Pirated CupCake
Release status: unknown
| Description | Makerbot Cupcake as RepStrap
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Contents
CupCakeStrap Basics:
Nothing is promised to apply to your material situation
The CupCakeStrap is the concept of using the Makerbot Cupcake design base as a bootstrapping platform for a RepRap.
Essentially, a very cheap printer which will print out RepRap parts and then donate its electronics, motors, and even metal hardware.
So, I bet you're asking "What's the attraction to building a Cupcake, with its smaller print area, high price, and odd naming?" Well, first off, it's the cutest of printing machines. Secondly, if it's not going to be purchased outright from Makerbot, it's really not very expensive at all. I'm not trying to say that the machines Makerbot sells are not excellent or are over priced, but the draw to make one from scratch is pretty strong.
The following is basic documentation, not in any real organized form. This is a to-do item :p
Improvisions Made for Low-Price
Acrylic Pulleys
To produce pulleys for zero cost, we found random belts from a scrapped printer (a BIG one, new printers use really small and useless belts) that looked similar to the ones used on the real CupCake, and then measured them. Using Inkscape, we performed a rotation of the tooth profile into a circle, and modified it to work with warping and stretching. Then we just lazzored them out of thin acrylic, and fused the layers together with an acrylic solvent. To attach to the motor, we used some random rubber things from the same printer, used to move paper. The rubber is a short tube, and very stiff. It was about 10mm in external diameter, and about the same as our motor's shaft in internal diameter. We insert the tube into the pulley, then press it onto the motor shaft. It's way, way stronger to hold in place than the motor can torque.
Cheap Linear Bearings
Rather than buy "real" linear bearings, we picked up some M8 Aluminum rod ($3 per meter) and some 8mm internal diameter brass tube (30cm for $4). With this, you get a sub-$10 brushing. We cut 6cm lengths of the brass tube and inserted them into a modified X stage (bearing holes reduced to diameter of brass rod). We made 3.5cm lengths for the Y stage, modified the same way.
Boring Stuff Below
CupCake Price Breakdown:
The makerbot's $750 base price is just for: laser-cut plywood and laser-cut plastic = $200 3 NEMA 17 stepper motors and one big gearmotor = $75 Nichrome wire, PTFE tube, and a milled barrel and nozzle ~ $30 The reprap-derived electronics for controlling it. = $200 Nuts, bolts, bearings, pulleys, metal rods and brushings and assorted metal parts, including some magnets ~ $250 1lb of ABS ~ $20 Belts = $??? M3 and M8 Allen keys = $??? You should note that those prices are what you would pay Makerbot for the individual items (as of march 31st), and do not properly represent their market value. It also totals more than $750.
The "deluxe" version adds $200 for the following: Some more laser cut plastic An ATX powersupply (like in a desktop computer) A USB to TTL cable to interface with it The cables that you need to connect the machine up it its own parts 5lbs more ABS Hex keys, wrenches, and some metal parts An SD card.
Now, that's a respectable list, and probably worth every penny to someone who does not already have any of those items. However, if you are in a position to use or borrow any of those things, the price becomes a lot less appetizing. Thus, it is a good idea to treat the machine as a RepStrap, and not worry about building an exact clone of the Master CupCake in whose likeness all other CupCakes are forged.
Related Projects
Text text text text New Example. Another Example text text text text text text text text.
Files and Parts
Downloads
Nothing here yet, sorry. Still working on that part.
- File:Uploaded files example.zip
- File:Even more example files.zip
- File:Example part.stl
- File:Other example part.stl
Parts
Not much to see here.
