Information

Alternative UM2 Feeder - version two

By IRobertI

at 2024-05-02

Hopefully this will help clear some things up.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cNUdXXx-1gUpdate 2015-02-19: Added a new body with a cutout to use the grommet from the "new" feeders instead of a piece of bowden.Update 2014-11-15: Uploaded length variations for the yoke, 35-40mm. I also added a zip with another version that has an included spacer for M16 screws so that you don't need to use washers. Six lengths included in the zip. Update 2014-09-14: I updated the yoke a bit and made it longer as I noticed it was too short for NinjaFlex for me.Update 2014-07-29: I've re-designed parts of the feeder to get rid of a few parts that were causing people problems and also to strengthen it slightly.Right, here's my second (public) attempt at a new feeder design for the UM2. My goals were:- Able to release the filament for quick and easy change between filaments.- Re-use original parts from the old feeder.- Try to minimize friction- Supply additional guidance for flexible filaments (untested at this point and optional to install).I've been printing with this design for about 20 hours now without any issues. That's not a guarantee that you wont have issues, no guarantees here.Instructions:All parts should be printed in the orientation that I've supplied them in. You should not use any support, all the support is built into the files and should be fairly easy to remove after printing. I would recommend a decent amount of infill for strength, I've used 20% so far. I've used 0.08mm or 0.1mm layer height and printed it fairly slow at 40mm/s.On the arm there's a hole for a nut. If it's tight, you can force it into place by inserting a screw from the other side and screw it tight. If it's annoyingly loose and wont stay in place once you're trying to secure the spring just use a dab of glue. I managed to get it done with a nut that was floating completely free in there though, your patience may vary ;)On the back of the case, at the entrance you'll find a cutout where you should insert a short piece of bowden tube (you can cut off a small section from your own tube, it will not hurt anything). Force it in with a screwdriver or whatever and it'll snap into place.You may find that the knurled sleeve isn't centered well with the bearing. Loosen the set screw that holds it in place and slide it in a few millimeters if needed.

Technical

The parts from the old feeder plus one 30mm M3 and one 14(ish)mm M3 (I shimmed mine with a few washers to get the right length). A very small section of the existing bowden tube for the entrance to the feeder (optional but recommended).

Comments

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Peter Bohn

over 1 year

thank you very much :-)

IRobertI

over 1 year

@peter-bohn Sorry about that. Youtube made all unlisted videos before 2017 private for some security reason. It should be viewable for you now.

Peter Bohn

over 1 year

I can't watch the video. Youtube says it's private?

basdrumt

over 3 years

Hi Nathan, that spring is not sold separately as a spare part. However I am sure we have them lying around on the "scrap heap", so if you send me your address in a personal message, I would be happy to put one in an envelope and send it to you. Kind regards, Bas

Nathan Benfield

over 3 years

Where can a get a replacement spring for the feeder assembly of my UM2?

Novyspec

over 4 years

Thank you !!!!! Make Ultimaker 2 Extended Works Great Again ! I did print your alternate feeder tonight and I now enjoy the sound of printing :-) ... Two small comments : I had to find a new spring as the one of the original feeder did not work. I had also to printed a few yokes before finding the right size. But that said, it's a great design and idea. The manual clutch will also be helpful to switch with 1.75mm filament for my UM2. Thank you !!!

lgalindo

over 7 years

what is the "Feeder Step" zipfile added on february with .STEP files?

GornNR

over 7 years

Several ways to fix the direction issue. Easy way is to just mirror the body and reprint so that you are using the opposite side of the drive. One side goes up, the other goes down. You can change your firmware to Tinkergnome. There is an option in Tinkergnome for drive direction. Or you can always make a cable that goes inline with your stepper and reverses the wires to drive the stepper in reverse.

IRobertI

over 7 years

My guess is that you have an Ultimaker 2+. This was designed for the older Ultimaker 2 and shouldn't be used with the 2+. Either that or you've mistakenly installed the wrong firmware.

Jackie Schachtner

over 7 years

I have installed this on my printer but the motor has reversed direction so the filament is no longer going to the correct direction. Do you have any suggestions?

IRobertI

almost 8 years

If you have a gear on your motor shaft, you have an UM2+. This feeder is designed for the UM2.

Joanne Werner

almost 8 years

Can anyone tell me how to get the plastic gear-like piece off the motor so I can put the textured metal piece on? Or am I way off with how I think this must be installed?

Zwakie

about 8 years

After having printing one for my UM3 after having feeder-issues with PolyFlex, it stroke me that this feeder might not be suitable to fit on a UM3, so hence my question: can I put this on a UM3 without any modifications, and can I expect trouble from doing so?

