28
Aug
14
Aug
Teaser alert! What we have been secretly organising
You know the counter in the machine tools page. Well it is counting down to the 19th of August 2016, the day we unveil our grandest product to date. the unveiling will be done in the Thornbury model engineering exhibition so why not check us out at stand 134.
You can find more about the BSMEE on the official exhibition webpage
10
Jul
BCN3D Sigma: Cleaning the filament feeder
About 7kg of filament later and lots delightful prints with the BCN3D Sigma we noticed that ground filament and dust had accumulated on the extruder feeder gear. Perfect opportunity to clean the filament feeder by taking it apart, checking out how it is engineered and learn a bit more about the Sigma!
Here is how we did it step by step.
Step 1. Unscrew the socket cap screw shown below to release the bottom Bowden tube. the printed part holds against a nut which is screwed on the tube. Simple and effective!
Step 2. Unscrew the 2 nuts holding the stepper motor board shield and unplug the stepper motor. Try not to lose the tubular spacers! Take them out and store them safely.
Step 3. Remove the top Bowden tube from the feeder by pushing down on the grey ring and pulling the tube out . Then unscrew the nuts holding the stepper motor bracket on the frame. Remove the feeder from the Sigma.
Step 4. Now start taking the feeder apart. Unscrew the large grub screw and remove the tension adjustment spring. Then unscrew the 3 long hex screws which hold all the parts on the stepper motor.
Step 8. Dissemble the feeder and clean all the parts from filament grindings and dust with a small brush. A toothbrush will also do!
Step 9. Reassembly time! Start by placing the aluminium bracket with the bent part facing towards the cables. Then the plastic spacer and pinch levers as shown below.
Step 10. Insert the tension spring through the hole of the top lever and screw in the large grub screw to compress it. In my experience 1 turn after the top of the screw is flush with the lever surface give a good starting point in terms of spring tension.
Step 11. Take the feeder back to the Sigma and fix the bottom Bowden tube on before mounting on the frame, makes life easier! Then slide the feeder on the studs of the frame and fix it in place with the 2 nuts. Connect the motor back to the driver. IMPORTANT! Don’t forge the spacers!!! 2 on each side of the board.
Step 13. Fix the aluminium stepper driver shield back on and insert the top Bowden tube. Done! grabs beer…
29
Jun
Drawbar tension for R8 and MT3 collets to work safely with QTC tooling?
13
Apr
Emvio Engineering is now a reseller of all BCN3D products
It is with great pride that we bring to the UK market the products designed BCN3D Technologies.
BCN3D Technologies started off as a project of Fundació CIM, which has more than 20 years of experience in Rapid Prototyping and knowledge transfer. The results have been impressive and that is why when we first came across the company, we were keen to collaborate with them
We will be keeping stock of as many of their products as our limited storage space allows but will be giving priority to the Sigma. As you may have seen in our earlier post, we were giddy with anticipation when the Sigma was released. In no time you will be able to browse our shop for all four of BCN3D printers:
The BCN3D Sigma – The flag ship model that received the best quality award on 3Dhubs page for April
The BCN3D Lux – A SLA machine working with photoreactive resin allowing for fantastically fine layers and printing speed
The BCN3D Plus – A Prusa clone kit aimed at those wanting to build their own printers
The BCN3DR – Another kit but this time for a Delta printer
The BCN3D Ignis – a premium 100W CO2 laser cutter with honeycomb bed and a 900×650 working area
04
Apr
Damping the sound of stepper motors on 3D printers
Most of us that tinker with 3D printing have wondered how to reduce the groan and squeal of the stepper motors driving us nuts. Especially when long prints are involved!
For a while now we have been using and selling our own vibration dampers that place a rubber buffer between the stepper and the printers frame. The rubber is thin and stiff enough to maintain accuracy of the stepper motor while reducing the vibrations being transmitted to the body of the printer.
02
Feb
Exciting times, European 3D printer that kicks ass!
After looking around for a the hottest 3D printer to try, we have finally settled on a brand that will give the top players a run for their money. So we would like to tease you all with the new kid on the block:
BCN3D’s Sigma
Pretty sleek. Serious engineering going on and a CE mark to boot.
Where can you start?
- Enclosed design with 210x297x210mm build volume
- Dual heads independent that park when not in use
- Profile linear rail, not round bar, on the axes!!!!!!!!!
- TOUCH SCREEN!!!
Now to blow even the most sceptical away, check out the calibration procedure:
Interested? Keep watching this space
18
Jan
3D printing obsolete machine parts
We took on the challenge to design and manufacture some of the more critical wear parts: the bottle neck grippers
09
Dec
Quick change and repeatable Z tooling for MT3 and R8 spindles?
Industrial and hobby machinists alike all have the same pet hate when it comes to changing tools whether using a Bridgeport knee mill or a bench top CNC mill:
“It takes too long!”
Lets explore this topic and how Emvioeng.com will help small and large workshops alike become more efficient.
13
Oct
Web Browser based CAD? OnShape seems to think its OK
It is not often that the CAD industry gets shaken up as much as it has in the past 12 months. First we had Autodesk Fusion 360 coming out with a Cloud based service and we have recently received word of OnShape.
The pedigree of OnShape could not be purer, it is spearheaded by the founders of Solidworks, an industry favourite for as long as I can remember.
