What was your first build? [CONTEST] **CLOSED**

Here is my first build. It is a H gantry 3D printer that eventually led to the development of the CoreXY 3D printer published as the C-Bot.

 

My first CNC build utilizing c-beam! I also got to use the new XLarge gantry plates! I can't believe I almost bought an x-carve (that I had to assemble anyways!). Ripping through aluminum like a $100,000 Bridgeport. Can't wait to build my next large format 3D printer and laser engraver!

 

I'm not certain if mine actually qualifies as I've not finished the complete build yet, but I am in progress with my first build. (C-Beam Machine)

IMG_1854 by Paul Stoller posted May 24, 2016 at 8:14 PM

 

My large Ox kit from smw3d with Custom spindle mount reworked by Alex Lee from Eric Lein's awesome designs

 

Well, one of the first more technical builds must've been this:



I remember it quite well, because I got my first very own "personal computer" - a Commodore C128 D(!) - the same christmas. Me and my brother were so surprised that we had to overcome the shock by building our Lego sets first.

A few days ago I bought my latest Lego kit after about 25 years not touching Legos it felt amazing to put something like this together again. 484 pages manual, ~2800 pieces, ... I'm still discussing if I am still a child or if buying this on my own because I can makes me an adult. ;-)



In case this was about the first thing build with OpenBuild parts, that must be my Egg Painter Variant I built to get a feel of the parts. It's in a box right now, but I still want to change / improve some things before the next season.



The next build is hopefully going to be a 3D printer based on the C-Bot by @Carl Feniak (see above )

 

My first CNC Router. Still Building.

 

My very first printer was a plywood Printrbot. Before I actually got Brook Drum's floppy thing put together I substituted the plywood for 80/20 extrusions. Man that thing was noisy!! Then I saw a video of a quiet Ordbot and was sold on getting away from linear bearings. But I really didn't like the Makerslide extrusion, it was way oversized for a printer. I tried placing the Makerslide wheels down in the 80/20 slots but the wear on the wheel was excessive. I then placed a 1/4 inch bar half turned in the slot and ran the V-wheel groove on the upturned edge of the bar. That worked but was clumsy. While researching the Ordbot I realized that Bart Dring had probably gotten the idea from Mark Carew's OpenRail design. Which gave me direction for my next attempt, I milled 45 degree Vs on the edges of a 25x6mm bar and ran the Makerslide wheels on those Vs, using the 25x6mm without bolting it to an extrusion. That worked well, but I needed a metal plate to bolt the wheels to instead of a printed part. While googling for a Makerslide X mount plate I discovered that Mark had a new design - he'd out-thought me and Bart. And that was so obvious, that I didn't even get off the page before ordering some V-slot extrusions, wheels and a few mount plates. My first V-Slot printer was the BldrBot which I sold 10 of on Ebay in July 1014. But the Prusa 13 adaptation for the Z axis wasn't strong enough - so it was back to the drawing board....

 

I'm in the process of two "first builds" I count them both as firsts, as neither one is finished, and I'm building them at the same time

First one, at least, the one that was ordered first, is a C-Beam Machine kit that I'm leaving mostly stock. The only change will be increasing the gantry height by 50mm by changing the uprights to 300mm, versus the stock 250mm. Spindle is an 800W watercooled Chinese VFD spindle controlled by a Teco 110v VFD. Motion control is dealt with by an Arduino Uno and a CNC shield (DRV8825 drivers).

My second "first" build is my attempt at an LCD resin printer.



Still a work in progress, but it's sporting a 500mm C-Beam actuator, but won't have full travel due to how it's mounted. 300mm of travel should be doable, but even that will be a lot. Overall printing area will be the full size of the LCD (196mm x 147mm), which is a gen3/4 iPad retina display. This will give me 96 micron X/Y resolution, and hoping for ~10 micron resolution in the Z.