James Young

about 8 years

Thanks for designing, though the grommet version is too weak where the new gap is. Printed three now with ever increasing strength settings but the bottom 'nut hole' snaps off every time with standard PLA, even with plenty of walls and fill. :(

Jiddy

over 8 years

Hey Robert! I love this feeder and we recently got an SLA printer. I don't suppose you have a support-free version? The supports don't come off quite so easily with an SLA part, but I suspect the resin print will stand the test of time more than my first PLA version!

chris Chamberlain

over 8 years

I did, for some reason it appears that filament is pushing against the bottom of the bowden tube and rhen causing it to push out. I replaced the bowden tube today and its still happening along with under extrusion.

pmdude

over 8 years

Did you put the white bowden grip and the blue bowden clip to keep it in place? Both pieces are part of the original feeder

chris Chamberlain

over 8 years

I just printed and installed this yesterday and for some reason my bowden tube keeps poping out of the feeder? Did I install something wrong?

pmdude

over 8 years

The bearing already part of the feeder

Marius Ioana

over 8 years

what type of bearing is used? thank you

Chase Cobb

over 8 years

Ah, I somehow missed that. Ended up taking the metal ring from the bottom of the stock feeder and putting it in Roberts feeder. Works like a charm; no more noise!

pmdude

over 8 years

Did you place the piece of bowden tube at the bottom of the feeder? Read the instructions and look at the video around 23-24 seconds

Chase Cobb

over 8 years

Printed this on my UM2Go and have been using it for a couple days. I printed and tested all of the different yokes and settled on the 38mm. I'm having an issue where I get random squeaky noises from the feeder, almost like a creaking sound, but not always. Is this normal or is it indicative of a less than optimized spring tension? I am also using the snap on guide.

Sarch

over 8 years

Does anyone know what size the bearing is that goes on the left hand side?

paul910

over 8 years

Which should I use between these Feeder V6 Yoke? I'm editing to use filaments from 1,75mm

pmdude

over 8 years

start with the normal one. Feeder V6 Yoke And Hub

Lrobar

over 8 years

Awesome design but the different yoke sizes are throwing me for a loop. What would be the recommended one to use?

pmdude

over 8 years

Depends. If you usually print with PLA then print this piece with PLA. Over time you will have some material from the feeder get in the tube so if you printed it in ABS it might clog the nozzle because your printing to low to melt it.

bruce2585

over 8 years

Quick Question. What is the recommended material to use when making/printing this feeder? PLA? ABS?

Alessandro Romagnoli

over 8 years

Hello ! :-) You could say to cushion size ?? D. D. internal and external width! Thank you ! Alex Elvis3D

Gediminas

almost 9 years

Hi, what software you used to design it? Looks good!

GeorgB

almost 9 years

Thanks - that makes sense! I have added it to the body, so far it works as well. Thanks to !Robert!.

pmdude

almost 9 years

its optional. Its not needed except with flexible filament. Its easy to snap on when needed.

GeorgB

almost 9 years

have printed it, looks very good - The idea of the "snap on guide" is not clear for me. Why did you not integrate the guide into feeder body? If it would be integrated, you can see the filament and notice if the feeder grinds into the filament. Maybe I missed a point ?!

antonverburg

almost 9 years

Use this mod if you want to use this nice extruder with flexible material printing (like ninjaflex): https://www.youmagine.com/designs/ultimaker-2-straight-tube-flexible-filament-spool-holder

christiank79

almost 9 years

I recently updated Ultimaker 2, an extruder with Olsson block with different nozzles, but the feeder that I have installed this alternative UM2 Feeder - version two of IRobertI does not charge a PLA filament.The motor filament motor is idling.What can I do? I have to change with new feeder? Thank you very much.

IRobertI

about 9 years

I wanted that too, but things had to be made way too thin and flimsy to do it because of the edge of the wall sticking out.

3DAmsterdam

about 9 years

One wish i still have is to turn the construction so the handle and the tension-nut is easier to operate.

fds69

about 9 years

Very nice, i cannot believe ultimaker design their feeder that way, this is what i need. I cannot believe ultimaker 2 plus did not copy this, why? they copy olsson block, why not this? they expect us to unscrew and tickle with the stepper motor everytime we have problem with feeding and need to clean it. Everybody should change their ultimaker 2 with this and olsson block. You just need to buy one 40-50mm and 15mm M3 screws and M3 nut from the hardware store.

reibuehl

about 9 years

I tried that one before and did have issues with it. I couldn't get the bowden tube piece sit correctly and it caused me some grinding because of that. I have one version with grommet which works fine but now I need a second one but seemed to be unable to print a reliable one anymore.

IRobertI

about 9 years

Use "Feeder V6 Body" instead and insert a piece of bowden tube instead of the grommet. That version is better IMHO and will be a lot stronger in that area so you shouldn't have any problems with breakage at that point.

reibuehl

about 9 years

I have a lot of problems with the body with grommet. It breaks at the "bridge" where the grommet is inserted. This happens often already when removing the support structure in the screw hole next to it and even before inserting the grommet. I tried ABS and PLA with varying infill values. Would it be possible for you to upload a version that is a little bit stronger in that area?

WayTooManyHobbies

about 9 years

Happened to me, also. One of the upgrades I added was https://www.youmagine.com/designs/um2-iroberti-s-feeder-v6-yoke-and-hub-with-guide, which completely solved the problem

lab

about 9 years

After several hours of succesfull prints the filament starts to slip inwards from the bearing... :-( Happened after filament change. I am using the low friction spoolholder as well. Any ideas whats going wrong would be highly appreceated!

