"Frictionless" PLA spool holder for overhanging mod

thingiverse

I work in an environment where I can't babysit the 3D printers all the time. After fully upgrading our Replicator 2 with the extruder upgrades, glass build plate, and overhanging filament spool holder, I thought everything would be great, but we were still losing prints. The epiphany came when I was watching the printer in action and realized that the 3/8" threaded rod we were using as the support is -- get this -- threaded!! I watched as the filament slowly made its way to the extreme right of the holder, and then when the extruder head zipped back to the front left of the build plate, the sudden tension ripped the filament right out of the extruder. So, I devised this little upgrade. Instructions These instructions are assuming you're using 3/8" threaded rod and standard MakerBot PLA spools. If not, you'll need to make obvious adjustments. I'm including the .sldprt file so you can do just that. You'll need some nylon tube from McMaster-Carr (or wherever) that is 9/16" OD x 7/16" ID, a la http://www.mcmaster.com/#catalog/119/3596/=nxr4ou. Print two of these spool holders and install them as shown in the images. Put the nylon tube over the threaded rod. I needed about 15.75" of tube, your needs may vary. Enjoy frictionless printing! We've been getting wonderful parts with no losses whatsoever. The nylon tube thing also works fine with MatterHackers spools (no inserts required), but I've found that they're so tightly wound near the end of the spool that it messes with our printer.