Still working on finding out how short of a wavelength of light that I can pass through the LCD without it being attenuated too much by the polarizer. If I can get below 430nm, I should be able to use commercially available UV resins instead of having to stick to daylight cure resins. Time will tell.

 

So you'll have to stick with me on this...

My application for OpenBuilds parts isn't traditional. I originally bought a C Channel linear actuator kit for something to play around with. I'm also a woodworker and I am constantly looking at ways that I can implement CNC technology into the world of woodworking. One of the most useful, but difficult to get accurate tools is a box joint jig. Basically it's a way to cut "teeth" into the end grain of two or more boards that interlock into each other. There are two major methods. Place a pin on a sliding jig that you place the previously cut groove over to index the next cut or move the board in a carriage using some kind of mechanism to control the distance of movement each time.

As machinists, you can imagine that being slightly off on anything would not only produce less that favorable cuts, but the error is amplified as you cut more down the board.

Enter the DigiBox. This is a controller device that I have been designing based on a PIC18F252 microcontroller to accurately move the carriage of one of these jigs using 16 TPI all thread and a stepper motor. The OpenBuilds NEMA23 motor was the right size and torque to get the job done. So while I didn't use the whole actuator for the project, I did use the OpenBuilds NEMA23 stepper motor.

Here are a couple of pictures of version 1 and version 2 of the controller.





I actually don't have any pictures of the jig setup, but I do have a video demonstrating it on my YouTube channel:

 

are first build it started out as a 1500x1500 then cut it down to a 1500x1000 then we cut it down 34x34 being in Ontario Canada its hard to get any parts..there are some but limited .. now were working on a new dlp

 

My first build with openbuild parts is my current build. Its a large format XY printer that I started designing in SketchUp. The key to the design amongst other parameters was to be able to use stock parts with little to no modification. Any modifications were either done in the design or through clever use of different sized parts ( spacers, plates, etc ).

All drives are lead screw, and the only thing that moves is the xy axis. The build plate which is not in yet,
is stationary. Cant have a large plate like that being shifted back and forth.

The power supply is meanwell 24v supply because as you can see moving the Y axis involves two motors, so those motors are wired in series to limit the amount of current I need. Wiring in series helps keep the motors in sync especially if one fails. The controller is dangling center bottom and is a Replicape board sitting on top of a beagleboard. It works well enough. Not fond of the software but we shall see.

Its not a clear pic, but at top the 4 lead screws for Z axis are linked by #25 chain around 25 tooth chain sprockets
to sync the movement. I was going to use 4 motors, but as usual I keep changing the design as I build. Ive
settled on a single high torque nema 23 to run along the chain. I may choose one with a planetary gear to either down size the motor( and current) and increase resolution.

 

Here is my build (Boricua Ox)



This was my first DIY project ever. I believe i graduate. The only change I made of the original build was using an acme 1/2"-10 rod in the Z axis.

 

Mad Max

First full on (no kit) build using a Trick Laser Max Metal frame, Trick Trucks, Max Metal Platform, CF arms, LED Light Ring, 3x BondTech QR Extruders, heated bed/glass from a Rostock Max v2 (which I never could get calibrated), Duet 0.85/Duex4, JohnSL FSR endstop controller, FSR mounts designed by ccavanaugh, and parts I designed myself in Fusion 360.

Mad Max is fast, accurate, and quiet.

The build is almost finished, but currently printing the last few (redesigned) parts...



The Rostock Max ended up becoming a really nice shotgun target (after salvaging the steppers for my next build).

 

My first build is this Beast. I call her Roberta Clementine named after the school i work for which is Roberto Clemente Charter School which in turn is named after Roberto Clemente the Puerto Rican Pittsburgh Pirates Player. She's a wolfstrap/prusa variant i cobbled together in my garage to teach myself. i'm building some aluminum versions for my school where i hope to start a robotics club. The children printers will be the Clementine Sisters Starting with Alphabetical names like hurricanes. the one currently under construction is names Alice Clementine and i'm trying to incorporate v-slot into my design.

