New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
UPDATE: New parts C1/R4 for the MK3S/MK2.5S/MMU2S are out! More here: https://shop.prusa3d.com/forum/general-discussion-announcements-and-releases-f61/new-printed-parts-c1-r4-mk3s-mk2-5s-mmu2s-t27888.html
This Autumn is such a busy time at Prusa Research headquarters! Launching several products, attending exhibitions all around the world... and just in case you've missed some important announcements, here is a quick recap:
Multi Material upgrade 2.0 is shipping
Prusament the best filament you can inspect
Introducing Original Prusa SL1
New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
The Original Prusa i3 MK3 just celebrated its first year from being announced back in September 2017. Throughout this year, we've been collecting testing data from our farm and carefully listening to your complaints and wishes for improvements. Many of them were already applied along the way and some are still to come.
For the last several months our developers were trying to further improve the cooling of the MK3's extruder and this research resulted in the seventh iteration of our plastic parts (B7/R3). Improving the overall aerodynamics and adding extra air inlet had a significant effect on the temperature distribution along the hotend. All theory behind this upgrade is described here on our forum, including detailed comparison and final results from the FLIR thermal camera.
As a little bonus for our customers, the new printed parts for the extruder are included in the MMU2 upgrade kit. Of course, you can print them on your own using available STL files as well. If you don't have PETG and ABS filament, you can also order an Extruder upgrade package in black or orange versions from our e-shop (login needed). As usual, we've prepared a detailed step-by-step guide for this upgrade.
The feedback to this latest MK3 upgrade was overwhelming. Till today the thread was visited more than 73 000 times with over 550 comments. We are pleased to see our improvements are bringing great attention and discussion.
It is important to say, we aren't finished yet. Recently, we've introduced several new plastic parts with the B7/R3 badge on it and before we dive in the description of all the changes I would like to thank you for your feedback and ideas, how to improve the printer's performance even more.
Spiral wrap vs textile sleeve
Let's first address the Elephant in the Room. As of today all our MK3's leaving the factory will be equipped with the textile sleeve and this has raised many questions since we first swapped the spiral wrap for the sleeve earlier this year on a heatbed. Was this some kind of a design flaw and do you need immediately change all your plastic wraps for the braided ones?
No, stay calm and keep on printing 🙂 Your printer is safe and the upgrade to another cable management solution is an evolution thing. Though if you print a lot you might consider this upgrade, let me explain.
Our farm printers are running 24/7 and after several hundreds of printing hours, we started to observe the wearing of the cables, which were held together by a plastic spiral wrap. The wrap itself is quite rigid and over a very long period of time starts to grind the cables.
For a regular 3D printing enthusiasts this might never happen as it would require a long period of time. However, if you are using your 3D printer daily, you might experience similar damage to the cable, which sometimes leads to a printer failure. To avoid this from happening, make sure that the plastic spiral wrap on your printer is installed according to the assembly manual. Incorrectly installed wrap or generally any sharp edges may decrease the lifespan of your printer's wiring.
To prevent this completely, we were looking for a suitable solution and we made the following decision: all cable bundles will be wrapped in a textile sleeve from now on. The sleeve is softer and therefore less abrasive. Moreover, to further expand the lifespan of the cables, we decided to remove the nylon from the heatbed. For the extruder, the nylon has to stay, because the cables would sag down and potentially hit the printed object.
To conclude this “wrap-gate”: if you use MK3 as a hobbyist you shouldn't be affected (just make sure the wrap is correctly installed). If you print larger objects on a daily basis, we recommend updating. Here are the dimensions of the textile sleeves, so you can purchase them in your local shop.
Extruder sleeve: 13x 490 mm
Heatbed sleeve: 6 x 300 mm
X-axis sleeve: 6 x 300 mm
Now, to the printed parts 😉
The new Einsy case
The Einsy case, which is effectively a cover for the MK3's motherboard, received two significant upgrades in the B7/R3 release. First, we have completely reworked cable retaining mechanism. The previous version serves its purpose well, but for an inexperienced user building the printer for the first time, this part of the assembly was complicated and it required a lot of effort to secure the entire bundle properly.
Over the time, I've seen several printers on the social networks where the owners damaged the cables or simply gave up and inserted the cables without a wrap, which isn't a long-term solution. We've sat back with the designers and thought long for another solution. Several iterations later, we have a brand new Einsy case for the MK3.
Openings for the cables are wider and instead of fixing the cables using the zip tie, we are using 3D printed clips, so much greater area is dedicated to holding the sleeve in place.
The second improvement is all about OctoPrint. As you are aware, the MK3 is compatible with the Raspberry Pi Zero W, which can then run an OctoPrint and control the entire printer. The previous iteration of the Einsy case required you to completely remove the board from the case before inserting the RPi, but this is now over.