WayTooManyHobbies

about 9 years

I have been using this alternate feeder (extruder), with a couple of minor upgrades, for a couple of months now, and it's brilliant. Kudos to @IRobertI - thanks for completely solving my underextrusion issues!

Jacob De Necochea

about 9 years

You just solved my filament grinding problem. I have been struggling with this for months. Thank you so much!

weirdy

about 9 years

I have a UM2 GO. Would I need to print this mirror image for it to work correctly? The feed on the UM2 GO is on the other side of the chasis. Really looking forward to trying this!

mobileoverlord

about 9 years

is it okay to print these parts in PLA?

jeex

about 9 years

Works great. Thanks Robert. On a UM2 i use the 38mm yoke-n-hub as suggested by Robert. The original feeder's bearing is fastened with a 10mm piece of filament, that fits tight in the hub and yoke - no use for a bolt there. The yoke itself is fastened with a 40mm x 3mm bolt and some rings to make it all fit That is in fact the only part you have to buy with this design: a 40mm x 3mm bolt and some rings.

jeex

about 9 years

Works great. Thanks Robert. On a UM2 i use the 38mm yoke-n-hub as suggested by Robert. The original feeder's bearing is fastened with a 10mm piece of filament, that fits tight in the hub and yoke - no use for a bolt there. The yoke itself is fastened with a 40mm x 3mm bolt and some rings to make it all fit That is in fact the only part you have to buy with this design: a 40mm x 3mm bolt and some rings.

xxx

about 9 years

Hi, sorry if my question sounds stupid ... but... why this feeder should be better than the original one? I've read that with this one you should solve under extrusion problems, how? Thank you for your attention :)

Anton Vedeshin

about 9 years

Hi Robert, is it possible to get step or cad file of the parts? need to make few modification for 1.75 bowden. Thanks!

christiank79

over 9 years

The left wheel touches the wheel to the right of motors.When I insert the filament does not pass between the two wheels, but slips out in the middle, see rectangle in colored in red.What should I do? See the picture: http://it.tinypic.com/r/2mebejp/8. Thank you.

Ross Fischer

over 9 years

Ah, got it. Thanks!

IRobertI

over 9 years

@Ross Fischer, people kept complaining that that piece was too short, or too long. So I made a bunch. Try the 38mm one.

Ross Fischer

over 9 years

Sorry for this dumb question... There are many "Yoke and Hub" pieces with different measurements in mm. Is that for different diameter bearings?

IRobertI

over 9 years

@christiank79: There's a youtube video showing how to assemble it and there's three pictures of the finished assembly. I don't know what more I can do... It's probably a better idea if you post a picture of your assembly instead.

christiank79

over 9 years

I don’t understand what should I do. I screw is to tight?The filament motor is running, but it doesn’t go in the Bowden tube. Do you send me an example video or pictures?Thank you very much.

mutrax

over 9 years

Christian, If the filament gets "eaten" (local indentation, wear) your screw is to tight. If i'ts to loose, it wil skid (because of the resistance bowden/hotend). Both will result in to slow movement. btw, I'm printing a year with this extruder and no problems here.... You just need to develop some "fingershpizengefhul" to tweak it.

christiank79

over 9 years

@pmdude I have problem with the screw holding the spring.Where I send a photo or video?

pmdude

over 9 years

Sorry but your comment is unclear. What is the problem? Do you have problem with the spring tension or do you have problem with the screw holding the spring or with the screw holding the bearing?

christiank79

over 9 years

Hello, I installed the new feeder, but the screw in the left with the spring.It’s well? I entered the filament but is slow.What can I do? Could you advise me how should I do? Thank you very much.

Kermit65

over 9 years

I had the same issues as described by freaksed. Often, the filament snapped with a loud bang when there was resistance in the bowden or nozzle. With the improved yoke, issue is now resolved.

freaksed

over 9 years

nice design, but i was having problems with the filament slipping out from between the bolt and bearing. so i modified the yoke to keep the filament centred. i'll add a remix for the yoke if anyone would like to try it out.<a href="https://www.youmagine.com/designs/improved-yoke-for-alternate-ultimaker-2-feeder" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">https://www.youmagine.com/designs/improved-yoke-for-alternate-ultimaker-2-feeder</a>

Kermit65

over 9 years

I love it: The issues my UM2 had are gone. Thank you, Robert.

microdev

over 9 years

I had a tough time at first, using the stock yoke.  I found the 38mm to be about right with my particular UM2.  ABS filament worked fine, but my PLA tended to grind unless I used a slightly shorter arm.  The spring I have is very stiff and I used the 30mm screw barely threaded into the nut.  A 35mm screw would have been too long.The only con I can name, is that the sprint tension screw is difficult to reach with a spool installed and doesn't cause as much friction change as the stock feeder.  Other than that, it works well and is much more convenient to load the filament with.  I still choose 'change media' but don't actually allow the UM2 to back out the filament, I just pull it out once the nozzle is heated.  However, I do allow the UM2 to load the filament.  When I just pushed the filament through the Bowden tube, it seemed to grind the filament before anything actually extruded.Overall, I like the design and very much appreciate all the effort that went into it.  I can't yet say if it has improved print quality, but it certainly enhances the filament loading operation.  Once dialed in, it also seems to be more gentle on the filament itself.Thanks for this mod!

