Prusa Archeology
Hello fellows
I just dug out, from the deepest bowels of my basement, an old Prusa 3D printer. It did work... 10 years ago, and using a Mac that I no longer have. Is there any chance to revive it? What it would take? What do I need to provide to you to even determine what model it is and what exactly I need to do to even confirm it's still functional?
Any, literally ANY help or advice will be highly appreciated.
RE: Prusa Archeology
this may be borderline OT but I wouldn't waste a second over it. Technology has moved on, significantly.
If you really want to, mail-order some generic PCBs and build your own Klipper printer around them (assuming voltages from the PSU aren't too exotic). But then, something breaks and you're stuck. Both ready-to-print 3D printers and kits can be sourced very cheaply nowadays,
IIuic this isn't strictly a Prusa, it's a kit machine supplied to a variant of Josef Prusa's published open hardware i3 design by a supplier called 3DPrinterCzar. This could be called the Mk0 generation.
The frame appears to be based on Shane Graber's laser cut design:-
https://github.com/sgraber/Prusa3_LC
And 3DPrinterCzar's build manual is at:
http://www.scribd.com/document/325889640/Prusa-i3-Build-Document-by-3D-Printer-Czar
[Don't try 3D Printer Czar's website, it's long since been taken over by malware spreaders]
There is a picture of a very similar model on: https://reprap.org/wiki/Prusa_i3_Variants
and you should be able to track archived slicer details suitable for incorporating into PrusaSlicer through https://reprap.org/ - but you *might* be able to get a suitable preset through Prusa as they do keep a few historical machines running, it's always worth asking.
Cheerio,
RE: Prusa Archeology
Thank you both for your replies.
@diem - you are spot on, it IS that old 🙂 tracking the right settings/presets will definitely be an adventure on it's own; but what I need right now is much more basic. Sice I've lost whatever software used to connect to it from my old laptop (several laptops ago), the first answer I'd need is what to do to even establish the connection - if nothing else, just to confirm the board is not dead...
@mnentwig - building a Klipper may be a viable option, but while "having a working 3D printer" is the ultimate goal, bringing this particular one back to life is an enticing (probably as much as challenging) side quest. And while the prices went down somewhat since I obtained this one beauty, "cheaply" is a very subjective term.
I do realize that this project may requre some "upgrades", but I'm highly confident it does not need the "throw it away and get new one" approach. I will appreciate any help anyone may offer.
RE: Prusa Archeology
Hi guys, I have some good news: I was able to run this beauty. Using a software called Pronterface, some guesswork, a lot of patient "debugging" (mostly mechanical) and a bit of brute force (literally, since some things got stuck a bit) I did manage to check/test all the "features" and ultimately do the first print. It wasn't extremely pretty, but it did work!
TBH I am a bit surprised that it worked so well. Not everything is perfect - some linear bearings have to be replaced, some 3D-printed parts developed small cracks and will probably need replacemet etc. I will think about improving the design a bit though, as it clearly lacks in some areas:
- the extruder itself does seem a bit unreliable as it struggles with short, sharp changes in feeding speeds and seems to have a relatively low max feeding speed (exceeding it causes the feeding gear to strip the filament instead of pushing it down);
- the z-frame seems to lack the required stiffness, which I believe is a known issue with this type of frame;
- the bed design is "old" - I believe nobody prints on glass anymore... 🙂 - and the way it is supported on the subframe (four loose bolts with some springs) causes it to shake noticeably on high(ish) accelerations. Additionally, it's a touch on the small side (theoretically 200x200, but not all of it is useable).
- there are also some "conflicts" between moving and stationary parts, e.g. the aforementioned bed mouning bolts do hit the base frame unless they are very loose - but when they are, there is not much compression in the aforementioned springs and the bed is shaking with even the slowest speed changes.
But despite all that, I consider the results to be "promising". It will require some more work to make it "acceptable", but still - it is a lot more than I expected.