All the Einsy cases, which will leave our factory are now prepared for the Raspberry Pi without a need to disassemble anything. Look at the back side of the cover, where you will see a part in the middle, which is separated from the rest by several small “bridges”. In case you want to use RPi, carefully cut this entire part out and insert the tiny Pi board inside. Our developers prepared a removable cover, so you can shield the RPi and remove it anytime necessary.
Improved X-carriage
Inserting nuts and the nylon in the x-carriage wasn't as easy as we would like it to be. The B7 version brings reworked traps to better accommodate the square nuts and the nylon hole was widened allowing easier insertion. Also slightly different assembling approach is used. More in the manual 😉
Reworked X-ends
Both x-ends were already upgraded several times, but there were still some parts, which needed more polishing. Previously introduced openings to check, whether the smooth rods are properly seated, where only in the bottom, now they are on both sides.
Improved were all holes for the plastic and steel nuts. Inserting the nuts should be now easier, but still tight enough to hold them in place.
Last upgrade is dedicated to the x-end-idler, where a lot of customers experienced cracks during tightening the idler. We've reinforced the problematic wall significantly, though it is still advised to use reasonable force while tightening the idler as you are tightening steel part against the plastic material.
Y-motor-holder and Y-rod-holder
Both parts were further reinforced to provide more strength and avoid cracking during the build. While tensioning the belt on the Y-axis keep in mind that the belt shouldn't be stretched like a string on a music instrument, as the motor won't be able to move the Y-carriage.
Z-axis-bottom
Printed parts on the Z-axis holding the motors, were reinforced as well. The entire part is now thicker providing increased bearing capacity. Also, the screws can be now aligned with the surface, thus creating a cleaner design.
---
To upgrade or not to upgrade your current MK3: that is the question. All these B7 upgrades aren't fixing any significant flaw, but mostly improving the assembling experience. If you are satisfied with your printer's performance, you can leave it as it is. Only in case you are using the RPi Zero W, you might consider changing the Einsy-case to the latest design.
As usual, all parts are available for download on our Prusa3D site. Use PETG or similar heat resistant material. In case of the extruder parts, don't forget to use black colour. https://www.prusa3d.com/prusa-i3-printable-parts/
That's it for today, see you in the next design upgrade 😉
/ Knowledge Base
The guy behind Prusa assembly manuals...
Re: New printed parts B7 and other improvements for the MK3
Just printing these updated parts now and will install when my MMU2 comes in a few weeks.
Jakub, I note that for the Y rod holder part that there is no version number. I assume though that the STL file included in the latest printed parts download file reflects the most recent version of this part?
Re: New printed parts B7 and other improvements for the MK3
If anyone is looking for a user created EINSY case that also includes a new cable entrance for the MMU2 (so you do not need to cut the cover), take a look here. I will be printing it later today. It uses the new EINSY case but adds the needed extra entrance for the MMU2.
This is a lot less ghetto than simply cutting the cover. 🙂
Re: New printed parts B7 and other improvements for the MK3
...I note that for the Y rod holder part that there is no version number. I assume though that the STL file included in the latest printed parts download file reflects the most recent version of this part?
Hi Steve,
yes the Y-rod-holder is uploaded in the latest revision. You can always check the date of the upload 🙂
/ Knowledge Base
The guy behind Prusa assembly manuals...
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
Excellent update, I really appreciate all the detail here, it helps allot. I have 6 printers total and they work great. I have a suggestion,
Could you offer a belt tension specifically for each belt that is kg pull and mm deflected. These should be with the axis all the way to the left or back, and measured mid belt span. This would once and for all offer people an actual tension. I have read the software determined belt indicator and all other attempted descriptions of how tight is tight. Your musical instrument comment reminded me. It would be nice to put this issue to bed. I read forum posts of people with damaged pulley bearings or ghosting problems or shifted layers and although I am luck and have no such issues I would like to get it right! Thank you for your awesome work, I love my PRUSA printers...
Eric
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
I tried to get some numbers from the Facebook forums. I suggested hanging a can of soft drink (easily available) from the x-axis and measuring deflection as a way of checking actual tension against the claimed belt values. Nobody responded with their data,but there was a rather useless discussion on whether density differed across soft drinks.
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
I just tuned them to 220 cycles per sec using one of the instrument tuning apps for my smart phone that is a low tone to me and it results in the beltension report from the firm ware to be right in the middle of the desired range.
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
I just tuned them to 220 cycles per sec using one of the instrument tuning apps for my smart phone that is a low tone to me and it results in the beltension report from the firm ware to be right in the middle of the desired range.
Could you reveal the name of the instrument tuning app? 😀
Have a look at my models on Printables.com 😉
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
sure n-Track Tuner its available for iOS and android but I can only say the iOS version is fine for this.
https://ntrack.com/ios-tuner.php
also note that quoted below from this thread, is a new instruction, the old instruction from when I built at the end of September was "to a low note" and it would be useful to have this clarified by Prusa
Both parts were further reinforced to provide more strength and avoid cracking during the build. While tensioning the belt on the Y-axis keep in mind that the belt shouldn't be stretched like a string on a music instrument, as the motor won't be able to move the Y-carriage.
