there.
Great video! I did this mod more or less when it came out and it looks lime they made quite a few refinements since then. I think it would have been cool if you had also explained the advantages this belt-driven mod has over dual-Z with lead screws.
Thanks! I also did this mod for the first time last year and the look between the first version and this most recent one is like night and day. The newest version looks nice and streamline, while the old is a little boxier. I am going to have a comparison video between the two previous dual Z methods I tested, all compared side by side. These videos are so long , I am trying to break them up a bit lol thanks for watching and thanks for commenting!!
Really interesting video and maybe one day when my ender 3 isn't my only 3d printer I'll try a big modification like this, but I watched a video a while ago about replacing the z axis rollers with linear rails and I cannot stop thinking how fast the z axis could be on a measly ender 3 if you replaced the z axis with both linear rails and making them belt driven can't stop thinking about what it could do with those two mods and he'll how it would do with a whole suite of linear rails for the XY and Z axis and this belt drive mode, kinda fun just imagining it
Yea those linear rails do look really sweet on these older Enders! I wish the rails were a little cheaper because it would be a great video to do. I think I saw your handle pop up in our Discord recently, so welcome to the club and I hope to talk to you more!
Thanks Patrick!!! I always appreciate it when you stop by to watch and leave a comment, especially when it's taking you away from the puppy bowl 😂😂 thanks!
Thanks Brandon! I appreciate you taking the time and effort to comment, it may seem like a small thing to do but it means a lot to me! Good luck if you end up trying this mod out, and if you have any issues just let me know!
I really wanted to do this mod but honestly the parts list (as a kit) was quite a bit more expensive that a dual z lead screw solution so I went with the latter. I may still experiment with the belt driven Z at some point - but it's tough to justify since it would cost about ~$50 for me to order everything. Maybe if you live in a country where metric hardware is easily available? Where I am metric hardware is pretty expensive so you have to order it.
No you're right about the cost. Those dual Z kits can even go on sale sometimes and get under/around $20! Having to buy the metric screws in bulk is the toughest part. The one caveat is if you're looking to do multiple printers than the price is 'technically' less per printer, but it doesn't help the initial shock your wallet is going to feel. Maybe weeks or months down the road you can look around your extras pile and see if you can cobble together enough spare fasteners to make this more affordable, because it's fun! Thanks for watching and for commenting !
Thanks for giving a much more in-depth tutorial on installing the belt-mod by KevinAkaSam. I personally appreciate it. Would you be interested in doing a KlackEnder tutorial as well? Thanks and keep up the good work!
I was going to do a Klack Ender set up ! I love my Klack Ender I just haven't found the time to devote to it yet. I think I still might though because it's an awesome modification that works well, looks cool, and sounds really awesome when the magnets are doing their thing!
@@PrintsLeo3D oh for sure, not only the magnets but also the speed of the bed probing..i never knew my OG ender3 would be able to go that fast and have an accurate map of the bed. Looking forward to the video!!! Much love and support from ON, Canada.
Thanks for the comment ! This is a fun build and it is a really nice system that Kevin designed. I don't know if there's an 'official' design for the CR sized printers but some people from the community have made the design worm for their CRs, you can find those parts here: www.thingiverse.com/thing:4243512/makes Thanks again!
Thank you so much!! It's a really fun mod, of course like anything else there's going to be some tricky aspects, but overall one of my favorites! I appreciate you leaving a commenting and watching!
Hey, thanks for the great videos. I really like your Ender 3 bowden setup (w/klipper). I think a lot of people underestimate bowden setups as inferior to direct drive.. If not using flex or other special filaments, a bowden setup with low mass can be very good. Will you share with me what hot end shroud/cooling setup that you use? Thanks so much for making excellent videos
Yea I have used Bowden for years and they always have performed excellently for me. In this video I believe I have the shroud linked in the description. And off the top of my head I can't remember exactly what hot end this is but it is most likely a stock hot end with an aftermarket (copper) heat break, or it's a Gulf Coast Robotics all metal hot end.
Awesome video! I like this mod, but....I think its more worth it just to convert it to coreXZ at that point. Just take some files from switchwire conversions, add them to the E3, and boom, a coreXZ machine made to do z-hopping at 6k acceleration.
