3D Printer Total Cost Of Ownership - Life Span - Cost Per Print - Depreciation

[RogerR]

Redbrickman,

I have been otherwise busy, but plan to get back to getting the printer working better in the next day or two. I plan to do a bit of tests to get rid of the stringing and then do some temperature towers.

I see some folks recommend an Octopi setup as an alternative to flashing the firmware. I'm considering that...although I'm pretty sure the lack of a sticky method (across power cycles) for editing parameters will end up driving me crazy.

 

[RogerR]

An update....and an apology for not paying better attention to Redbrickman.

I went out and looked at temps right after powering the CR-10 on. In the first few seconds, they only fluctuated a degree or two....then 3-4, then 5-6. So, I did some more looking online about the Melzi board (the controller that the CR-10S uses). And I found this: https://github.com/printsmith/Melzi...blob/master/V1.1.2 Fix/V1.1.2 Fix Tutorial.md.

So, I went out and opened up the control box. Took the O-scope with me. I saw a bit of noise on the thermistor lead..but nothing conclusive. However, the place to add a capacitor on the board is at an unused expansion connector that is a thru-hole component. And..I happen to have some low ESR caps on hand for my radio control hobby (they are good for killing noise from speed controllers). I took two out to the shop, but ended up putting on one that's physically very large. There's no space problem for fitting it. It was hard to remove the connector, the CR-10 solder didn't want to wick into the braid.....it's probably some lead free stuff. I eventually had to cut up the connector body with diagonal cutters and pull each pin, one at a time, from the top while heating it on the bottom. Added the cap and put it back together.

AMAZING IMPROVEMENT. Temps are now rock solid! Now only do the readings not fluctuate, they can hit the commanded value of 250 for PETG much faster than before.

So....current CR-10 printers (the basic $380 unit), shipping from Bangood from the USA warehouse have this problem at this time. The only saving grace is that it's a fairly easy fix.

Thanks for guidance to look at this problem!

RR

 

[Redbrickman]

Great news RR and glad you got it fixed. A good tool to monitor temperature and do other stuff is Pronterface software. It is also useful for doing PID tuning when you change any settings in the configuration, that is, if you have a stock board that has been updated from the stock firmware to a newer version of Marlin.

That is a good link and explanation of how to replace the capacitor. I also know how useful they can be to smooth out the spikes on speed controllers and flight controller boards in my RC models

You may curse me for showing you this link RR but I'm currently printing one of their planes on the CR-10s so it may interest you, but be warned, it can get addictive


https://3dlabprint.com/

 

[The Hat]

You may curse me for showing you this link RR but I'm currently printing one of their planes on the CR-10s so it may interest you, but be warned, it can get addictive

 

[PeterBJ]

.....It was hard to remove the connector, the CR-10 solder didn't want to wick into the braid.......it's probably some lead free stuff. I eventually had to cut up the connector body with diagonal cutters and pull each pin, one at a time, from the top while heating it on the bottom.

It is also my experience that unsoldering components that have been soldered using a lead-free solder is much more difficult than if the component had been soldered using the old Sn/Pb 60/40 solder. The explanation is that the lead free solders have a higher melting point or melting temperature range than the old leaded solder. See this.

 

[RogerR]

Peter,

After a night of sleep, I realize that there are alternative methods to fix this problem that would avoid removing the old connector.

1. One could solder the cap to the exposed pins of the connector w/o removing it. I'd create a tiny loop or two on each leg of the cap, slide it on and solder. Given the thermal mass of the connector and the solder they used, there would be little risk of problems doing this. Might want to put a little heat shrink on the legs first.....which would shrink while soldering.
2. A small cap might solder to the back side of the controller card. If it's a little too big to fit under the card, increasing the standoff height (with some printed standoff extenders) would fix that problem.
   
3. For those really adverse to making the mod on the controller card....get a 3 pin JST XH connector to plug into that socket. Solder the cap as close as possible to the plug-in connector. Then plug it into the socket. Not quite as good electrically (caps work best when closer), but likely good enough and entirely reversible.
4. A vendor who sees this post could build and sell the "cap in the connector". I thought about building a few to sell, but I don't see how to make money selling sub ten dollar items on eBay or Amazon. But there are vendors who ought to be interested.

 

[RogerR]

"You may curse me for showing you this link RR but I'm currently printing one of their planes on the CR-10s so it may interest you, but be warned, it can get addictive


https://3dlabprint.com/"

Let me know how this goes. I'm very interested in printing air frames.....although my first reaction is that it would be better to print the structure and then cover it (like building a balsa model). But your link looks pretty interesting and I might give it a try.

 

[flyboy]

Nifty,
I think like you and am a bit OCDC about cost. I drive some PPL around me crazy obsessing.

As a commercial pilot I would wile away the hours of droning along, trying to figure out the relative gain loss of different operating strategies. In an aircraft fuel is like gold BTW. I'm like the boy who saved string... Anyhoooo I came from it honestly

If you want to know the electrical cost get one of these or other similar gadgets: http://www.eriethamespower.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/EM100_Energy_Meter_Technical_Manual.pdf

It tells you the electricity used, both total and moment by moment and calculates the cost/hour if you plug in your utility cost and the max draw. You simply plug it into the wall and then plug whatever you want to check out into the unit. The gadget was 25 CanD when I got it. My neighbour an electrical engineer had one.

You will be shocked ; ) on what you discover the draw that apparently turned off items in the house like power bars have.

Next I bought a whole house monitor system that shows me real time what the house is drawing and I can check out each breaker's load. That paid for itself I figure in less than the first year in reduced phantom loads in our 'new to us' house. There was a security transformer in the attic that was burning away and almost hot enough to start a fire plus a lot of other phantom loads.

As I said I am OCDC. I have a "less than beautiful mind" LOL

 

[Redbrickman]

Nothing wrong with monitoring things that might be wasteful

However Flyboy, have you considered that the increased Gamma radiation from all those flights might be exacerbating your OCD

 

[The Hat]

Nothing wrong with monitoring things that might be wasteful

I have never worry about the Cost, you can, or you can’t afford it, what’s there to worry about, and the only thing I can’t afford to waste is my time, and for some reason or another it always seems to slip through my fingers like it was water.

It is unfortunately starting to run out, but until it does, Happy printing everyone in 3D or Photos...
P.S. You can’t save the electricity you didn’t use...