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
...Could you offer a belt tension specifically for each belt that is kg pull and mm deflected...
Hi Eric, great suggestion and I'm collecting ideas about achieving the proper tension for couple of months. However, I would like to achieve this using bundled parts/tools. Giving exact weight and deflection might be a solution for some users, but I need to verify it is applicable to all printers leaving our factory (e.g. the belt properties are the same over time).
Both parts were further reinforced to provide more strength and avoid cracking during the build. While tensioning the belt on the Y-axis keep in mind that the belt shouldn't be stretched like a string on a music instrument, as the motor won't be able to move the Y-carriage.
Hi Randoplh,
this issue was addressed in the MK3 assembly from the very beginning. Several steps are dedicated to the belt assembly, alignment and optimal tension. Both over and under-tension situations are explained, I specifically pointed out, that you can damage the printer, but still some users managed to crack the printed parts. I don't blame them and we are constantly working on improvements to avoid situations like these. Strengthening parts is one way to go.
I will try your app, but first I need to ask Joe for a new iPhone 😀
/ Knowledge Base
The guy behind Prusa assembly manuals...
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
I would like to buy the new B7/R3 and improvements but have tried to find where to order them? Please point me to them please. Gene
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
E-shop page has them. You may need to sign in.
Neal
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
I will try your app, but first I need to ask Joe for a new iPhone 😀
There is an android version of the APP Jakub, 😀 so the instructions to tighten the belts "to a Low tone" is no longer used?... my use of low 'A' at 220 cycles was based on that instruction and the belt tension report for both belts is smack dab in the middle of the desired range for both of them :geek: I just do better with quantifiable instructions hence my use of a torque driver to tension all the bed screws to that same 10 inch pounds which is 1.13 Newton Meters (N·m) I had to guess at that based on the fasteners size and made out of SS and I would have much preferred to have had a hard torque number from Prusa for all the fasteners in Newton Meters (N·m) is fine I can convert to the inch pounds my tool uses... but I guess you don't want folks with limited tool boxes to think they need to buy a bunch of stuff to assemble a printer and it can be done with the tools you provide but tightening nuts with a needle nose pliers well it offends all the mechanics and engineers in my family tree 😉
I was curious about this print and when I made it and tested it it was spot on at 1 Newton Meter (N·m) It seems to be intended for installing e3d nozzles
so folks can print their own torque driver 🙂
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
Is the "Low A" for the shorter length of belt (from extruder to idler) or the long length (from idler to gear). I assume the short length.
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
I would like to buy the new B7/R3 and improvements but have tried to find where to order them? Please point me to them please. Gene
Hi Gene,
the links are in the first post, don't forget to be signed in:
https://shop.prusa3d.com/en/mk3-printer-parts/710-extruder-upgrade-blk.html
https://shop.prusa3d.com/en/mk3-printer-parts/709-extruder-upgrade-org.html
/ Knowledge Base
The guy behind Prusa assembly manuals...
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
...so the instructions to tighten the belts "to a Low tone" is no longer used?...
To my knowledge there wasn't any recommendation to the belt tension based on the frequency. I think the biggest issue is the measurement device (your phone), which isn't calibrated. I asked our devs yesterday and they couldn't achieve consistent results. This doesn't mean we gave up, just looking for another option.
/ Knowledge Base
The guy behind Prusa assembly manuals...
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
...so the instructions to tighten the belts "to a Low tone" is no longer used?...
To my knowledge there wasn't any recommendation to the belt tension based on the frequency. I think the biggest issue is the measurement device (your phone), which isn't calibrated. I asked our devs yesterday and they couldn't achieve consistent results. This doesn't mean we gave up, just looking for another option.
There was no frequency mentioned just the" low tone" which I arbitrarily assigned to A2 or 220 cycles the phrase Was somewhere in the Prusa Documentation or assembly instructions though I don't recall where. it did work for me though I did have to find a very quiet spot to reduce the background noise that the phone picked up. I also did the initial adjustment by using the tuning fork option to give me a clear note which I would then vocalize as I adjusted the belts to match... I then checked with the frequency display to tweak it up or down a touch so they were a close match.
it worked for me and I guess time will tell me if it is too tight.
cheers
r
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
hey, are they sending out the hot ends with TPFE tube clips yet?
I WAS waiting for my MMU to put a clip in BUT tube came loose again. just an idea to make it easier for noobs (myself included)
it has only came loose twice. in 3 months or so
I have a Prusa,therefore I research.
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
Chris just print some
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1548181
this one is marked for the lite but there is not a lot of spare room in the extruder housing and this one does fit... print 6 or 7 as they are easy to fumble and drop and run and hide under furniture.
Re: New printed parts B7/R3 and other improvements for the MK3
yes I did print some, just wondering if they were going to start including them with the kit.
I have a Prusa,therefore I research.