Colten, you're way ahead of me lol!! Don't push me just yet, but upcoming I will in fact be doing a Switchwire (or similar) conversion. I agree though I love this mod, and it can be a stepping stone in someones journey to keep tinkering lol Thanks for watching and contributing, and hopefully you'll stick around for when I get around to the Switchwire mod!
Same! I had an inherent bias because of my name, and the fact that blue was my favorite color as a kid lol the older I get the more I understand Raphael though lol.
That you so much! The modification itself is so fun, so it lent itself to a nice video! Thanks for watching and taking the time out of your day to let me know it helped !
Hey Abdul, that's a really good question and one that I meant to talk about and then forgot when it was time to film lol the first time I performed this mod it cost about $90. The worst part was the screws, having to buy large kits of screws that had the ones necessary. That being said it's always good to have a pack of extra screws hanging around. Also because I purchased on Amazon I had to buy all the pieces in multiples. So when I performed the mod a second time I had so much extra pieces I only spent around $12 for the second install. That being said Kevin has now created specific kits that have the parts you'd need, I haven't compared prices but that's likely a good option. Edit: also Abdul thanks for the compliment and the comment !
Very welcome, I'm happy to share! This is a fun build and being able to give your printer a little character while also increasing performance is always nice!
Kevin thank you so so much!! This means a ton to me, that people are getting enough out of these videos to share some of their time (and resources) to let me know it's of value to them. So thank you very much!
Hey Mark! Nice to hear you got this setup, but what part of the vertical extrusion did you need to remove? Kevin's old build required you to remove the top rail but for the newest version you don't have to which is a huge benefit.
very cool mod man! i have a 3v2 and was just about to buy a kit for a double z axes mod, but i was wondering what you thought about it. which one would you say is better between the two?
I like this belted Z better. I have 2 other videos, one with two lead screws, one with a timing belt, and this is my favorite. They've all been pretty trouble free for me, but I'd say the belted Z is probably a few percentage points better than the rest. It's fun to build, you can customize the colors, and I find it just keeps up better with my Klipper printers. Let me know what you end up doing and if you have any other questions.
A few other people had asked for a printed part as an example of what the mod could do, and I am sorry I didn't provide one. At the time I modified this printer, it was printing pretty well already, so I don't know what percentage improvement you would see. I can Print some objects with it set up now if you'd like to see how it performs post-mod?
imo z belt printers run with the problem with belt stretch more over time because its having to hold weight of the Z tram, buuuuut it could jusr be adding to thw tension of the belt and not actually an issue. id have to see. even if it doesnt, its not like a counter vallence for the Z axis movemeny couldnt be made.
You're absolutely right about the stretching. It's something I was interested in tracking myself, and so far for me it hasn't been an issue, and I have a lot of printing hours on this machine. That being said it's only my experience so take it for what it is. I thought there was talks of someone trying to create an addition to the mod that looked to help curtail that issue, but I don't know if it got off the ground with more than just talk. All in all this has been a solid mod for me, and it's great to look at, which makes me want to print with it more if nothing else. I appreciate you adding to the conversation.
@lightshow366 You can always add a keybak to help balance the load, which is what the Ender Switchwire conversion uses. I haven't found the weight is really significant enough to stretch the belts in this set up, but possibly small adjustments might be needed over time, but that is true with most moving vomponents.
Cool video, I enjoyed it a lot even though I don't own an Ender 3. Could you tell me what's the filament brand/color name for the fluorescent yellow parts? This info is missing in the video description
Yea sorry, I usually have all my info in the description but I uploaded this before vacation and I didn't have the time to add certain information. The greenish/yellow parts are PolyMaker Polylite ABS , and the blue parts are printed in Overture ABS. Thanks for reminding me, time to update the description! Thanks!
I thought this was the most "direct to the point" video about this mod, thank you. I followed it to modify an Ender 3 Max (which did need a few mods to some of the printed parts), Anyway, when I got the belts attached the x gantry really picked up resistance and friction, much more than just the gantry alone on the wheels. The wheels do kinda suck, movement isn't smooth, but I don't think this is the main problem. Anyone have tips on reducing friction/making it easier to move?
Thanks for the compliment on the video ! Now the Max upgrade you did, was it just modifying the printer in the Z direction, correct? I don't know why there should be added resistance to the X gantry from it. Have you tried adjusting the eccentric nut on the bottom of the X gantry to loosen up the printhead?