crazybirzzz

over 9 years

It is the bearing glued? I can't removed... I'm pulling damn hard with some pliers but still there...

syl39

over 9 years

hello I use your fedeer for over a year, and I brought a small improvement to help guide the ninjaflex filament, which after many attempts out of his trajectoir (bearing and gear) of course this will not bother you cordially

didierkl

over 9 years

If you guys are interested i made a small tutorial to change the feeder, you can find it here: <a href="http://www.ideato3d.be/actualites/change-de-feeder-of-the-ultimaker-2/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.ideato3d.be/actualites/change-de-feeder-of-the-ultimaker-2/</a> or in french here <a href="http://www.ideato3d.be/actualites/changer-le-feeder-de-lultimaker-2/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.ideato3d.be/actualites/changer-le-feeder-de-lultimaker-2/</a>

rkatz

over 9 years

It does take a while to find out which yoke & hub do the trick. The biggest and smallest didn't work so now i'm printing 36, 37 & 38. Gotta be one of those since the largest was waaaay off.

ruedis

almost 10 years

Hey Robert. Extremely good work. Thanks.

ER

almost 10 years

Hi Guys! I'm new to all this so sorry for my questions. Would like to ask what are the setting you set for you shell and bottom thickness? Do I use raft for my platform? So I need to get 2 additional M3 screw ( 30mm & 14mm ) Do I still need the washers?

diettelo

almost 10 years

Does this work with really 3mm filament?

science potato

almost 10 years

where are the 2 pieces that fit into the bearing?

Nicolinux

almost 10 years

Weird... I downloaded the .stl file archive on the 24.02.2015 at noon and the .zip file does not include the new body. I re-downloaded it just now and the new body is included.

IRobertI

almost 10 years

No.... the new file is there.

Nicolinux

almost 10 years

Hey Robert, I think you forgot to add the new body with the cutout to fit the metal grommet from the default feeder. I printed the actual body but can't fit the grommet.

CCW1984

almost 10 years

Actually I think you have pleased most everyone! Just takes a bit of work on our (the users) part getting it customized to our UM2! I think it has a lot to do with the strength of the spring that came with the original feeder, and perhaps what people print the feeder in (shrinkage). Also I didn't want to cut a piece off the bowden tube, so instead what I did was install some eyelets on the bottom holes, so far it's working great! Thanks again!

IRobertI

almost 10 years

It seems it is impossible for me to please everyone, that's why I've included a butt load of different lengths for people to try. There are at least two different spring versions out there to start with. As for loading the material. The whole point is to NOT let the printer do it for you... Open the arm and just feed in the material by hand, same when you want to remove the material. It's much faster and more convenient than waiting for the printer to do it. It also makes it easier to perform Atomics (I do it every time I change colour/filament).

Gregwar

almost 10 years

Looks like the default yoke require a M3x35? If so, the BOM section is not up-to-date EDIT: The 38mm yoke seems eventually good with the M3x30

Gregwar

almost 10 years

Just printed it, but with a M3x30 very loosen the pressure is really high, the bearing is touching the extruder gear..  It's impossible to put my filament in. Why?

Oceanic

almost 10 years

Hello, I have a peoblem with the inbulid support material on the arm. All support matieral is shown in cura, but not in the layer view and it will not be printed. Have anyone the same problem? Thanks Marcus

reibuehl

almost 10 years

I have printed the feeder but now face the problem that I can't reliably fix the bowden tube to the feeder. After a very short time, the bowden rube gets pulled out of the feeder. I used the same bowden coupler and clip as on the original feeder. How can I solve this? Do I need to drill the whole open some more?

IRobertI

almost 10 years

I've never used ABS for anything (too smelly and nasty for me). PLA has worked fine for me.

7dp333

almost 10 years

Does it matter if you use PLA or ABS?

3DMakeMe

almost 10 years

Robert, as a point of reference could you give your extruder steps value with your setup please ? Has anyone used it with an mk8 gear?

3DPrintman

almost 10 years

Hi guys, Modded Two Parts to the build if anyone's interested or have the same problems I had, The snap on guide was always too small for the body and coincidentally snapped, (no pun intended) anyway been printing these for a good few hours now and they've came up good. These two parts modded will ensure you don't have to use the snap on guide at all and your filament will never slide off the rotating pulley/bearing. (please note these have been modded for optimal printing with Ninjaflex & I haven't printed with PLA with it yet). I hope you enjoy and please leave feedback to what you think too. 38mm Yoke with filament guide support - <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/jtmxu3cnmhlq7zm/Modded%20for%20stability%20%20the%20feeder_v6_yokeAndHub_withM16Spacer_38mm.stl?dl=0">https://www.dropbox.com/s/jtmxu3cnmhlq7zm/Modded%20for%20stability%20%20the%20feeder_v6_yokeAndHub_w...</a> Feeder body with added filament guide (Use supports) - <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/n3basrj4uu8qwyy/modded%20body.stl?dl=0">https://www.dropbox.com/s/n3basrj4uu8qwyy/modded%20body.stl?dl=0</a> Pic of it installed: - <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://www.dropbox.com/s/1dj095si3kz0d4w/20150124_165432.jpg?dl=0">https://www.dropbox.com/s/1dj095si3kz0d4w/20150124_165432.jpg?dl=0</a>

IRobertI

almost 10 years

Salvaged from the original feeder, along with the spring and screws.

