Abstract
Building your own 3D printer can be a really cool project. Building a 3D printer requires basic mechanical skills and the ability to work with wiring (crimping, soldering). It also requires a certain set of tools to build the printer. Finally, there are a number of things you can do to help make the build more productive and successful. I cover all of these topics and more in this chapter starting with the tools and skills required.
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Notes
- 1.
In other words, you will need more than a hammer, wobbly pliers, and a screwdriver that has seen its share of opening cans and prying open boxes.
- 2.
I sometimes get multitools for gifts. They’re really handy but I’m running out of places to put them.
- 3.
Just like Xerox is a synonym for copier, X-Acto knife is a synonym for a small, sharp, and guaranteed-to-make-you-bleed if you’re careless hobby knife.
- 4.
The scourge of the modern geek, nerd, and active computer user! See http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/carpal_tunnel/detail_carpal_tunnel.htm for more details.
- 5.
Do you know how to tell if an auto mechanic is well trained? Ask him how many hammers he has. If he says, “I think my wife has one in the kitchen,” hire him!
- 6.
Except maybe another Printrbot model.
- 7.
This included 20 minutes to find the superglue that I was sure I put in a specific drawer. It is funny how things like that can move around. It must be the work of gnomes or house elves.
- 8.
This reminds me of a theory of mine concerning home repair. It seems the difficulty of the repair is directly proportionate to the number of trips to the home improvement store. A corollary suggests this rate is also directly proportional to the time you would have saved hiring a professional to do the job right the first time.
- 9.
Yes, I am one of those too. So I have eclectic tastes. If only we can get them to broadcast a race in Klingon, it would be the perfect sport!
- 10.
Just like cheap pressboard furniture. College students know this all too well.
- 11.
Trust me, you’ll do this at least once. It won’t help, but it might make you feel better.
- 12.
No tobacco or electronic equivalent required.
- 13.
To all you Klingon fans out there, Qapla’! http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Qapla%27 .
- 14.
And I hope to see the number of partially complete printers for sale drop dramatically.
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© 2014 Charles Bell
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Bell, C. (2014). 3D Printer Building: Tips for a Successful Build. In: Maintaining and Troubleshooting Your 3D Printer. Apress, Berkeley, CA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4302-6808-6_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4302-6808-6_3
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Publisher Name: Apress, Berkeley, CA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4302-6809-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-4302-6808-6
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