Replicator 2X

Replicator 2X Information

Greasing a Replicator 2 and 2X

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The Replicator 2 and 2X both require minimal maintenance to keep them performing at their best. Every 50 hours of printing a small amount of grease should be applied in two locations. If your printer is squeaking, applying grease in these locations generally will stop the squeaking as well. Applying this grease is done to keep them quiet and prevent excess wear on parts such as the Y-axis secondary. When we are greasing a Replicator 2 or 2X we use this PTFE Grease. The first point we apply grease to is the Z axis threaded rod. This is the one that controls the height of the platform and is pictured below. The method to applying the grease to this threaded rod is to raise the platform all the way up and apply a small amount of grease below the platform. After that lower the platform and put grease above it … Read more

Acetone for Gluing and Finishing ABS Prints

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Acetone is one of the most versatile and useful things to have around when you have a printer that uses ABS such as the Replicator 2X. It serves as a great way to clean off your build plate as well as to promote adhesion between your part and the kapton tape. Acetone also happens to have a few more uses with ABS. First off you can use it to glue multi-part prints together. This is incredibly useful when you want to either make smaller more manageable prints out of a bigger print, or if you want to print something bigger than your build volume. To use acetone as glue for ABS you simply brush it on each side of a joint and press the parts together and it will become somewhat stuck fairly quickly and fully dry in about a day. Acetone can also be used as a method to … Read more

Installing Replicator 2X Extruder Upgrades

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We sell an Extruder upgrade for the Replicator 2X. It is an upgrade over the original style with a lever you flip left and right to adjust tension. There is a newer version that also uses the new style that requires a vertical squeeze in order to release the tension. This is newer version will perform similarly to the 3D printed upgrade version so upgrading that version is not necessary. These newer squeeze style drive blocks have over double the pulling power and will often work well beyond where the old style would fail. This is an upgrade we recommend on every Replicator 2X we sell. When you go to upgrade you will need to reuse one of the longer bolts that hold on your original extruder to go through the corner of the new drive block that acts as a lever. Over tightening this bolt may cause feed issues, … Read more

MakerBot Desktop 3.7

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Many of you have likely already downloaded MakerBot Desktop 3.7 as it was released in June. This is just an update for those that haven’t either because they are sticking with an older version they feel is sufficient or that haven’t noticed this latest version of MakerBot Desktop. Desktop 3.7 is a significant upgrade in terms of the ease of accessing the bulk of the settings that many users want to fine-tune when they are printing day-to-day. By simply switching to the custom tab in Settings, you can now control things like how far your raft extends from the print, travel speeds during a variety of printing stages, angle required to generate support and even choose to print infill at a lower resolution than the outer shells. This customization is a great way to get your prints printing how you want while no longer requiring you to edit text files … Read more

Tightening Replicator 2/2X Belts

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If your prints are turning out significantly smaller in size in one direction, it is possible that it is being caused by backlash. This is when the extruder isn’t being moved as far as it should to make the proper size. The reason the extruder won’t move far enough when you have backlash is that due to a loose belt, the teeth of the gear allow slight play on the belt causing the extruder to drag as far back as possible on its teeth because that is where it will actually catch. Any change in direction  immediately moves it to drag the opposite side, this means the very edges of your print won’t ever be reached properly. Loose belts can be more severe as well if they allow slippage to occur and miss-align your gantry, but the solution to a loose belt is generally the same regardless of severity. There … Read more