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V-Core 3.1 IDEX "Wide Boy"

About the V-Core 3.1 IDEX "Wide Boy"

The "IDEX" (or Independent Dual Extruder) version of the V-Core 3.1 was designed, in part, to fill the gap left by the discontinuation of the Rat Rig V-Cast.

Variants

Due to the space constraints caused by requiring two EVA tool heads, the IDEX V-Core 3.1 was developed into two separate designs. This page details the "wide boy" design which increases the size of the frame in the X-axis direction. This allows for the full print volume of the original, although has the downside of being a physically larger machine. The alternate design, which features the same external dimensions as a non-IDEX V-Core 3, uses a smaller print bed and a bed subframe.

Details of the alternate design can be found on its own page accessed by clicking here.

Kinematics

Adaptions to the kinematics were required to make IDEX work on the V-Core 3.1. The kinematics chosen are widely known as "Dual Markforge" kinematics. Two NEMA17 new stepper motors are used to drive the Y-axis (one per side), and then the existing A/B NEMA17 steppers are used to drive the two tool heads.

Development Timeline

11/10/2022 - Published to Rat Rig Lab
04/07/2022 - V-Core 3.1 IDEX prototype design complete
14/04/2022 - Prototyping for V-Core 3.1
24/01/2021 - V-Core 3.0 IDEX prototype design complete
30/09/2021 - Prototyping

Known issues

1 - The Y-axis endstop has an interference issue with the Y-axis IDEX belts
2 - The front lead screw constraints are customised due to an interference issue with the stock design

CAD

Click here to view the CAD on the Rat Rig Fusion 360 viewer

Bill of Materials

BOM Limitations

The bill of materials below is based upon a full machine build with a 300x300x300 print volume.

Components required to build the EVA3 tool heads are not listed.

SKU Product name QTY Length (mm)
HW306BRC T-Slot 3030 - Black - 420mm 1 420
HW306BRC T-Slot 3030 - Black - 428mm 2 428
HW306BRC T-Slot 3030 - Black - 450mm 4 450
HW306BRC T-Slot 3030 - Black - 505mm 4 505
HW306BRC T-Slot 3030 - Black - 510mm 4 510
HW306BRC T-Slot 3030 - Black - 540mm 1 540
HW306BRC T-Slot 3030 - Black - 580mm 5 580
HW201BRC V-Slot 2020 - Black - 562mm 1 562
3060 90 Degree Corner 2
HW1018NC Aluminium Spacer - 6mm 19
HW1019NC Aluminium Spacer - 9mm 2
HW2948WC Ball Bearing - 695ZZ 18
HW1309WC Ball Bearing - F688ZZ 3
HW2947WC Ball Bearing - F695ZZ 36
HW2198PC Bed Plate - Cast tooling plate - Pre-Machined - 3293296mm 1
HW1502SC Cap Head Screw M3x8 22
HW1292SC Cap Head Screw M3x12 112
HW1866SC Cap Head Screw M3x18 20
HW1504SC Cap Head Screw M3x20 8
HW1868SC Cap Head Screw M3x35 10
HW1869SC Cap Head Screw M3x40 4
HW0000SC Cap Head Screw M4x40 2
HW1285SC Cap Head Screw M5x10 4
HW2110SC Cap Head Screw M5x18 6
HW1060SC Cap Head Screw M5x35 2
HW2138SC Cap Head Screw M5x40 2
HW2140SC Cap Head Screw M5x55 4
HW2957SC Cap Head Screw M5x65 2
HW2958SC Cap Head Screw M5x70 2
HW1836SC Cap Head Screw M6x12 157
HW2827SC Cap Head Screw M6x16 4
HW1870SC Cap Head Screw M6x20 9
HW1916BC Cast 90 Degree Corner Bracket for 3030 - 6 Slot - Black 18
HW1874SC Countersink Screw M3x12 6
HW2349SC Countersink Screw M5x16 3
HW2173SC Countersink Screw M6x14 12
HW2990GC Coupler - Rigid Type - Black 25x20mm - 5mm to 8mm 3
HW2126GC Dowel Pin - 3x35mm 6
HW1895GC FlexPlate Set - Powder coated PEI 310x310mm 1
HW1251NC Hex Locking Nut - M3 20
HW1374NC Hex Locking Nut - M4 2
HW1039NC Hex Locking Nut - M5 12
HW2201PC idler_plate_v1.0 2
HW1915PC Joining Plate for 3030 - 90 Degree - Black Anodized 20
HW2346EK Keenovo 280x280 600W Silicone Heater Pad 1
HW2191SC Lead Screw - TR8*4 Metric Acme Lead Screw - 380mm 3
HW2915GC Leadscrew Nut - POM - TR8*4 3
HW2353GC Linear Rail - MGN12 350mm + MGN12C carriage 2 350
HW2036GC Linear Rail - MGN12 400mm + MGN12C carriage 3 400
HW2035GC Linear Rail - MGN12 500mm + 2 x MGN12C carriage 1 500
HW2127GC Magnet - 20x10x5mm - Two hole (M3 Countersink screws) 3
HW1630NC Mini Precision Shim - 8x5x1mm 38
HW1078EC Nema 17 Stepper Motor - 48mm - 1.8degree/step, 76oz-in 7
HW2950WC Rat Rig Bi-Material Lead Screw Decoupler 3
HW2125GC Rubber foot with metal insert - Heavy Duty - 28x22x16.5mm 4
HW2128GC Steel Ball - 12mm - Threaded M5 3
HW1821NC T-Nut - Drop In for 3030 - M3 96
HW1383NC T-Nut - Drop In for 3030 - M5 4
HW1361NC T-Nut - Drop In for 3030 - M6 182
HW1522NC T-Nut - Square type for 2020 - M5 6
HW2118WC Thrust Bearing F8-16M 3
HW1654WC Timing Pulley - 2GT (2mm) - 20 Tooth - For 9mm Belt - 5mm Bore 4
HW3146PC Rat Rig V-Core 3.1 - IDEX Motor Plate v1.0 2
HW2949PC VC3-XY_Joiner_Plate_v1.1 2
HW1314NC Washer Simple M6 36

