MakerBot Industries

Mysterious wood joint by h-kimura

H-kimura uploaded this “mysterious wood joint” noting, “This type of joint is used in a gate of OOSAKA castle in Japan.”  I love this design for being a modern version of an ancient design.  I also like it because I’m hoping that it will lead to more kinds of printable connectors beyond just spans and connectors.  TeamTeamUSA provided a comment to this thing with a link to a truly excellent resource describing some of additional ancient Japanese building methods.

Mysterious wood joint by h-kimura

This type of joint is used in a gate of OOSAKA castle in Japan. It seems to a puzzle. If you do not have 3D printers, please challenge to make a papercraft of this object which is uploaded by PDF file.

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Recently, I posted an introduction to partymode and uploaded my own sample partymode scripts to Thingiverse to kick things off.

Today, I want to share a few more details to help you play in the ReplicatorG-flavored G-Code sandbox. For those uncertain about the value of creating short movement bot scripts should remember that this is a great opportunity for you to learn just enough about G-code to tweak your prints and personalizing the start.gcode and end.gcode files in your skeinforge profiles for better, more efficient MakerBotting.

Also, why not add a bit of musical hijinx to your prints? Why doesn’t your bot play music after every print? Mine does.¹

I’m going to bribe you to improve your G-code fluency by introducing you to a stupidly simple trick you will want to use every time you skein a model.

MakerBot Operators grumble about navigating down through the ReplicatorG file structure to adjust the Start.gcode files for a Skeinforge profile. But do you know what happens if you don’t do this step? The nozzle drops down to 20mm-40mm above the platform and attempts to print in the air. Not so successfully, as it turns out.

Well, that little snipped of gcode you must change in your Start.gcode file appears again right near the top of the gcode that you generate when you slice a model. Here’s the chunk in question just a little ways down the G-code document I have just generated for an Octopus model I am super eager to print on my bot. Want to make an adjustment? You can punch up the code right in ReplicatorG without touching your Start.gcode document.

(**** begin homing ****)

G162 Z F500 (home Z axis maximum)

G161 X Y F2500 (home XY axes minimum)

G92 Z80 ( ---=== Set Z axis maximum ===---)

G92 X-57.5 Y-57 (set zero for X and Y)

(**** end homing ****)

“Hmmm,” you say. “So this is the Homing section. And Set Z axis maximum lists only 80mm for the height of my build envelope. You’d better change that to your bot’s printing height ( 120.3mm) and then save your file!”

Thank you, bot-friend! You have just shown me how to use ReplicatorG to tune and save g-code!² You can perform this trick right within ReplicatorG or open a plaintext editor and change the file there.

I suggest you take a look at this homing block every time you skein a new model to make sure that the correct value has propagated through. (Sometimes it helps to adjust your z-height by a 10th of a millimeter up or down — that first layer is ultra crucial when you aren’t printing a raft, especially on stepper-driven extruders.)

Do you want to know the handful of G-Code commands every Operator should recognize on sight! Learn more after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

1. Well, my Cupcake prints do. [↩]
2. Most G-code is practically as simple — thanks to lots and lots of commenting in Skeinforge and the user configurable Start.gcode and End.gcode. [↩]

Turret Chess Set by msruggles

I’m always happy to see more chess sets on Thingiverse!  As of a few days ago there are at least eight printable sets available for your perusal.  They can really showcase the ability of a 3D printer to produce reliably good results across a range of similar objects.  And, of course, you can play with them!  Msruggles’ set pictured above is a particularly elegant set – with pieces that almost evoke their legal moves in the manner of Laird’s set.¹

1. Turret Chess Set by msruggles

   

   Turret themed chess set for a board with ~1in squares. I'm working on making a chess board and due to certain constraints, I needed smaller than usual chess pieces (~1" base). Seeing how I was already going to be making them I figured I'd create my own design instead of just scaling someone else's. I purposely stayed away from too many details on the pieces because my printer and I are in a disagreement regarding calibration and I don't want to spend my all my free time cleaning up prints. I would love to see someone detail these out (wink wink nudge nudge).

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2. Bauhaus Model I 1922 Chess Set by Le_Garage

   

   TeamTeamUSA said : "Always wanted a Bauhaus chess set but couldn't afford one? Here ya go!" Inspired by Josef Hartwig's Model I chess set created in 1922 at Bauhaus Weimar. This set is at the ~original size, and need an big board to be played ! ^^ It was done as an Blender learning exercise based on MOMA picture and the globals dimensions they gave and we gess the others with proportions and eye. Exercise supervised by LeoM [ thingiverse.com/LeoM ] for Le_Garage.

