January 25, 2025
Description
Updated (2024 Nov 24) - Several people were asking for my Z-axis parts, so I'm uploading them. The bed required 10mm steel threaded balls to be mounted in the front corners and rear center. Depending on the thickness of your bed, you will need spacers and screws so the bed will clear the printer frame front crossbar at max height. The balls rest on the three Bed Mounts that have each have two 3x35 metal dowels and a 10x30 magnet in the recess. These allow the bed to float and expand as needed. The magnets should be 3-4mm thick. I found the magnet tolerances were not great, so see what works best for you. The bed mounts attach to MGN12H rails affixed to the two front vertical frame extrusions and a third one that need to be added in the rear center. I used Oldham couplers to mount the lead screws to the bed mounts in order to minimize movement. No top bracket is needed for the lead screws; it's better to leave them standing unsupported. You can use whatever lead screws and steppers you want. I reused the ones I had left over from the Ender 5 and other printers. I did upgrade the lead screws to Tr8x2 and POM lead screw nuts, but the stock ones will work just as well. The parts I used are:
I always wanted a larger 3D printer, but dislikes how space inefficient most printers are. When I saw SilentMobius's MaxXY mod based on the ZeroG Mercury One upgrade to the Ender 5, I knew that was what I wanted.
My version allows for a 310x310mm print bed in the same footprint as the stock Ender 5 Pro. I'm not sure why this isn't part of the standard MercuryOne design considering it is just modified printed parts. It's hard to see why you wouldn't want to opt a larger print bed. BTW, the print bed I am using is from a CR-10 (I think - it came from eBay for $30).
I also created a new front tower design to tension the belts. This design works on both sides -- just flip the shuttle to align with that side's belt. It greatly simplifies tensioning the belts by having a single screw on the front that pulls in the pulley shuttle. I'm including an assembly diagram so you can see the captive screw in the shuttle and hidden M5 screw that gets installed prior to the shuttle. The tolerances are precise so you may need a little sanding to get the shuttle to slide smoothly. I think it's a much more elegant design than either the ZeroG or SilentMobius designs.
All the parts have been redesigned from scratch with a clean, minimal design aesthetic.
There are various other mods I've worked on:
I am currently working on a triple Z bed leveling system, but it needs a complete redesign as it isn't working very well (z-wobble issues).
All parts were designed in OnShape, except the front towers. Those were done in TinkerCAD. They started out as a quick experiment, but they worked so well the first time, I never got around to recreating them in OnShape.
Print Settings
I printed with the recommended print settings from ZeroG for the Mercury One. I think it was 40% infill and a layer height of 0.2mm. Four top/bottom layers. You might want to check the ZeroG Github to check the latest print specs. No supports are needed.
ZeroG recommends ABS, but I opted to use Inland Tough PLA (and PLA+ on a few non-structural parts). It hasn't been a problem, so I see no need to go through the hassle of ABS.
All parts printed on my trusty Ender 3 Pro (slightly upgraded).
License:
GNU General Public License v2.0
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