@@PrintsLeo3D Yes, did just this belt drive mod on Z, to test I completely loosened the 2 eccentric nuts on the Z rails, it's slightly better but not really usable. I guess I'll troubleshoot every piece of this thing, try to isolate the problem. I am using the original leadscrew, maybe a solid shaft would be better.
This is an awesome video and mod. I am going to attempt it on a Homers/Tevo Tarantula. I will also be upgrading the extruder, at the same time, to a Sailfin direct drive, with a Hero Me Gen7 hot end mount kit. This way the direct drive extruder is not sagging the arm. This is a lot, but just owning and operating a Tarantula is not for the faint of heart. I am currently modding the z-roller plate stl files to fit the Tarantula. Everything else should just work. One thing that I am planning on doing is to route the z axis stepper wire through the slot in the 2020 extrusion at the top, and through the one of the slots in the front of one of the 2040 extrusions. And then to hold the wire in place with the extrusion plastic dust caps. And finally, I am going to attempt to place some fishing sinkers in the back slots of the 2040 extrusions, supported by connectors to the belts, to use as counter weights. The counter weights will remove the z axis downward force due to the weight of the x-axis and extruder components.
Sounds like you know what you're doing! Definitely going to be an intense mod, considering some of the adjustments you'll need to make, but it sounds like you're well suited to get the job done ! Let me know how it goes and if you want to share those files for the 🕷️ z plates I can forward them to Kevin Aka Sam !
I'm assuming you mean something like this: FYSETC 3D Printer Vorn 2.4 Stepper Motor Extension Cables 2PCS : XH2.54-4P 2M/78.7inch Female 4P to Male 4P Motor Extension Wire White Terminal Connector Cable for Voro 2.4 3D Printer Accessories a.co/d/hkj4Sp6 Not a bad idea at all, I would still double check wire orientation to make sure they are uniformed before using. Great suggestion!
every extension cable using a plug and a connector matching whatever stepper motor you have ( or the equivalent on the board side) would work.. on my neptune 3 i have a 4 pin on the board and a 6pin on the stepper, a 4pin extension using the jst plug i have there works perfectly and would only cause issues if it was defective ( aka put together wrong, in the factory)@@PrintsLeo3D
This is very interesting. I have 2 Cr6 machines and they do great but still suffer some z banding from time to time. I may try this on my secondary printer to see if it can improve things
This is a tremendous mod, I have it on 2 printers now. It's fun to put together and sometimes even if this specifically might not help your problem, breaking your printer down (especially the Z axis) and then building it back up again may. So I'd say it's a worthwhile endeavor if you have the time!
Excellent tutorial. That being said, do you think it's worth the hassle or should I just go buy a nicer printer? Right now I've got a basic Ender 3 with BL Touch running Marlin FW
Tough question and I apologize for taking so long to answer it. Nowadays the cost of printers has dropped significantly and the ability they come with out of the box has increased!! It's amazing the quality and ease you can get from a brand new printer these days. That being said it's all up to you. Sometimes the project itself is worth the investment. I loved this mod and getting everything together and getting my hands dirty was really worthwhile, but it is time consuming. So in the end it's really up to what you need and how you want to spend your time. Either way good luck and happy printing!
There are companies that Kevin has been working with that offer all in one kits for a lot of his modifications. dfh.fm/search?type=product&options%5Bunavailable_products%5D=last&options%5Bprefix%5D=last&q=kevinakasam I would double check everything you need is in the kit before buying. There are different setups depending on your printer (i.e. linear rails, dual z motor, etc) so just double check on Kevin's website and you should be good to go from there. kevinakasam.com/
29:13 - WRONG! You have to move down X axis, then use some equal size blocks(like 1-2-3 blocks but for those you have remove heatbed) to rest X axis on it on both sides and only after that you can tight pulleys. It will insure that X axis will be perfectly parallel to printer base.
Nick I'm glad you brought this up because you are correct, for most all standard setups. On my two other dual z videos that's exactly how I align my X axis. However with this version, as Kevin has described in his thorough documentation, the best way to align the X axis is the method shown in the video. If for some reason something on the top of your printer is obstructing the movement of the X axis then aligning at the bottom is the best, as you suggested. Outside of that I would still recommend aligning it as shown here. Thanks for bringing this up!
