News

Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #19 Packing and Kitting May 12 2017, 123 Comments

Hi Everyone,  

Some of you have started receiving your kits, and are looking for instructions. We've outsourced the creation of the instructional videos, and they're still working on it, so please hang in there (especially for 1st time builders). 

If you're an experienced builder though, feel free to start building away. It's simple enough that you'll probably figure out how to put it together, and if there are any questions, the forums are there, and we're on it all the time.  

So for those that can't wait, what we can offer right now is to share the F360 files so that you guys can view them and sort of figure out how things go together from there. It's by request so drop us an email if you want to go that route. In the mean time, we're waiting for the hotend replacements to get here. Boxes are laid out on the floor and we're populating them by batches of similar orders.

Sincerely, 

BEL Team :)

 

 

 

 


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #18 Dual Extrusion Option Update May 03 2017, 37 Comments

Dear Backers,

This update is only for those that ordered the dual extrusion hotends. The update can be viewed here.


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #17: Parts are finally here! April 23 2017, 32 Comments

Hi Everyone!

We have finally received the crate with the steel parts this past week! :)

Some admin stuff:

We have begun unloading the crate, and have been doing random quality checks on the metal pieces. Below are some images. Also apologies for the late update, we were busy with unloading the crate. It also had a weird smell, so we decided to air it out for a few days to reduce any health risks to us.

Since it’s been a while, we will be sending each of you personal emails requesting for your shipping address. If you are in the middle of moving, please let us know your move date, and where you would want it shipped. Based on your shipping address, we will be sending you the shipping cost estimate. It is more tedious this way, but it’s fair, since those that live closer will pay less, and those further away will pay appropriately. Also, all shipments will be insured for peace of mind. In your response email, also remind us of any special requests that you might have. For example some of you ordered the laser shield and eye protection. Some also ordered extra carriages, or extra effectors. Please note that on to your response too.

With regards to the instructional video:

We expect the video to be ready in 2 to 3 weeks. This means that you will probably get your kits before the video is ready. To avoid any unnecessary headaches when building, please wait for the videos to be released (unless, of course, you know what you’re doing).

Please join our Forum:

We will be ready for your build questions on the forums, so please make sure that you’re on there. https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/blueeaglelabs. Shall we create a FB groups as well? Let us know.

We will be getting some people to help out with the kitting process, and we expect all kits to be shipped out by May 7th. ;)

To give you guys a better picture of the timeline:

- this week we will organize our space so that kitting will be streamlined. We will also do a more thorough inspection of the parts, and do a sample frame build. I know you guys are in a hurry, but this is a very important step. It will make your lives easier, and will make errors minimal.

- by may 2, we will have the kits ready for the early bird backers.

- by may 7, all the remaining kits will be ready for UPS/USPS pick up.

Unloading 1
Unloading 1

 

Unloading 2
Unloading 2

 

Sample inspection 1
Sample inspection 1

 

Sample Inspection 2
Sample Inspection 2

 

Sample inspection 3
Sample inspection 3

 

test fit 1
test fit 1

 

test fit 2
test fit 2

 

test fit 3
test fit 3

 Thanks,

Blue Eagle Labs Team


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #16: Cargo delivered to forwarder's warehouse March 08 2017, 31 Comments

Hi Everyone,

As promised, here are some pics of the goods during the last 2 days. The sheet metal parts are in the forwarder's warehouse now. It will sit there for about a week as they fumigate it and prepare the export documents. It will then be loaded on to a cargo ship on Monday the 20th. The ship's approximate transit time is about 20 days, and will go via Korea. When it finally gets to Long Beach, California, it will go through customs clearing, then to Royal Cargo's California warehouse. From there we will pick it up, then start the kitting.

Tomorrow we will be on calls with Royal Cargo LA office, and will be discussing the documentation and other requirements for importation.

Let's all hope it goes smoothly and as planned. :)

Have a wonderful day guys. We're here if anyone has questions.

constructing crate
constructing crate

 

more building
more building

 

Finished Crate
Finished Crate

 

Prepacked sheet metal parts
Prepacked sheet metal parts

 

Loading onto crate
Loading onto crate

 

On the way to Royal Cargo's Warehouse
On the way to Royal Cargo's Warehouse

 

At Royal Cargo
At Royal Cargo

 

Unloading at RC 1
Unloading at RC 1

 

Unloading at RC2
Unloading at RC2

 

Unloading at RC3
Unloading at RC3

 

Unloading at RC4
Unloading at RC4

Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #15: Fusion 360 Update March 07 2017, 4 Comments

Hi Everyone,

This update is with regards to the Fusion 360 free subscription offer. Just follow the instructions on the card here, and this should set you up for F360!

There are no no significant updates yet on the sheet metal parts, but last communication was yesterday afternoon, and they're still packing/crating the goods. When they send us the BL, we will post another update. :)

Sincerely,

BEL Team


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #14: Sheet Metal Parts scheduled to ship by the weekend February 27 2017, 2 Comments

Hi Everyone,

Happy Monday!

Things are moving along, although slower than expected. There are a few things that were a little bit “off-plan”, which we would like to report to you:

1.     There were a few changes in the packaging plan. We figured that instead of shipping everything together, then repacking them into sets individually here in the US (which would take a lot of time and labor), we could get you the parts much, much faster if they prepacked the sheet metal sets there. That would require them to wrap each part individually, group and box them into sets. They will also be building a crate for it. This change is causing them delays. I was texting them via viber last Thursday and they’re still packing the goods into the individual boxes.