 

I designed and built the Openbuilds extrusion retrofits for the Lulzbot Taz series of printers You can see them here:
Openbuilds v-slot X axis for Lulzbot TAZ 4 or 5 printers or the AO-10X ballscrew modification by piercet
Openbuilds v-slot Y axis for Lulzbot TAZ 3, 4 or 5 printers by piercet
Openbuilds v-slot z axis for Lulzbot Taz 4/5 Printers by piercet

You can see them in operation here if you like

 

This is my 1500 x 1000 x 350 cnc router. Has a ballscrew for the z axis and belts for x an y. Eventually going to upgrade to ballscrews on all axis and get a bigger spindle. I still need to finish the wiring by adding cable tracks and make a control box also.

 

My first build was a RepRap. Currently designing an OX based machine convertible between CNC and Laser, with both horizontal and vertical beds.

 

my first project was a Delta 3d printer! Since then I have made an eggbot and i'm currently getting ready to start a 1M x1.5M cnc router

 

My first build keeps morphing into other builds, a bit like Lego. I keep looking for that perfect combination of what I want from it all. Love the parts, the community is amazing, thanks to Mark and team.

What I have ended up with is the combination of parts for a C-Beam Plate Machine, to bits from the OX. I ended up with the creative name of OxMill, and it is a smaller machine that suits just what I am going to need it for. After buying other desktop machines, none of them can yet compare to what I can achieve with OpenBuilds. So I sent them all back.

Over the course of ordering all the parts from Mark, I have had the C-Beam machine fully assembled, torn apart and upgraded into a 3D printer (from MakerFarm which already has OB parts), I have made a sanding dust shield from the V-Slot, and have enough C-Beam to build a 4'x6' monster CNC. I am most happy with how the OxMill fits on my desk, leaves me room to work around it and keep all my clutter in just the right spots.

If it was not for this community of members, the team, the parts, I would not have had the ability to assemble what I have today. Thanks, enjoy the pictures, I will be uploading more soon. I have finished the design for my X/Y plate, right now it is just 3D printed so it is funny to see the flex in that PETG material while on the machine. Can't wait to finalize the part, mill it from proper aluminum and share it. (actually have two custom pieces I will be sharing).

Cheers all, enjoy!!

On a side-note all the spare parts make great toys for my twins (attended only, as I would not want them to lose anything).

 

I don't know if a project in progress counts, but I'm putting together a core-XY 3D printer (currently progress has been interrupted by needing to work on my house instead .



Vast amounts of details here: Core XY Project

 

MY FIRST BUILD​

In 1964, when I was in the eighth grade, I built a simple light-seeking robot. Looking back some fifty-two years it seems more remarkable now than it did then. While I was obsessed with learning electronics, I really didn’t know much.

It all started with a story in Popular Electronics. Every month there was a “Carl & Jerry” story about two young guys who built electronics gadgets and had adventures. John T. Frye started writing these stories in October of 1954, which I learned from an essay, An Appreciation by Jeff Duntemann. (Jeff has preserved all of these stories and offers them for sale on the same page. Thanks, Jeff.)

But I digress. That November in 1963 I read the story, The Lightning Bug. By this time Carl and Jerry were in college, studying electronics and dating. They built a robot, although they didn’t call it that, as a gag to scare some sorority pledges. The idea was this lighting bug would spring into action when it detected light from a flashlight in a dark barn, rolling toward the light making clicking noises and flashing a light on its tail. What happened was quite different, however. You’ll have to read the story to find out.

I liked the idea immediately. Simple and fun. So I committed to building something like it. I had a toy tank with dual motors which permitted it to steer by changing the speed of one track or the other. I knew I could buy some solar cells for sensing the light. All I needed was a couple of amplifiers to increase the signal from the solar cells to a level that could drive the motors.