Tsagos

almost 10 years

you dont mention any bearing in the bill of materials. Where do I get from this bearing that you used?

IRobertI

almost 10 years

No, you don't need to change the firmware. Also, you don't need to use the change filament procedure on the printer, just open up the arm and rip the filament out and then shove the new filament in.

gcurry002

almost 10 years

Do I need a different firmware as this feeder is great, but I always have problems with change filament

3DMakeMe

about 10 years

Sorry about that. I definitely missed it !

IRobertI

about 10 years

Hi 3DMakeMe. I don't quite understand how so many people miss the thing about the bowden tube snippet. This feeder has had a slot for a piece of bowden since day one. It's mentioned in the instructions and it has a separate picture showing where to put it.

3DMakeMe

about 10 years

Hi Robert ! First off, i just want to tell that your feeder is the best i've used so far. So thanks a lot for this excellent job ! But i think it may be improved a bit more. I've used it a lot and i've noticed the same problem on the long run (for me of course). At the bottom of the feeder, as the filament is coming in with an angle there is a small friction. https://www.evernote.com/shard/s24/sh/bf8054f5-d769-4af2-814d-271c65257693/de7450e9356d6a0dae44a66bbfb52967/deep/0/Alternative-UM2V2-feeder-2.jpg With time the feeder is nibbled : https://www.evernote.com/shard/s24/sh/0378267e-814b-4958-83d6-e15519a03feb/feaee0aba83770081b19449c5f3249a0/deep/0/Alternative-UM2V2-feeder.jpg This cause the displacement of the filament axe and results in under extrusion for me. So i thought, maybe you could just add a version that could receive a small bit of teflon tube. This should slow the nibbling process a lot, making your feeder much more reliable on the long run. What do you think ?

KLucky_13

about 10 years

Hello, I just bought a UM2 in second hand yesterday with 260 print hours on it. I will be printing this thing as my first upgrade for it! What material is this item best printed in: ABS, PLA or XT?

mutrax

about 10 years

Been using it for two months, so great feeder!!! no more jams! Only requires a bit more help to go trough the upper hole when schanging filament. (maybe make the funnel part a bit bigger?

RolandMJ

about 10 years

Robert - thank you! The feeder is so much better - easy to use and to open and to clean... Thank you for the efforts and your design - I more and more can now fix all the little issues with our UM2!! :)

reibuehl

about 10 years

If I have both, ABS and PLA, which of the two is best suited for this feeder? Should I use 100% infill?

CCW1984

about 10 years

Ah, I was wondering about that. I just assumed it had printed that hole a bit too small on that side. Either way the diagram looks like it is using (and would work well with) a sex bolt, but the self-bolting side is a great idea, might want to put that in the information section though. Ran a 4hr print last night with no issues, 11hr one going right now and so far so good! Thanks for creating this!

IRobertI

about 10 years

It looks like you're using a nut, you don't need that. One of the holes in the yoke is smaller than the other. This hole goes towards the printer. From the front you put in any M3 bolt you have of the correct length (or use washers if it's too long) and then let it self tap into the smaller hole, stopping just before it exits out the other side.But if it works like you've set it up now there's no reason to change it.

CCW1984

about 10 years

Sorry, the yoke bolt is what I meant, that was the 14mm bolt for me, the 30mm goes through the spring correct?<a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://i.imgur.com/uwcIFBp.jpg">http://i.imgur.com/uwcIFBp.jpg</a> What I have in the way of bolts are these: <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://i.imgur.com/T37ATg0.jpg">http://i.imgur.com/T37ATg0.jpg</a>It's on there and humming away just fine now. <a target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="http://i.imgur.com/B2Kyj1O.jpg">http://i.imgur.com/B2Kyj1O.jpg</a> Apparently those bolts aren't carried at any of my local stores either.

IRobertI

about 10 years

Hmm... not sure I understand you correctly. It already says in the BOM that you need a 14(ish)mm bolt. I've also recently supplied a different design of the arm that comes with a built in standoff for a 16mm bolt.You shouldn't need to shim the body out. Did you put the bolt in the wrong way? Check the pictures, it goes in from the front and self taps into the arm.

CCW1984

about 10 years

You might want to mention in the BOM that it's a 14(ish)mm M3 sex bolt. I didn't realize it at first and when attaching the arm (after screwing the body to the back of course) I noticed the nut holding the bearing was rubbing up against the case and had to shim the body out a bit.

gbevin

about 10 years

Thanks a lot for this, it works great. I'd like to have one improvement though. The right side of the body could include a higher section with some sort of a hook. The electrical cables on the back could then easily be stashed behind there and stay clear of they whole mechanism without having to attach them to the rear wall of the UM2. Would it be possible to add such an enhancement?

