Anybody want to machine and test my idea? Or do FEA on it.
If I may
Maxim 37: There is no “overkill.” There is only “open fire” and “reload.”
Also applicable to some denizens of this forum
Maxim 25: If the damage you do is covered by a manufacturers warranty, you didn’t do enough damage.
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I’m all for sharing. Let me test the current version and then I’ll post the files.
I had to make some spacers on the prototype, so I extended it some and added that goofy reinforcement rib.
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Thank you! In the meantime, I need to cut the slots for the belts.
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@opticrest I just threw these up on Thingiverse. I had to make a modification for my old school front plate with the dual M3 belt tensioner mounts (if you never had those, you don’t know how good you had it with the M5 version).
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Thanks! I will get these queued up on the printer today.
Did you cut the slots yet?
I found it convenient to mark the slot locations by mounting the tensioner Base. You could print the first 2-3mm to use as a template.
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Oh, to be able to own a 3D printer!
I got a little trigger happy yesterday and drilled a hole in one of the base plates. I’m printing out a pair of bases now though, so I’ll be using those as templates for the remaining slots.
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Let me know how it goes. I still have one slot to make. I might need to pick up some better drill bits… The first one was not fun.
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I learned recently that for bits below about 5mm they are so cheap in packs of 10 from trade tool suppliers that I just buy 10 packs and move to the next sharp bit rather than fighting with a blunt one and having the hole wander off center or the drill break off in the workpiece. Bigger than that it seems to be worth sharpening them but in the 3mm or so range, just grab a new one, especially on steels.
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I actually ordered these yesterday for that exact reason.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0838FF68J/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_NMWWPA0YV9MA7VS8JT0Z?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
I may use an M3 drill tap…they seem sturdier.
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I’d be interested to hear how those do, they might be a bit brittle if they’re hard enough to be a tap.
I have a few stubbies that I use for drilling for small taps, they’re less wobbly, easier to drill straight and harder to break
But most of the sizes I just have cheap black oxide
At £1.50 for 10 I would have to achieve a whole new level of stingy to sharpen them, although I still spend way too long thinking about whether to put the ‘blunt’ one back in the box just in case or just throw it away 
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You can get a printer that’ll give you good results for the price of a starter pack of endmills.
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Get a prusa mini. A bit more expensive, but a solid printer and quite new person friendly.
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The prusa mini does look really good, I have to say!
Thank you!
I finished the Y axis slots today…was not fun. Drilling holes wasn’t too bad, but then merging the holes…I don’t want to speak of the various tools I abused to get the job done…I’m leaving the X axis stock for now. I’m all ears if anyone has any suggestions for cutting the slots.
What WAS fun, was tensioning the belts with the new mounts! Huge improvement. Carbide 3D should really consider switching to something like this, or at the very least, start cutting the slots. Thanks again Neil!
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Prusa are amazing but are also expensive, and take a long time to ship. I recommend a Flashforge Adventurer 3 Lite for a cheap well made printer. I have one with 5000 hours on it and still prints well. Has built in enclosure, Wifi, network cable connection 9 point bed leveling, and very good slicing software included. They are going for 300 USD on Amazon and ship very quickly. Ony drawback is a external spool holder will be needed to use 1kg spools. I also like a Creality CR-6 se which can use Cura for slicing.
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I found that a pack of these and a dremel clone were shockingly good at nibbling away at even quite hard steels
Opening the holes into a slot with these and then straightening with a needle file is one way to do it.
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