Just want to introduce myself

Welcome to the E14 community Martin.  Good to see you are getting into 3d printing.  If you ever have any questions don't hesitate to ask as there is some really knowledgeable people on here that will point you in the right direction.

Nate

Hello Nate, thank you for the reply ,and I do have questions about my 3d printer .

I have not finished it yet or even touched it in a month and need some motivation

. I did just buy 30 equal size small washers to shim the heat bed  , then install

the stop switches.

What's your question(s).  How do you have the heat bed mounted to the bushings?  Is it a aluminum plate with the heat bed attached to that if that's the case I would just use a nut with a spring on each connection so future leveling will be made easier.  As far as the endstops what kind are you using (mechanical, Opitcal, Hall)?  Also what electronics did you choose?

Nate

1st of all it is a gray pvc frame with a thin sheet of laser cut plywood springs washers and nut

already but because I have not got as far as running it yet I didn't know how tight the springs

should be or if they were a good idea or not. I am using mechanical endstops .

I have to run out to the post office I'll be back in a while. to give you more information so I can get this project finished.

this is my first printer so I took my time didn't want to damage anything costly.

Hello, Martin. Your springs should be able to support your build plate plus the printed material, so that your zero level does not change during the print run by sagging against under-supportive springs. Mechanical end-stops should get you going, although some people prefer contact-free using optical or hall-effect switches. This can be done later as a further refinement once you get your printer working in its initial configuration. Congratulations on making it so far into your build process and make sure to share photos when you have the chance!

Kirk

Kirk hit it right on the head.  I have used both mechanical and hall-effect in the past but seem to like the hall slightly better as the arms on the mechanical switches would start to bend over time and not give me the results I wanted.  This is really only noticeable in the z axis but have seem people take the arm off the switch and use a shaft on the carriage to push the switch down. Another tip I would recommend in mechanical switches is to wire them normally closed.  Here is a quick blog I did on this topic http://www.element14.com/community/blogs/NateC/2014/02/05/3d-printer-called-buzz-lightyear-part-2-mechanical-endstops

Nate

kirk and Nate thank you , I will get back to you asap with pictures of the heat bed and springs ,

also a picture of how my end stops are wired so you can tell me if they are wired the best way.ttyl

Look forward to the images.  Let us know if you have any more questions.

Nate

Look forward to the images.  Let us know if you have any more questions.

Nate

I am setting up my new JVC ADIXXION GC-XA2 CAM

I think I finally have it figured out.

I will need your help