But where could I get these amplifiers? I really didn’t know much about it then. What I did was pour over all my old issues of Popular Electronics to find circuits for simple amplifiers. There were lots of them to choose from so I picked the circuit with the fewest components. Doesn’t that seem like a reasonable idea? I did not even know Ohm’s Law yet, nor had I studied algebra yet or had the concept of amplifier gain.

I spent a month gathering the parts and fabricating what came to be known as Robbie’s Turtle. It used a six-volt carbon-zinc lantern battery for power. There were two heat-sinks for the two power transistors .. I knew they were supposed to be on heat sinks but not really why … all under a plastic dome from a Ronson Cigarette lighter display case.

No testing was done before the entire project was finished. Why would I test it? It would work, I was sure. Well, I turned out the light in my bedroom, flipped the switch to turn the turtle on and then pointed my lit flashlight at it.

Nothing. No movement. No sound. Nothing at all.

I was devastated, defeated, demoralized and depressed. I could not understand it. I didn’t know what to do. Finally, I went downstairs and, nearly in tears, told my dad that it didn’t work. Maybe I even stomped my foot.

Looking back now I realize how much common sense my Dad had. He didn’t know anything really about electronics but he was smart for sure. He gave me a suggestion that drilled right down to the core of the issue. How could I have missed something so simple and obvious?

He said, “Did you try a brighter light?” Wow. What genius. What insight. A. Brighter. Light.

I ran upstairs, took the lamp shade off of my bedside lamp and waved that bare light bulb (maybe sixty watts) close to the turtle and … nothing. But now I was on a roll. I went back downstairs into the closet and pulled out the big guns … my Dad’s four-bulb movie light-bar. My Dad saw me carry it by but didn’t say a thing.

Back in my room I plugged it in and turned it on … all four three hundred watt bulbs. The room lit up like noon on the summer equinox. Even behind it, the heat was palpable. But that mechanical turtle spun around toward me and came running.

By this time, my Mother and Father were standing in the doorway. I think they were proud. I know I was.

I still have it, ravaged by time, the plastic from the toy tank is so brittle, every time I pick it up some more bits fall off. Here're a couple of snaps I took of it today.

 

I have no idea how to post photos with this tool. Here are direct links.

RobRobot-2 - r39525's library
RobRobot-1 - r39525's library

 

Love this story Rob! I bet Popular Electronics would publish it.

 

Thanks, Keith. I appreciate the compliment. Unfortunately, Popular Electronics is no longer published. The Wikipedia article shows the cover of the January 1975 Popular Electronics magazine with the Altar 8800 on it. I was a junior in college and I still have my Altar too. That took me into a microprocessors frenzy. For the first half of my career, almost everything I designed had a microprocessor in it including my first design on my first job out of college, Embargo, an arcade video game.

 

My first Project. X-carve design mixed with scrap aluminum pieces. Still never complete though. Really want to make a 3d printer as well.

 

Hi.
My first build and I am still busy with my Voxel OX ;-) .... does it ever end?

This is what you get when you use V-Slot @ 50cm pre-cut.
The only thing I did cut was the x-axis V-slot( shortened by ~4cm).
The built area: 275 x ~310 x ~310
(with some slight modifications to the Y-axis idler& tension-er and the motor mount
There is still a little room ( up to 4cm) for increasing the "x" range.

The big print bed 305mm x305mm is on ;-)

I did not have a plan for how to mount a big built plate,
because at the time I did not now how big the built area was going to be!
....and I also forgot to order a piece of V-Slot for the carrier ;-)
....and shipping to my place takes at least 6 weeks!
So I had to find a way to print a carrier for a 305x305mm bed on my Wanhao I3 (200x200cm) printer. ...Turned out pretty much OK ...not sure if it will last forever.

...and I am still busy with the "cable mess-cover" and the cable routing ;-)

Best regards from Namibia ;-)
Jurgen