@@PrintsLeo3D just checked on my printer - looks couple top outside POM wheels stopped on top horizontal beam end caps. At first glance it seems that it will work, but... left and right carriage for X axis has some play when not tightened. So, when you tighten carriages bolts one side of X axis may have slightly different distance from upper wheel than another and this method will not align X axis properly. I forgot to mention it in my previous comment - if you try to align X axis you may introduce uneven load on POM wheels because of that. To fix that, before you rest X axis on equal blocks you have to loose carriages slightly to allow self-align, then move axis down and rest it on blocks, then tighten carriages bolts.
Awesome Video !! I take it that this mod would also work on an Ender 3 Max ?? Does it allow you to print faster and more accurately ? I am thinking of also going Direct Drive, would this fit in as well with your mod ?
The reason I recommended button cap for this particular mod was because they looked cleaner by sitting closer to the parts and the extrusion. You could definitely use whichever you prefer, especially if you have other projects on the horizon and prefer one type over the other.
Wow that's great! What is the new Z axis resolution for this mod? It's 0.04mm on my E3V2 with the stock screw. I just saw a core XY using belted Z. Been thinking about this.
Hey bill, thanks for stopping by, watching, and asking a question. To be honest I'm not sure what ultimate z resolution turns out to be with this mod, I haven't done any intense testing in that regard. I have been suggesting Kevin's Discord (in the description) to people with questions like this because they have a lot of brains over there that have many hours with this mod. I love this mod, and for me there was a noticable difference in quality, especially over longer and taller prints. The difference is just my opinion though, I can't say any one specific thing other than an overall nicer quality. I know not a complete answer to your question but I hope it helps somewhat. Thanks for watching and commenting!!
Assuming no losses due to belts, flex and friction then the resolution should not change. The truth is you will have some of those losses with this mod over a dual or single screw and stepper with no belts. How much they impact the print quality is based on parts tolerance, assembly and belt tension and wear over time.
Hey Jimmy! For this modification there are no firmware or slicer changes you need to make! While I am using the old lead screw (so same pitch) you technically don't need to use a threaded rod at all. With the belts there are no step adjustments or gear ratios that need to be changed.
I never got around to running an in-depth 1:1 test, but for all the printing I have done, I never saw a distinguishable and consistent difference in Z quality between any of these 3 setups. The only thing I did notice was for the belt driven dual z I needed to make sure the belt kept itself in proper alignment from time to time. Other than that all seemed to print just as well.
CoreXZ is an option but they are overall different modifications. I really liked this design and found the process to be simple enough to understand, making it a good entry way mod. The CoreXZ mods out there do look really cool and can probably provide a similar or better benefit, so it's something I'll look into for the future. Thanks!
I have a dual Z rod system on my Ender 3 Pro with two stepper motors and a belt on top to synchronize them. I don't see the advantages of this system over what I have. A 3d printer does not need the kind of speed that a belt system in the Z direction provides. I would think if you lost power or turned off the stepper motors that entire X carriage would crash into the bed.
This design was really popularized due to the quality control issues a lot of people were experiencing with their machines, mostly the threaded rods for the z axis were all bent. Quality control got better but it doesn't mean this method is bad by any means. Creality is now pushing the double motor with timing belt option, which is a great option as well. After all my experience I would say no one method is better than the other (without taking into account time or money which are all variables)and so long as you are running a dual z you are liking getting the benefit it provides.
With the reduction I think this machine should be ok. There isn't much weight on that gantry. Wouldn't mount much more to it though. I think a worm gear might work better.
Interesting project. I am not sure if it would benefit me though as I already have synchronized dual lead screws using dual stepper motors and a synchronizing belt on top. Though it would allow me to put my power supply back on the frame. Would this speed up the Z axis?
Dual Z steppers are better than all the belts. Thing of it as a more direct drive, where the smallest movement of the stepper immediately moves the screw and z-axis. No belt flex or tension issues. There are a lot of prints that can allow you put the powersupply under the printer, arguably where it should be anyway for a much cleaner look.
@@broderp I was kind of wondering about that. As for the power supply I don't need to put it on the printer anymore as I have an enclosure now. I just need a bracket to mount it to the extrusion of the enclosure.
