RAMPS pcb

One of the more tricky bits to source in the UK is the electronics. I decided early on to use RAMPS, for these reasons:

• it is REPRAP printable (once you have a reprap obviously, not the first time)
• it seems to be (at time of writing), the most popular platform.
• Stepper motor drivers can be popped on and off (if God-forbid they blow).
• The stepper drivers are readily available in the UK. I got mine from Technobots.
• It seems to be the cheapest option.
• Completely open source and well documented.

Initially I planned to order the RAMPS pcb, unfortunately it was only stocked by Ultimachine.com. They are in the US, which implies long shipping time, complicated payment and unpredictable customs costs.

On the IRC channel, someone mentioned that they were planning a bulk purchase from ultimachine nad they kindly offered to include my pcb in their order. But they weren't planning an order for the next few weeks.

Instead, I decided to make my own pcb. I have access to a laser printer, so all I needed was glossy paper, etchant and laminate pcb (the latter 2 very cheap ordered from rapidonline).

I used the method outlined in this video:

Here are my results:

I was quite pleased with the etched board. The next step is to drill the holes, which requires some kind of drill press.
There is a trade off when choosing drill bit size. A smaller drill bit leaves more of the copper pad in-tact, which makes soldering easier (more copper to solder onto). A larger bit allows more room for error in how accurately you position the holes.
I used a 0.8mm drill bit, which was the smallest I had. It seems a little on the large side, but seems workable. I took this photo about half way through drilling the holes:

Project management

There is a lot of stuff to do in this project and being well organised will improve your Mendel build time, build quality and keep the cost down.

The easiest way to manage your project is to put together a bill of materials (BOM) spreadsheet. This will help you keep track of costs, orders and prevent delays.

I'll post a copy of my BOM as it stands. If you're in the UK, you can probably just use it as is!

Early research

When I first stumbled across RepRap, I thought it was a nice idea but would be too fiddly, expensive and time consuming to get involved with. I read through a bit of the wiki and forums.

Then I came across the Prusa mendel, which seemed to me a clever, well designed and actively supported variation. I decided to take the plunge.

I found the RepRap wiki a bit disorganised, but it was still useful to get a rough idea of how to approach the build.

I thought about getting a kit, but they all seemed rather expensive. So I decided to source the parts myself.

An introduction

I've decided to document the development of my Reprap project in this blog. I think it will particularly interesting to people in the UK or EU who plan to build a Mendel by sourcing their own parts as cheaply as possible.

The main reason I'm writing the blog is as a way of saying thank-you to the reprap community who have helped me so much with my build so far. Reprap is a truly cooperative movement and a real asset to the open hardware community.