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3. Chess set and board by celticfable

   

   This package contains the "creative commons" release of these designs (STL's and the original solidworks CAD) for a full-size Staunton-style chess set. Let's see some jazzy prints ffolkes! ps: Added DXF CAD for those of you without Solidworks... enjoy!

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4. Bauhaus Model II 1924 Chess Set by TeamTeamUSA

   

   Always wanted a Bauhaus chess set but couldn't afford one‽ Here ya go! Inspired by Josef Hartwig's Model II chess set created in 1924 at Bauhaus Weimar, this chess set is ~10mm smaller in all dimensions than the original. It plays nicely on a board with 40-50mm squares, perhaps this one: thingiverse.com/thing:4258. The STL files are based upon a 30mm King cube, the module from which all pieces are sized. The OpenSCAD files are parametric so you can create a version in almost any size! The current queen is still a work-in-progress but since this was featured on the blog even though un-published, blog.thingiverse.com/2011/01/04/bauhaus-chess-set/ (how did that happen??) Alan forced my hand. 2011-01-14 UPDATE Thumbnail photo changed to one containing 40mm and 25mm Queens. Added discussion of cost to have the chess set printed at Shapeways and Ponoko. Only germane if you don't have a 3D printer, or want it in a material other than thermoplastic.2011-01-12 UPDATE 25mm files uploaded; the 30mm size was too large for testing. Four versions of the queen are now included: one-piece, two-pieces, three-pieces. In the picture with the dog, the queen is based upon the proper 40mm king (the build-platform is 140mm). It has a nice heft and hand-feel but until all the kinks are worked out don't print at 40mm. The thumbnail picture is of a 25mm three-piece queen.

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5. Chess Set I by cbiffle on 2 sheets by beverageexpert

   

   Here is Chess Set I by cbiffle thingiverse.com/thing:703 that I have imported into sketchup and made into 2 sheets. So all you have to do is print 2 sheets in 2 colors and you have a chess set.

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6. chess play by Glo

   

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7. Laird's Chess Set by laird

   

   I have been wanting to make this chess set for years. Now that 3D printing is becoming affordable, perhaps I can actually make a physical set. Until then, I am uploading it for others to enjoy. The set is designed to be artistically interesting, but also to illustrate the moves of each piece, with the names labeled, to make Chess approachable for kids. The king has the tallest 'body' and has its name printed in large type to indicate its importance. The circle represents the king's ability to move one space in any direction. The queen is about as tall as the king, with the 'head' indicating that the Queen can move any distance in the eight directions. The knight is shorter, with cubes arranged around a central diamond indicating the eight squares that the knight can jump to. The arrangement of the cubes on the top and the back, and the angle of the supporting head, are intended to evoke a horse's head. The bishop and rook are the same height, with 'heads' indicating their ability to move any distance in either the diagonals or horizontal and vertical. Finally the pawns are the shortest. The 'head' indicates the ability to move forward one square, or capture diagonally. I couldn't think of a way to indicate moving forward two spaces, or capturing en-passent.

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8. Chess Set I by cbiffle

   

   Traditional (Staunton-style) chess set. The knight is a draft piece that I hope to revisit -- getting a recognizable horse-bust without exceeding the maximum overhang angles is hard.Please note: my printer isn't here yet, so while I have sliced these models and inspected the tool paths that result, I haven't verified that they print properly on actual hardware. I would love feedback from any chess fans with printers! :-)

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1. I wonder – is it possible to create a game where the pieces imply the game’s rules sufficiently well that further explanation of the rules are not necessary? [↩]

Do you see that white spacer on that miniature ATV’s rear right wheel?  Well guess what — that’s new MakerBotter Shane’s first project, and one of his first prints.

You see, Shane’s son had a miniature ATV…but it wasn’t fast enough.  So, like any clever father, he got a new motor and gearbox.  Unfortunately, the new gearbox didn’t quite mesh with the old drive system.  Luckily, Shane is an industrial designer, and had just received his new MakerBot kit, so out come the calipers, and a little bit of 3d modeling and a bit of printing later, the ATV was all set and faster than ever.

More of our interview, after the fold!

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