Shurik

about 10 years

OK, printed and installed. Robert - you are the best! In my case, 38mm yoke did the trick. It works for a few day now, very convenient and nice. I'm still unable to pass 5-6mm3/s mark, but that would be a different story. Applauds for the design!

pmdude

about 10 years

it might be too tight. try to have the spring at a length of 13mm or so. I guess that will vary based on the yoke lenght

Ilsu

about 10 years

Any ideas why I started to get under extruded parts immediately after I installed this feeder? I can't tighten the screw much more.

Avitech

about 10 years

Robert thank you, that's great. I can finally use the Filaflex.

reibuehl

about 10 years

Ok, thanks!

IRobertI

about 10 years

It goes inside the bearing.

reibuehl

about 10 years

I would like to use this feeder, but I couldn't figure out where the little ring from the yokeandhub.stl is mounted. Is there another picture that shows this?

IRobertI

about 10 years

Ok, the new files are now uploaded, finally heh.

athornski

about 10 years

I was having trouble with comments last week too! I ended up giving up on it. But I did re-design the yoke to be about 2mm shorter and it works great! Thanks for the help! The additional guides are an interesting thought, if another redesign is necessary I will look into it!

pmdude

about 10 years

It's one of those days :/

IRobertI

about 10 years

Oh, I didn't, neither section works... (had to reload the page twice to post his btw. For whatever reason, the "Create comment" button was disabled. Wow, just wow.)

pmdude

about 10 years

Hahaha. Yes dont confuse the image upload and the document upload section... Why does it have to be so complicated...

IRobertI

about 10 years

Are you kidding me Youmagine? Are you actually sending me a notification of a new comment that I, the author of the bloody post, just made!?

IRobertI

about 10 years

Well, I was proud of myself for remembering to create and upload new lengths of the yoke. Sadly, Youmagine is dead set on pissing me off. I've spent a good 15 minutes trying to upload the files using three different browsers and it's not letting me. I think my patience with this site has just about run out at this point.

pmdude

about 10 years

This is what I have in mind: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0Byhp9wWpyMGWQzRkNnRWVVZWOG8/view?usp=sharing

IRobertI

about 10 years

Hey dudes, I'm stuck at a fair this whole week so I don't have easy access to all my stuff. I'll see if I can manage to remember putting up a shorter version when I get back. As for additional guides for the filament on the actual arm. It would make it difficult to use the snap on guide properly. Unless I'm missing something. Who knew talking to people non stop all day would make you so tired...

pmdude

about 10 years

I had that issue too after a while with v4 and this is why I'm saying their should be guides on the arm itself in addition to the optional filament guide.

athornski

about 10 years

pmdude, I am using the filament guide but there is so much pressure on the filament it pushes the ninjaflex material out of alignment behind the knurled portion of the motor so it doesn't feed at all.

pmdude

about 10 years

Why not adding filament guide to the arm so it stay restrained within the bearing thickness?

athornski

about 10 years

Let me know how that works Shurik. I just modeled up a few shorter yokes, -2 mm -3 mm and -4 mm. Hopefully one of them will work and I wont need to mess with it anymore! Now I wait for printing!

Shurik

about 10 years

athornski - no, I didn't. As it printed out for me, the bearing comes in contact with the motor way before the latch can be closed, and this even without the filament. The spring is very strong, it takes considerable effort to squeeze it by hand. Waiting for a longer screw and some washers to arrive via ebay. Will try once more then.

athornski

about 10 years

Shurik did you ever figure out the spring tension issue? Robert I would also appreciate the shorter version, I looked for a longer screw but 30mm was the longest our local store had. I'm trying to print the ninjaflex filament but there is so much tension on the motor it keeps displacing the filament and stops feeding it altogether. Help appreciated!

Jenzbob

about 10 years

Just printing out my first item with ninjaflex and it's working a treat :) Thanks for the feeder file and the work you've done on the settings...both extremely useful :)

CaseyScalf

about 10 years

Thanks PM Dude.

pmdude

about 10 years

Post a request on the UM forum. There is a section for that I believe.

CaseyScalf

about 10 years

I live in Washington State

pmdude

about 10 years

Where do you live? The closest person would ship easier

CaseyScalf

about 10 years

Hello, Would anyone be willing to print one and ship it to me? Mine is broken and I don't have any other way to make this. I would obviously be willing to pay. Thanks

pmdude

over 10 years

I had V4 and the arm was shorter. The tension is mostly the same with V6. If you feel the tension is frightening maybe you did something wrong (too much tension or the screw you are using is not long enough). Make sure it looks like the picture above once assembled. BTW the 13 mm I mentioned above is once locked in position so it might be more than that before being loaded.

Shurik

over 10 years

Wow, that was quick! Many thanks guys! OK, will try to re-mount. However, the pressure expected on the feeder motor's shaft is frightening. The spring is really tight, it takes a real effort to squeeze it even by a tiny bit. Robert - can you add perhaps the previous shorter verion of the yoke? BTW, all the details printed perfectly fine, you did a fantastic job on this design. My appreciations.

IRobertI

over 10 years

First people think it's too short, then it's too long. I can't please everyone that's clear :P But like pmdude says, yes, it will touch the motor first, but since it's spring loaded you keep pushing so that the spring compresses enough that the arm can be latched.

pmdude

over 10 years

Maybe the sprint is too tight. try keeping the sprint at a length around 13 mm. Also its normal that the bearing touch. Push the arm against the filament and lower the latch manually if gravity is not enough.

