Inventables’ promotional material states that the 500mm X-Carve has about a 12" x 12" work area. I found the actual work area for my 500mm machine to be more like 10.5" x 10.5" because of the belt length taken up by the original belt clip and requisite (in my experience) zip ties to prevent slipping (see photo below).
I decided to design a simpler belt end clip for the X and Y axes and came up with a decent solution that now gives me a full 12" x 12" work area.
It’s a simple piece (made out of PLA here) that accepts the belt into a slot with teeth on the bottom. A 4x40 flat-head machine screw comes from the bottom with a nut on top that is used to securely fasten the belt in the slot. Then, a hex-head 6x32 machine screw is inserted through the front hole, through the frame of the X-Carve and finally tighten with a nut.
The STL file for printing this belt end clip can be found on Thingiverse:
For each belt I attach the clip to one end using and tighten it firmly to the X-Carve frame. After hand-tightening on the other end I cut the belt so that it’s about 1/4" from the end, slide the belt into the clip and tighten it down with the 4x40 flat head screw. I then insert the 6x32 hex head screw into the front and through the hole in the frame of the X-Carve. I tighten the screw and bring the belt to the appropriate tension. I’ve found this whole process much easier to do than the original clips and hex screws. I use an iPhone app (PitchPerfect) to get the tension of the belts to be roughly the same frequency. The exact frequency is a judgement call and can change with the positioning of the carriage, but it works well to “tune” the X-Carve.
Sweeeeeeet !!!
thank for sharing !
but i think i will add an “exit” hole for the belt, that way i dont need to cut it, in case of i want to return to original clips
Yes, Don, I considered that, but hesitated cutting into the metal frame with my current metal working collection of tools and skill set (pretty basic). If a slit was cut it opens up other methods for tightening the belt (e.g. ratchet-type, etc.).
For anyone interested…I uploaded a new and improved version of the end clip. I found a YouTube video that showed how to put a hole through an irregular surface that worked for me here. Now, once printed, there is no post-production work. Here’s a photo of the new model:
The 4x40 nut on the top and the slotted 6x32 hex-head machine screw are both recessed so only a small Philips screwdriver and wrench are needed to put the end clip to work on the X-Carve.
An earlier comment got me to thinking about how to improve this design so the belt wouldn’t have to be cut. I was inspired by the following GT2 belt clip:
and decided to make a clip out of aluminum. This was my first attempt at milling aluminum. Anyhow, below is a picture of the resulting clip.
and simply cut out the shapes in a 1/2" x1/2" square bar of aluminum. I’ve shared the Easel file at:
Once the milling was done (I copied/pasted the single carve so I could mill 6 at once) I used the 2mm-deep groove to help guide the cutting of the bar with a jigsaw (held upside-down in a vice) holding a metal-cutting blade. The cut segments were then put into a vice and ground flat with a hand-held grinder/polisher holding a coarse grinding disc. My skills with the hand-held tools show with the less-than-square surfaces, but the clip works well in the X-Carve. It’s not easy getting the belt into the clip, but it will fit.
I believe I’ve taken this project to a final conclusion. I’ve been carving some nice end clips out of 1/2" x 1/2" square aluminum rods using this end mill:
This end mill will cut all the way through the 1/2" rod leaving a clip that’s ready to be installed on the X-Carve. Here’s the carving in progress:
With the use of these clips I now have just over 12" x 12" of working area and I don’t have to cut the belts in case I want to expand. I plan to enlarge my X-Carve to 18" x 18" soon.
I initially planned to make the clips out of some kind of plastic, but ultimately decided to go with aluminum for maximum strength. I also wanted to gain some experience milling aluminum. I milled at a slow pace and the aluminum chips were very small and were easily removed with a vacuum hose placed near the piece so there was very little mess.