Hey ZK! Right now I am running this dual belt setup (on 2 printers), a dual stepper, and also a dual Z with timing belt setup. The first thing I would say is if you're running two stepper motors you shouldn't need a timing belt to keep those screws in sync. That being said converting from two screws to thos setup really may not have much difference for you. I noticed the difference as I printed faster using z-hop. I was just getting more consistent layers, and the faster printing speeds didn't seem to mar any quality I was having. If you printing at normal to slightly higher speeds (especially without z-hop) I don't know if moving from dual lead screws to this setup will show much, if any, improvement. Thanks for watching and for asking a question! Helps the channel get better. Thank you!
I like where your heads at! I don't really know enough about the coreXZ setup (although I know people from my Discord do). I am going to look into it now, is that the same sort of dual belted setup where the everything is ran off a pair of belts right? I think I've seen it before. That being said I do really like Kevin's mod, it's been working really well for me on the two printers that have been running it. Of course the more I try the better info I can give, so I will look into the Core XZ. Thanks for the idea!
Hey Leo, would you say this is a worthy upgrade over dual z lead screws? My anycubic vyper is undergoing a huge overhaul so wondering if this is worth upgrading while im at it or just keep the 2 z steppers in parallel with 2 lead screws
To be honest when I compared this setup to my other methods of dual z (2 screws + 2 motors, 2 screws + timing belt) I didn't notice any significantly measurable difference. They all require a little bit of calibration and overall they all performed well. Over a long term experiment I wouldn't be surprised if the method in this video showed to be a benefit over the other methods , but based on the prints I have accomplished with all of them they seem to be all about equal.
Hey Patrick, thanks for always watching and showing up in the comment section! I usually like to shout out to my viewers as a whole during my videos because this whole community has really been amazing to me and I always try and show my appreciation. I'll think about making a more personalized thank you in a coming video!! Thank you and Joe for the support!
Thanks Steve! This is the second modded printer for me, really love the design and the look it gives the printer. It's been great for me on both printers and I've logged 100s if not 1000s of hours with it. I appreciate you commenting to let me know your experience!
That's a great question I should link this in the description. The set I'm using in the video can be found on Amazon: Eventronic 132 in 1 Screwdriver... www.amazon.com/dp/B08SQ8BVPY?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share It's good. I've had it for about a year and the worst that has happened is that the front tip has come about a few times. Not game breaking but slightly irritating. As for the parts I bought them about a year ago from Amazon. Because you need so many small screws, I had to buy a few different screw kits, which brought the price up for me but gave me a lot of extras when the job was done. As for Kevin's kit, you'd need to buy both to have the complete parts list. I might round up what I bought from Amazon and add it to the description soon, I just worry about the contents changing over time and it not working out for people. I hope this helps!
This looks like a great mod! I feel like with the gantry being supported entirely by the belts you would have some belt stretching and wear over time? And since the belt isn't entirely supported by aluminium but now by 3d printed plastic, wouldn't it warp over time? Also I'm worried that if you power down the machine, the transmission ratio between the motor and the lead screw is not enough to prevent the printhead from just crashing down onto the bed? I'd love to see a further update on your experiences with this.
Hey Bami! Whenever we move to a belted system like this there's always the potential for wear and then slack, and especially if you're printing in an enclosure. I haven't had any belt issues yet, and I have a lot of print hours on this, but it's always smart to be constantly checking them. While the printhead can dip a little when the power turns off I have never had the printhead travel all the way to the bed and crash, so I wouldn't worry about that. So far this has been an awesome mod for me and I haven't had any issues from it. Hope this all helps!
I installed POM t-nuts and Z-sync mod, connecting both sides to each other. Calibrate with dial gauges and you are done for the next year. The reason for z-wobble and elefant foot are the cheaply machined brass nuts. It's so wobbly, my first layers never were the thickness I picked (tested z movement with dial gauge), on fast prints it will introduced small layer shifts. Z hardly moves compared to X or Y, so wheels will work, linear rails still superior. Not sure about this mod, may not be sturdy enough. What about vibrations?
I have this mod on 2 different printers and as far as vibrations go there wasn't any added vibrations that I could tell. My layers looked as consistent as ever and the motion system is doing a great job. Everything is synchronous now as well, and it's easy to level the gantry each side of the x axis is the same. Everyone's mileage may vary on this but it's been one of my favorites!
Thanks! That's actually a great question, and not one I'm too sure about. I know KevinAkaSam has their own Discord, I'd probably ask in there as they have the most day to day change experience. Sorry I couldn't be more help but thanks for watching!