Shurik

over 10 years

Printed the feeder a few days ago. Yesterday finally tried to set it up. Most unfortunately, the yoke seems to be too long. I cannot even close the mechanism, as the bearing wheel touches the motor before the latch can snap in. What do I do wrong? The spring is already very tight, adding washers doesn't seem to be a good solution. Puzzled...

Fordy

over 10 years

Mine is shut away from my desk so i stop staring at it. I don't think mine is squeaky. just done two 11 hour prints, will check in a second.

pmdude

over 10 years

The feeder seems to start making more and more noise during long print. It printed all night and all day. Now retractions are causing squeaking noise. It seems like plastic and metal friction sounds. Aside from that it works perfectly even at high speed. Am I the only one with noisy feeder?<div> </div><div>Edit: I use V6 now which was printed a week ago. V4 was making noise too. It seems to be coming from the arm holding the bearing.</div><div> </div><div>Edit: The noise is mostly coming from friction between the feeder frame and the filament being pushed out and in during retraction. Different filament produce different noise (Ultimaker PLA vs Colorfabb PLA for instance).</div>

Fordy

over 10 years

Thanks IRobertI i was having a momentary lapse in common sense, i was attemptiong to go by the model in the picture! All fitted and the test print is underway! so far, it is amazing!!

IRobertI

over 10 years

The hubadapter (tiny little round thing) goes into the bearing and then it's simply secured in the yoke with a screw. I feel it should be fairly obvious.

Fordy

over 10 years

am i missing something, how is the bearing held in place??

Fordy

over 10 years

Brilliant, after lunch i'm going to attempt to do this!

pmdude

over 10 years

V6 is much easier to print and install compared to v4.

Fordy

over 10 years

That sounds a lot easier than how I imagined it!

pmdude

over 10 years

Read the edit above please. I found it pretty easy to change. Unscrew 3 of the 4 screws holding the motor, turn the feeder just a bit to free a hole and put one back in partially just to hold the motor without the feeder. That will help you to not need to hold the motor when putting the new one in place. Its not needed but it helps. Also, assemble the arm and bearing before attaching it on the frame to have more space to work.

Fordy

over 10 years

That's a shame. is the new feeder easy to fit? or a better question may be is the old feeder hard to remove?

pmdude

over 10 years

M4 alone wont work on the version 6 to hold the spring. The size of the hole is wider than v4 and pop the srew off with little tension. You'll need a bolt at the end of the screw to hold it and mine is really holding by a single thread since the bolt doesnt fit the hole planned for an M3.<div> </div><div>EDIT: correction I did not use a M4. I checked again and this is a 6/32 of 1 1/2 inch. So a 30mm M4 wont get far enough to insert a bolt.</div>

Fordy

over 10 years

pmdude, I went to e-bay and ordered a range for £1.5, we had some M4's at work but I thought it best to do what I was told (for once) Now I'm just worried about taking my feeder apart to fit this new one! Is there anything else that I need before i strip it down?

pmdude

over 10 years

Fordy, I had the same issue as you and used M4 screws instead. That was with v4. It took a while to get them to fit but at least I didn't need any bolt to hold the 30mm one. It was screwed directly into the printed piece and is holding up pretty good even after a few months. I'm printing V6 now. Hopefully the M4 will work again.

Fordy

over 10 years

Printed!Then realised that I don't have any M3x30mm Bolts! Sad times.

SpikeRS3

over 10 years

tnx IRobert, used standard high printsetting to print them. installed and doing a 30hour print now. No more "clicks" in the first printinghour. Seem to work xxtimes better than the original. Love the design and funktionality. greez from switzerland

aroth

over 10 years

Thanks, I managed to get it by wedging a knife under the edge and gently rocking it back and forth.  It came off a little at a time, and made little clicking noises with each increment.

IRobertI

over 10 years

The ball bearing is a 688-2RS. You can find all the parts here: https://github.com/Ultimaker/Ultimaker2 As for getting it off, I had no problems with that, it just sort of popped off without much force.

Ovidiu

over 10 years

Regarding the bearing, does anyone know what kind it is? I'd rather buy a separate one instead of extracting the one from the original feeder.

aroth

over 10 years

So with respect to scavenging the parts from the stock feeder system, how did you free the bearing (metal cylinder with the black plastic ring inside) from the white plastic arm? Brute force? I'm concerned that the plastic part will break if I put much more force on it in my efforts to remove the bearing.

IRobertI

over 10 years

SolidWorks

FiratDede

over 10 years

Which CAD program do you used my friend?

IRobertI

over 10 years

Boil up some water and submerge it to soften it up perhaps?

Dim3nsioneer

over 10 years

I wasn't paying attention to how the top hole looked before I inserted the Bowden clip and the tube. The result is that the Bowden tube is stuck there forever; it doesn't come out again; most probably because the clip is still squeezed when pushed down as much as possible...