Printed Parts

EVA3 & IDEX Printed Parts

EVA3 does not currently support IDEX, therefore modified EVA3 back printed parts are provided in the CAD (eva3_idex_back_x1 & eva3_idex_back_x2).

Printed parts required to build the EVA3 tool heads are not listed below.

Name QTY
3030_y-axis_passthru_idex_3.1 2
bed_arm_back_3.1 1
bed_arm_left_3.1 1
bed_arm_right_3.1 1
bed_cable_relief 1
idex_lead_screw_constraint_front_left 1
idex_lead_screw_constraint_front_right 1
lead_screw_constraint_rear_3.1 1
lead_screw_motor_cage_back_3.1 1
lead_screw_motor_cage_back_trim_3.1 1
lead_screw_motor_cage_front_3.1 2
lead_screw_motor_cage_front_trim_3.1 2
pillow_block 3
x_endstop_block_3.1 2
xy_idler_left_3.1 1
xy_idler_right_3.1 1
xy_idlers_bottom_left_idex_3.1 1
xy_idlers_bottom_right_idex_3.1 1
xy_joiner_left_3.1 1
xy_joiner_right_3.1 1
xy_motor_cage_idex_bottom_left_3.1 1
xy_motor_cage_idex_bottom_right_3.1 1
xy_motor_cage_idex_top_left_3.1 1
xy_motor_cage_idex_top_right_3.1 1
y_belt_clamp_idex_left_3.1 1
y_belt_clamp_idex_right_3.1 1
y_belt_tensioner_idex_left_3.1 1
y_belt_tensioner_idex_right_3.1 1
y_motor_cage_idex_bottom_left_3.1 1
y_motor_cage_idex_bottom_right_3.1 1
y_motor_cage_idex_top_left_3.1 1
y_motor_cage_idex_top_right_3.1 1

License

Creative Commons License Unless specified otherwise, all content published on the Rat Rig Lab is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License