Does it print as good or better with the belted Z? I have a CR-10 and am in the process of converting. Is a belted Z as accurate as the ACME lead screw? Great video.
When trying to compare quality when upgrading is difficult, because I was getting really nice prints before and after the modification. It 'feels' like it prints better when I print at the higher end of speeds, and especially when I employ z-hop while I'm printing. As for the accuracy, this has been as good or better than my dual Z rod and dual z motor setup, and I think calibrating this version is much easier too.
It's common for this setup to allow the axis to drop a little after powering off, and that sort of droppage shouldn't cause an issue, but if the axis drops and continues to fall then that will be a problem. You can start by looking to slightly tighten the eccentric nuts on the z axis. Those are the nuts attached to the inner wheels that ride up and down the Z axis extrusion. You don't want to over tighten them, but snugging them up a little will help. Then what has worked for me was to tighten the smaller looped belt a hair. Again, you don't want to overtighten this, but adjusting it in small increments should help.
I've had this belt drive setup and I've never had an issue with it sliding down. The gear ratio tends to prevent much movement and even with my heavy setup it requires still a fair amount of to move it. My hot end is a BLTouch, Orbiter v1.5, dual 5015 fans, CR Revo hot end and a Hydra PETG mount. Even with that I'm not even close to have it slide up and down. This setup as required no maintenance or adjustments since I installed it over a year ago.
I haven't had an issue with too much weight on this mod, and I like your thought process. I would stop by Kevin's discord and see what the crew there has to say. Kevin has been making incremental changes to this over time so he has a lot more experience.
Michael, my experience has been almost identical to yours. This has been a great mod with very little that needed to be done after the initial setup. Slowly but surely going to be added to all my printers.
Chris, this mod is also available for a printer equipped with linear rails. If you go to Kevin's website and follow his walkthrough, one of the options will be a linear rail equipped printer. Following that path will lead you to be able to download the correct models for your printer! Good luck and have fun.
That's a model from La Calavera! They have a whole library of articulating toys that are so much fun to print. There's a few free in printables, but now they mostly release through Patreon. There's links in the description of this video!
Thank you again!! I appreciate the engagement, it helps the channel and it helps me, because it means I'm doing something right! Whether it's a comment, question, or emoji anytime someone takes time to engage it's so appreciated! Thank you!
The speed really doesn't change from modifications like this. The biggest thing you can do to increase the speed of your printer is to move over to Klipper firmware (if you haven't done so already).
Hey Jose, I thinks it's possible but requires a slightly different mounting along the top. I dont have an S1 so I can't confirm but from what I read on KevinAkaSams Discord, one person they knew installed the mod but I believe there was some extra work needed to get there. I know Kevin is making improvements to this mod, and I thought I remembered that they were working on a mod specific to the S1 (but I could be wrong). I would say the best info you can get is by joining his discord and asking around, there's a lot of good info to be had there , especially from people who have done this mod. Sorry for the unsure answer but it's the best I got lol thanks for watching!
Whats the name of the app used for tuning? Seems like a lot of work for minimal improvement and likely a lot of potential issues for the novice. You are dealing with print tolerance, assembler ability,several belts, gears and all the mechanical slip, play and upkeep needed after installing. The simplest way to "fix" the issue of Z drop is to get a second z-axis stepper, rod and mount it on the opposite side. There are generic kits and Creality branded kits for around $30 that will be significantly better than this hodge podge of parts. I'll take a second screw and stepper making direct contact with that screw for a one to one ratio rather than rely on belts that have slip and play and more importantly flex. Great instructional video though. Subscribed.
Hey thank you so much for the comprehensive comment and the subscribe! It's nice when people talk about the shortcomings of a mod but rarely do they give an alternative, so I appreciate that! I believe Kevin uses PanoTuner (free from the apple store) to tension the belts. As far as the tension goes I do agree with you, it feels like you may not be making up the percentage you get with the time you spend. I prefer my method, which is mostly feel, but I do understand that 'feel' comes with experience. I think it's smart to have that alternate option(tuning), for people who aren't comfortable with the 'feel' of tension, this way they can be confident they have tightened the belt sufficiently. Some people just need that reassurance. As for the slipping I've never really experienced any, or at least not after tightening up the tension on the closed loop belt. I do have a double screw setup, as well as a dual Z timing belt setup. I am going to make a final video were I sort of compare and contrast these different options. Once again thank you very much for taking the time to leave thorough and well thought out comment!