GornNR

over 10 years

One suggestion is to rotate the bolt orientation in the Arm file (Points at Top and Bottom) and possibly increase the body. I had to reprint the Arm twice as the area where the Yoke slides on the Arm would get overly warm and warp slightly. Another suggestion to other users printing this is to buy a slightly lower tension spring than the stock compression spring. With the stock spring the filament is deformed, though this was happening with the stock feeder as well. Now with lower tension the screw can be adjusted to provide the required grip without causing so much bite as to deform and slightly oval the filament.

IRobertI

over 10 years

The spacers will be removed, I just haven't had time to sit down lately to get it done.

yzorg

over 10 years

simple, and good idea for flex filament with this click-on part. the spacers have been quite a challenge for printing. i probably need to drop the temp much more. i used the super-runny clear PLA. maybe get some inspiration from the hook-style-design from other feeder pressure levers. then you might be able to leave the spacers away.

OctopusMotor

over 10 years

I may try a revision in nylon as well.

Dany

over 10 years

yeah I finally snapped the main feeder body as well... (it was not 100% filled) Still these things put a lot of pressure on PLA/ABS... I was thinking that someone should machine one in billet aluminium, I would really buy that version and the snap on guide could have 2 small screws easy to remove... still would be 200% better than original feeder. (back to original feeder to reprint the replacement feeder again... this time will print some spare parts!

OctopusMotor

over 10 years

I like this design much better than the original feeder -- more open and easier to keep clean, adjust, replace the shaft, etc. I had some trouble with this design getting enough tension on the idler to feed without slipping (still slipped and did not get any knocking or grinding even at the tightest). Looking at the original feeder, the spring is applying pressure via a lever arm, which gave the idler bearing more pressure (and less linear motion). This design is linear so the same spring would need more compression / distance to apply the equivalent force. I tried using a stronger spring, but I snapped the feeder arm in half (ABS) -- right at the screw. (rotating the captive nut 30' would give it a tiny bit more strength, but it would need more than that for a stronger spring) I also had the snap-on-filament guide break on the top clip. I considered an alteration of using 3mm hex standoffs instead of 3mm screws -- the standoffs would screw into the motor and hold it in place, then the feeder body would screw into the standoffs. That way one could remove the feeder without having the motor drop out. It does push the feeder body away from the motor by a bit, but the motor shaft is plenty long enough.

IRobertI

over 10 years

Hmm, that's two people now that have had the latch break. Personally I've had mine sitting at tension for ages without problem. I guess I'll need to go in and beef things up a bit.

Dany

over 10 years

While at it print a couple latch, they keep breaking on me... (maybe too much tension?) and yes they are 100% solid... I guess I will alter a bit the design to re-enforce the area that produce the break before I print again. For now I hold it with a wood clamp.. works! :)

IRobertI

over 10 years

Nice to hear it's working well for you Didier. I don't have any scientifically tested tension to share, I tightened it until it felt about right (I guess I developed a feel for it with the old version of the UM1). On mine I have an inside distance of 13mm between the two washers.

didierkl

over 10 years

Hi Robert, Been printing with your feeder for a couple of weeks now, works great. The only issue i seem to have is with the screw that changes the tension of the spring. Do you know how much you have to turn the screw to have the best tension. Yesterday i had some grinded filament (some of the filament was squished so much it exceeded the 3mm that the bowden tube can tolerate).

SmartRail

over 10 years

I tried printing this yesterday but the supports in several of the parts have not printed! I ran the layer view with my original settings and the supports weren't there so I changed the Shell Thickness settings from 0.6 to 0.5, re-run the layer viewer in CURA and now the supports show-up. Just about to print again - fingers crossed I get everything right this time!

Dany

over 10 years

Wow! printed it and installed it. very pleased with that IRobertI thanks a million. I did not hade huge issues with my stock parts but I am now able to increase the speed even further.. still trying to find sweet spot on the tension screw as I feel that I have it set to bite a bit too much... time will tell. With the spool upgrade on ball bearing it all feels so smooth now that it makes me wonder why it was not created like that by the Ultimaker team.

Cyan

over 10 years

Great design, very neat :) I was surprised by how much abrasion there was of the black ABS when I was taking apart the stock feeder to harvest the bearing and spring, and the machine is nearly new - I've only printed about half a kg of PLA so far with it.

Lyonidas

over 10 years

thanks for the link ! robert

IRobertI

over 10 years

http://umforum.ultimaker.com/index.php?/topic/4393-ultimaker2-feeder-system-improvements-and-ideas/ It's towards the end of the thread. You'll also find a slightly modified version there.

IronGland

over 10 years

wow great looking little feeder! It's one of those designs that look so simple that you know hundred of hours went into it! Also it's tempting to try to work it onto my original or a reprap or something. Is there a post some where which we can follow this feeder's progress?

Lyonidas

over 10 years

Thank you robert for the instructions, I'll try to put this on the ultimaker 1 and see how is it going to be !

Bas_

almost 11 years

Looks good Robert!

Alternative UM2 Feeder - version two

By IRobertI

Alternative UM2 Feeder - version two

By IRobertI

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Alternative UM2 Feeder - version two

By IRobertI

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Alternative UM2 Feeder - version two

By IRobertI

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Alternative UM2 Feeder - version two

By IRobertI

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Alternative UM2 Feeder - version two

By IRobertI

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