Hello everybody and welcome to another mod video.
In today’s video, we’ll be modifying the CR10 Smart to no longer require auto bed levelling
in order to function correctly.
At the same time, we will be adding insulation beneath the build plate to help speed up the
heating process.
As always, do this mod at your own risk, and I’m in no way responsible if any damages
may occur.
Now, in most cases, you shouldn’t need to go to these types of lengths to get your machine
to work correctly.
As of making this video, there are quite a few problems with the CR10 Smart and many
users have had to resort to time-consuming mods to rectify the situation.
One such issue is the implementation of the auto bed levelling, which doesn’t seem to
function properly for numerous users.
So before we begin, we’ll need a couple of items prior to doing this modification
on our machines.
The first will be the levelling nuts with either silicone levelling columns or springs.
I have tested both, so I can say that either will work for this purpose.
Which ever option you choose, make sure that you have the screws to go along with the kit,
since the one’s which are on the machine are too short.
The second item on the list is the cork board that we’ll be using to help insulate the
build plate, and this needs to be approximately 1 inch in thickness to help reduce the need
for adhesives.
In my case I order a pack of 12x12 inch sheets which were 3/8 inch in thickness and this
allowed me to stack them on top of each other until I had the correct thickness.
With the components at the ready, we can now begin by removing the glass bed from the build
surface.
You can do this by opening up the retainer tabs and sliding out the glass.
There are 16 screws that are holding the build plate in place, so we’ll unscrew those,
so we can begin prepping the heating platform.
Since the existing holes are threaded, will first need to open these up to allow the screw
to move freely.
Using an 11/64 bit, you’ll widen the hole size every so slightly for the 4 corners that
we’ll be mounting the adjustment knobs.
I put some paper around all the components to help protect the remainder of the electronics
from any metal debris, as well as using some lubricant to facilitate the drilling process.
After cleaning up the area with a vacuum to make sure that nothing was left over, I could
then begin cutting the cork material to fit the build plate.
To make things easier, I cut the corners out to make sure I had enough room for the springs
and the silicone columns.
I placed the build plate on top of the cork to figure out where I should cut these portions
from.
Additionally, I created holes in a couple of the layers for where the bolts could fit
through.
To figure out the location of the bolts, I simply pressed the cork downwards to indent
them onto the surface and used that for a cutting reference.
Corkboard has a high temperature resistance which is why we’ll be using it for this
project, and in this case I didn’t want to use an option which required adhesive material
since it would be difficult to remove or make repairs in the future.
In order to keep the screws from moving around, I decided to use some springs, which I cut
down into spring lock washers.
The nice thing about using the springs is that these can have a very small footprint
and shouldn’t cause the screw to stick out afterwards.
Placing the Cork sheets into place, we can then line up the heated build plate followed
by our spring lock washers and screws.
If you’re using the silicone columns, the indented portion is supposed to be on top.
It’s very important that you screw the levelling nuts so that the Z-endstop can be triggered,
otherwise the hot end will crash into the build plate.
The way this sensor works is that it waits for the Z end stop to trigger before turning
on.
When you manually level the bed, you’re going to go to “Settings” + “Level”
and wait for the machine to finish probing the centre of the bed.
After, you’ll adjust the offset so that it’s close but not touching the build plate
by selecting each corner until it’s they are all the same.
Now, for some reason I had to adjust the Z-offset a second time, but I had no issues with the
overall levelling of the machine.
Something very essential with this mod is that the screen is set too high up, and therefore
the build plate tends to crash and lift above it when it passes too far forwards.
You’ll want to 3d print this part so that you can mount in on the appropriate angle.
With the modification completed, you can do a test print to see if everything is working
correctly.
I generally prefer to use a test similar to what you see here, since it allows me to check
for any printing irregularities.
I hope that this upgrade has helped some of you out, and I hope to see you guys again
soon.
Thank you and take care.