Hey check the description out! When I got back from vacation I added links to all the products I got from Amazon and the closed loop belt is on there. You have to buy more than one at a time but it's not all that expensive. Let me know if the link works !
Firza, while you're printing the steppers should hold a charge and not drop. When the printer powers off it's possible there could be some droppage. What you can do to mitigate this is make sure the eccentric nuts (these adjust the wheels) on the inner wheels of the X axis are tight. You can also adjust the small looped belt at the top of this mod, that's driven by the stepper, so it's a little tighter and holds the tension.
When you thread the screw onto the nut you can hold the nut in place with your hand. This way it stays inside it's 'well' while the screw is threading through it. If the nut and screw assembly pops out after you thread it don't worry. At the end of if the build when you actual thread the handle onto the transmission body it will make a tight fit and the screw/nut will have nowhere to go and won't fall out.
Excellent video, everything is perfect but the z axis when I turn off the printer goes down to the heated bed, it does not hold when the stepper motor is free, I have linear rails. any solution ?
Vladimir, what I've done in the past is to tighten up the printed gear at the top of the assembly. It doesn't take a lot of extra strength, maybe just a quarter turn or two and my gantry never had any dropping issues. Let me know if this helps.
Yea Kevin offers a wife assortment which can sometimes be confusing. Here is a link to the STLs for an ender 3, that is using the stock Bowden extruder, and still using v rollers (not linear rails). If you need some more personal help just email me (printsleo3d@gmail.com) kevinakasam.com/snvb623-2/
I have ran three different styles of dual z (the one in this video, the one motor and timing belt, and the dual motor), and I have to see I don't see any significant difference between the models. I think the method in this video has the easiest technique to level the gantry which is a big selling point for me. It also feels like it has smoother movement along the Z axis. Ultimately whichever one of these works for you and your setup (time, money, experience, etc) will do just fine.
No there should be no tuning required. It's possible the wiring to the stepper motor could be backwards which is causing they behavior. If you are using Klipper an easy fix is to just ad an exclamation point (!) to the direction pin in your printer.cfgif you aren't using Klipper you'll need to sort out the wiring and get the wiring in the correct order.
David, of you go to Kevin's website (kevinakasam.com/) And select the belted Z mod. You can walk through the set up of your printer (Bowden or direct, linear rails or v wheels , etc) and at the end of the walkthrough there will be a link to download parts from Kevin's GitHub. This is the webpage I ended up on with my set up in the video.(kevinakasam.com/snvb623-2/) If you're not finding the trans files still let me know and I'll look into it.
I'm sorry but I don't remember the exact length. I believe it was somewhere near the 200-220mm length but that's a guess. I specifically didn't mention the size of my belt in this video because I wanted everyone to measure the belt for themselves as that's the most accurate way to size the belts. Sorry for not being able to tell you the exact length but thanks for watching!
When I self sourced the first time, it cost me about $90 I think (maybe $80). I sourced everything from Amazon and in some cases I had to buy in 'bulk'. What hurt me was the screws, I had to buy 3 different kits to make up all the M3 and M5 sizes. The good part was I had enough partseft over for almost an entire second build (had to buy another set of 20T gears and idler bearing). So at this point I would say each build cost me about $45 if that makes sense lol
No not at all! The settings for Klipper are there for clarity but don't provide any change in movement. As far as Marlin goes you don't need any firmware change, or change to your slicer! This keeps the same gear ratio as before. Hope this helps, and thanks for watching!
I printed out all the parts, but am missing the Motor Tensioning Block and Knob for low profile mount. I downloaded all Thingiverse and Github files but I still can't find the files. Can someone steer me in the right direction or point me to the files? Thanks
Hey Keith! Email me so I can send you what you need, or point you jn the right direction. I'd like to exchange some photos of the models with you so I know exactly what you need! printsleo3d@gmail.com Hope to hear from you !
@@PrintsLeo3D I found the files yesterday on GitHub under the voron folder. I 'm still printing out the needed parts now. Sorry I thought I posted this yesterday. I will probably need more information as I progress. Thanks for responding.
Rob, you can find links to the printed and non printed parts in the description. The parts can be found through KevinAkaSam's website, where you will go through a 'choose your own adventure' style path to make sure you're getting the correct parts for your specific printer . Good luck , it's a fun build !
