Cheap de-airing clay extruder

thingiverse

The extruder was designed for Gaia Multitool clay 3d printer but after small modification, it can fit every 3d printer. The approximate price of components is <b>about 30$.</b> Due to auger proportions, any <b>clay air bubbles are removed</b> and do not affect the print quality. Extruder uses original English PMA supatube nozzles used for decorating cookies. Tested with 00, 0, 1, 1.5, 2, 3, 4 nozzles. They are worth their price. I also tested other brands but original PME was the best while cheap Chinese was the worst. Other brand nozzles have a little different size, so using them <b>down_part</b> should be redesigned a little. <b>Principle of operation</b> Due to the applied pressure, clay from the cartridge enters the throat of the extruder. There, it moves towards the nozzle by means of a screw driven by a stepper motor. At the same time, as a result of a properly designed screw, air bubbles come out of the extruder housing from the motor side. The shape and pitch of the screw have been designed to ensure proper homogenization of the clay. This is necessary to prevent clogging of the nozzle. <b>List of components:</b> 1. 1 piece 8-5 mm shaft coupler. 2. 1 piece Nema17 stepper motor (mine is 12V/0.4A) depends on your printer driver. 3. 1 piece 20x40x40mm 12V fan (voltage depends on used stepper motor) 4. 1 piece 10x40x40mm radiator 5. 1 piece RJ45 connector 6. 1 piece Nema17 damper 7. 2 pcs 1A Graetz bridge 8. 4 pcs metric M3x70mm screws 9. 4 pcs metric M3x8mm screws 10. 5 pcs metric M5x18mm screws 11. 12 pcs metric M3 polyamide washers 12. PME Seamless Stainless Steel Supatube Writer Piping Nozzle (diameter as needed) 13. 4 cm of PTFE 10/12 tube has been placed in the extruder housing throat. 14. 2 small 1A Graetz bridges are used for a powering fan when the stepper motor is powered. 15. 8 bicycle spokes with nuts are used to prevent slipping of popular 310 ml cartridge. Normal working pressure is 2-4 bar. <b>Do not exceed 7 bar!</b> 16. 1 piece 5x0.3x240mm stainless steel drinking tube with metric M4x50 screw and a piece of string to support the cartridge. 17. 1 piece 250mm cable tie for fastening suspension_block to extruder_housing. 18. 1 piece 1/4" threaded pneumatic connection. 19. 310 ml usual, commonly available cartridge as for silicone. <b>Soon I will write here more.</b>