Dibloff's Build Log

[cvoinescu]

Before you bother with the enclosure, try Kapton tape, the dollar-store extra-strong unscented hairspray, and maybe PCB lacquer spray. Also, if you don't mind having to trim it off, you can make the first layer much wider, maybe spanning the ribs, to get better adhesion. Mind you, these are tricks I picked up from this forum and elsewhere on the net -- my personal experience is limited to PLA on Kapton tape on unheated laminated chipboard, which sticks great with no extra help.

[SystemsGuy]

Gotta agree - if that's ABS, try Kapton tape before going the enclosure route, slow on the first layer, and I'd probably stick some pads on a couple of the ribs. I don't understand the comment on weight of print causing skipping - I print some pretty dense & large objects with no problems...

[fma]

+1 for Kapton; I can't print anything in ABS without it!

You should also use the 'brim' feature of slic3r...

[dibloff]

Cvoinescu, SystemGuy and Fma, thanks all for the advice. I looked up the local stores (home depot, lowes, menards etc.) none of them has kapton/polyimide tape for sale. Again, I can trust eBay only. What widths are out there for the kapton tape? I saw 1” and 30 mm wide tape (100 yrd). Are there wider ones? Which one you guys are using? What is your preferred source? Thanks.

[cvoinescu]

I think 100 mm is the widest I've ever seen, but 50 mm (or 2") is common and priced much more reasonably. I bought this one and I'm happy with it. I used it for the bed, for the hot end (to hold the insulation on the heated block and to secure the thermistor wires), and to tape the cables to various parts of the printer to keep them out of the way. The adhesive does not leave a residue even after weeks, so that's a plus.

[bdring]

We use serious amounts of kapton at work. Here are the rolls of the big stuff.

No, I cannot sell you any.

[Cre8ivdsgn]

McMaster has kapton in lots of forms:
http://www.mcmaster.com/#catalog/118/3442/=kvism7

McMaster can be... pricey, but they have everything. I used to live in Wheeling, Il and like Bart, I was only about 15 minutes (in no traffic) from the McMaster Will-Call entrance. Same day service is nice! If I use anything in any real quantity, I start looking elsewhere.

[BenJackson]

ProtoParadigm has wide polyimide tape: http://www.protoparadigm.com/products/polyimide-tape/

I like their PLA.

[SystemsGuy]

Another vote for ProtoParadigm if you are in the US. In the UK, Farnel is a much cheaper source than RS, and I've yet to find a really good source on eBay. Like Bart, we use some 500mm at work, but they won't let me near it, and probably pay more than I'd want to!

ProtoParadigm has wide polyimide tape: http://www.protoparadigm.com/products/polyimide-tape/

I like their PLA.

[thechoochman528]

We use serious amounts of kapton at work. Here are the rolls of the big stuff.

No, I cannot sell you any.

kapton.jpg

That's a lot of Kapton, the only other place I've seen that much Kapton is at my company. So, with some deductive reasoning, I assume you must work in an industry that deals with satellite/probe hardware as well.