SideKick Direct Drive - 25mm DC 12V 1000RPM Variant (Prusa XL)

Introduction

I love the incredible SideKick filament loader that @MrFlippant designed. However despite my best efforts to source the specific DC 12V 1000RPM geared motor listed in his build guide for the direct drive I wasn't able to. After some more searching I found a great new contender for a DC 12V 1000RPM motor which is beefier and a lot easier to find. Given the larger size of the motor I created this remix of the direct drive SideKick. Many thanks to MrFlippant not only for the design but also for sharing the .step file which made it a lot easier to create this remix.

The Motor

The motor I settled on goes often by the description "GA25YN370" or “25GA-370”. This motor is quite a bit larger in diameter (25mm) and length compared to what the original SideKick design is made for. And since it's not a box motor it can't be slotted into the SideKick body to be held in place either. Instead it requires to be mounted via 2 screws.

This motor has enough torque to feed in 2 filaments at once if needed. Perhaps even 3 but my Prusa XL is a 2-tool unit so it's difficult to properly test without having a 3rd long bowden tube bent in the right shape to simulate the friction.

The exact German Amazon listing I used: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B07ZKKN226 (12V 1000RPM)
An US Amazon listing from the same vendor:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07ZKK2F26
Another US Amazon listing: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FDRVY3N2 (12V 1000RPM)

My Remix 

The photo + video below explain exactly what this remix aims to achieve.

Here's a screenshot that shows the size difference between the original direct drive SideKick (on the right) and my remix for the 25mm motor (on the left).

Instructions & Parts List

For the most part you can simply follow the instructions and parts list by MrFlippant for the original direct drive variant of the SideKick. My remix only replaces the main body parts of the SideKick to house the larger motor. The paddles & spacers remain the same and thus should be downloaded from the original design listing (including the PTFE cutting jig). I didn't bother making a “wire keeper” for my remix as I found it easy enough to keep the wires in place during installation without one.

The only additional things you need to purchase for this remix are: 
1x DC 12V 1000RPM Motor 25mm diameter (German Amazon, US Amazon, US Amazon) - instead of the original motor
2x M3x6 or M3x8 screws (button cap) - to attach the motor
1x 4mm to 5mm shaft coupler (20mm long, 9mm diameter German Amazon, US Amazon)- instead of the 3mm to 5mm shaft coupler

You can print all the parts without needing supports. You can print everything in PLA or as I did in PETG.
 
In my finished build photos you don't see the "Sidekick" text printed on the body because I prefer a minimal appearance. However I included the Sidekick text in the print files. If you want to print yours without the text like I did, simply right click the top body model in the Slicer and select Split > to Parts. Then delete the text parts listed on the right. You can use the same approach to assign a different color to the text instead of deleting it - that is if you wish to print it with the text and have in a different color. 

Here you can see the two screws holding the motor. My only concern was that this small printed part holding the screws could potentially snap due to the torque... so I considered to strengthen it in two more ways if it ever failed. But I was able to feed even 2 filaments at once without issues so it looks like this will hold just fine.

I mounted my SideKick on the left side of the printer. I wired the positive end of the 9V battery to the red marked pin of the motor. But always make sure to briefly test the wiring and correct motor rotation on your own build first.

Quick and Easy Filament Loading at Last

I had built the awesome handheld speed loader from MrFlippant before but as time went on ended up using it less frequently. The main reason for it was that properly aligning and holding the speed loader proved to be somewhat of a hassle for me + I used the 500RPM motor which wasn't as fast. But the SideKick has solved this issue for me entirely. Frankly this type of solution should've been part of the Prusa XL from the beginning or at least offered as a later upgrade from Prusa. But I'm glad and grateful to MrFlippant for taking the time to develop a solution to this obvious problem instead.

I hope this remix will prove useful to others!

A size comparison between the motor for this remix and the small geared motor that can be used for the compact drive variant of the SideKick or the original speed loader. :)