PLA, or even better PLA+, is a strong and importantly stiff material. The issue with PLA is if you plan on enclosing your printer. The heat that an enclosed printer produces is enough to cause the PLA parts to no longer hold their shape or stiffness. So if you don't plan on enclosing your printer then I'd say Rock on, but if you are going to be enclosing your printer at any time then you should consider PETG, ABS or ASA.
Did you place the belt on the pulleys while the pulleys were loose? This way you can bring the gantry up and down through the range of motion and the belts will slide to where they naturally want to travel, and then you can tighten up the pulleys .
Probably a question they could answer on Chep's RU-vid or website. I think you may be looking for the wrong creator here lol I'm PrintsLeo3D not Chep. I appreciate the confusion, it would be awesome to be that successful lol but I don't think I can be much help! Thanks for reaching out though
You can use a single belt (two actually) to drive the Z axis, but that would be a different setup. Take a look at the Ender Switchwire modification to check it out. Very cool stuff and a great project!
Just found your channel the other day. You have good content. I do have a question what is the rack that is behind you? I have been looking for something like it.
Thank you very much and I'm happy you found me! It's called the RepRack by Repcord. It's an awesome (mostly) 3d printed storage option. I have a RU-vid short (ru-vid.comd4taCB5R6o4?feature=share) about it as well as an article that goes over how to install it (www.printsleo3d.com/reprack) hope you like it !
@@PrintsLeo3D sorry I should have been a little clearer I meant the rack/shelf's the printers are on. It looks deeper than most I have found. The reprack looks good too.
Lol sorry. They are Whalen Shelves I got from Costco. They've gone up tremendously in price since I got them for around $60. I couldn't find them from Costco but Amazon has them. Price is ridiculous but here's the listing (shelves are great by the way, could be a little sturdier but overall very nice) : Whalen 5-Shelf Heavy Duty Steel Shelving Unit, 48" W x 24" D x 72" H, Black a.co/d/aKEync5
If you go to Kevin's website (kevinakasam.com/belt-driven-ender-3/) it walks you through your build process, how you want to build it and what features your printer has. Then it offers all the STLs to get this mod up and running. Kevin's website is amazing so check it out and good luck!!
Eugenio, to be honest I didn't both getting into the nitty-gritty of measuring the movement. I tested various prints for dimensional accuracy, and those printed at or better than they did before this mod. After that I upped my speeds and printed and haven't looked back lol Thanks for the question!
mechanically its the same. I've been running this just after kevinakasam released it. I have about 1700hrs on one printer and 900hrs on a second. This mod eliminates all z banding, allows for accurate and repeatable z hop, and is extremely accurate. 20mm print, threaded rod: 19.96mm, belted: 20.00mm. 100mm print, threaded: 99.80mm, belted 99.98mm. 220mm print, threaded 219.56mm, belted 219.94mm. These were from when I first installed and I questioned the accuracy of my printed gear. You could always go with a metal gear. please print transmission housing and x motor mount out of abs or petg, pla wont hold up with these, all other parts are fine pla. you dont need to adjust any z steps either
In my experience I didn't. I printed everything at 100 scale using all ABS, and from two different (Overture) spools. I didn't have any issues so I would expect you to not encounter any as well. Probably for the best to print a couple and just check them dimensionally, if only very quickly, before you print the entire set en masse.
@@PrintsLeo3D appreciate the quick response. I will get my polymaker and hatchbox filament out and print a couple of parts from each just to make sure.
Yea that's probably for the best, just to be safe, but like I said I think it'll be all good! Glad you're giving this a shot, let me know how it works out!
Helmut, yes this mod will work with the Ender 3 V2! As for printing the parts in PLA, you certainly can. For most of the parts PLA is fine, the top and bottom mounts, the X plates, they should all hold up printed in PLA because they won't see any heat. The transmission body that is holding the stepper motor may see some heat, and it's likely the tensioner plate that gets attached to the stepper will see some heat (due to the motor heating up while printing). I think the Z stepper is the least likely motor to heat up, but if it does it's possible the PLA parts could warp. So if you had no other option than you should be able to use PLA but be cautious. If you could print only a few parts in something like PETG, then I would print anything that is close to the stepper motor due to possible warpage. Also if this printer is in an enclosure, you should only print it in ABS. Hope this helps, if you have more questions please let me know.
