Michael Gibilaro

I was very excited to have the chance to purchase a Makerfarm Prusa i3 3D printer kit. I wound up buying the unassembled version, since I really wanted to see how they are put together and have a decent understanding of how it works.

I started with assembling the frame of the printer. Here it is without any of the carriages or motor components installed.

Another view of the frame.

This is the x-motor assembly. It consists of a NEMA-17 stepper motor that pulls an x-carriage along two smooth rods. it also has two linear bearings that allow the assembly to move up and down on the z-axis, which is controlled by another stepper motor.

This is the x-carriage that the hot end will sit on. It moves back and forth by the use of a toothed belt attached to the x-motor.

This is the x -idler assembly that sits on the opposite side of the x-motor assembly. It also contains two linear bearings, along with a micro switch that acts as a end-stop for the x-carriage.

Picture of the assembled x-axis.

This is the assembled print bed that moves along the y-axis by way of three linear bearings and two smooth rods. Like the x-assembly, it is connected by a toothed belt that is linked to another stepper motor.

This is the LCD controller that had come with the printer. It allows for computer-free printing by way of SD card, which is a great option if your computer is prone to crashing randomly (like mine)

This is the y-idler assembly that sits at the front of the printer. There is a bearing that sits between two flanges that the belt loops around to allow for attachment to the print bed.

It works! After a few days I finally was able to put everything together, and fire it up for a test print. Even without any calibrations, it printed a pretty good quality name plate. My plan for the next few weeks is to really dial in the settings, and start prototyping some of my projects.