2.     The weight of the total shipment along with the new packaging is going to be about a quarter ton, and would have to be shipped via sea. Which means transit times could take about 3 weeks. Initially we thought that shipping it via air wouldn’t be a problem, but the LCD screen and tray that we decided to include as a stretch goal came out to be very heavy, and space occupying. This made shipping via air prohibitively expensive. Being the only alternative, we went ahead and booked with a popular sea freight forwarder (Royal Cargo). They will be a one stop shop service that will make sure that everything ships on time, goes through customs smoothly, and that everything is insured. We were told that the cargo will be done packing, and ready for consolidation and loaded by this weekend.

That's all the updates we have for now. I would like to thank each one of you again for your patience with this project’s fulfillment. We're hoping that this is the last delay for the project, and we're doping everything we can to make sure that it is. :) If any of you have questions, please feel free to ask in the comments section, or email us. =)

Sincerely,

Arn


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #13: All Painted! February 14 2017, 4 Comments

Hi Everyone,

So the painting is done and the final count is being tallied to account for rejects. Shortly after, they will start packing them into sets. We sort of don't want them to rush this part because we don't want any mistakes because it's pretty manual stuff, so I won't push them too much on rushing this if that's ok with you guys. They've done their part so far (albeit a little delayed), so I'll continue to trust them.

Also please note on some of the pictures you will see that screws are already in place. This is to prevent the powder coat from getting into the threads (in case some of you are wondering).

Please excuse the image quality, it was taken with a camera phone.

Have a great week ahead of you! :)

Carriages
Carriages

 

  
Idler Close Up
Idler Close Up

 

Extruder Plate
Extruder Plate

 

Tray
Tray

 

Effectors
Effectors

 

Brackets
Brackets

 


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #12: Parts received from cutters and now with tapping and painting company January 29 2017, 0 Comments

Hi Everyone, 

Finally, some update worthy news :)

Good news: The parts have finally been turned over to the tapping and painting company. we ordered 100 sets just in case there are rejects so that all 65 backers are sure to get what they need to start building.

Not-so-good news: Some pieces have some quality issues wherein the laser did not cut all the way, leaving an ugly burr on one side. Not to worry, the affected part is not precision sensitive, and they said that they will clean it up and grind it down to look better. 

Here are some pics:

Sheet Metal Parts 1
Sheet Metal Parts 1

 

 

Sheet Metal Parts 2
Sheet Metal Parts 2

 

Sheet Metal Parts 3: Laser did not cut through
Sheet Metal Parts 3: Laser did not cut through

 

Sheet metal parts 4: Close Up
Sheet metal parts 4: Close Up

 

Looking back, we're glad we went with the contingency design because with the laser issues this may have taken longer with all the rejected parts. Seems lucky that only the square endstop holder was affected and not the more crucial pieces. And don't worry because the holes will be tapped to make it true, and with the paint, the imperfections will be covered. 

From here it looks like we could get the tapping and painting done in about a week and a half, then a few more days to wrap them individually and ship here to the US.

Once we get them, we will be shipping right away. We will also be shooting the instructional videos as soon as we get our hands on the parts, so it is possible that you get the kits before we have the vids ready, but it should only be a short gap.

Thanks again everyone for your patience, and we're very sorry for the delays. 

Please let us know if you have any questions. 


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update # 11: Updates and a little more on the Contingency November 22 2016, 5 Comments

Hi Friends,

The GeckoTek beds are finally here (delivered Friday). We will be inspecting them in the next few days..

Geckotek Beds
Geckotek Beds

 

Secondly, about the contingency design, I did say I'd post some drawings of them, so here they are:

BEL MB Remix v31
BEL MB Remix v31

 

The L brackets will allow the vertical extrusions to be adjustable to ensure that it's perpendicular to the bed.

Render
Render

 

There will be a steel tray to mount the electronics. The tray mounts directly to the extrusions to provide additional rigidity. This plus the CNC round bracket (in the previous update) will hold the 3 extrusions firmly.

Alternative Motor mount
Alternative Motor mount

 

This is a very simple motor mount design which uses minimal sheet metal, and yet would be very rigid in the direction of the belt movements. It would mount directly onto the aluminum extrusions, and would serve as mounting for the bed as well.

Tonight I have a call with the 3rd party QC company abroad, and they will give us feedback on whether or not the sheet metal factory  made the samples to our spec.

If the response if favorable, I'll place the order right away. I'm really hoping to get your kits shipped out asap so that you can enjoy them during the holidays, (and of course we would be happy to start selling these kits during the season as well).

As usual, please contact us if you have any questions via email. 

Sincerely,

Arn


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #10: Contingency November 08 2016, 6 Comments

Hi Everyone,

On the parts:

Haydn's Arms are slowly being shipped in. We currently have 10 sets, and another 10 more coming this week.

GeckoTek wasn't able to ship out the goods last week, bu said that the beds will be shipped out this week. Here's a pic of the bed that they had just got from their silk screen supplier, and it looks good!:

GeckoTek BEL Upgraded bed
GeckoTek BEL Upgraded bed

 

Also, the ramps and arduinos came in. It's still boxed and unopened, but will be inspected this week. 

In the mean time, knowing that the samples from the sheet metal factory had a high percentage of defects, we decided to have a contingency on the large sheet metal parts in the event that the sheet metal factory is not able to produce the bend precision that we need. we might resort to a slight redesign of the printer, which will only involve parts that have crucial bend accuracy and precision. It will still be all metal, but the tripod pieces on the top and bottom of the printer will be replaced with CNC'd aluminum, and a few extra extrusion pieces. 

The upside is that 1) it will be more rigid, 2) it will be more precise 3) it can be fine tune adjusted to guarantee squareness. 4) it will be manufactured quickly

The downside is that 1) it will be a little more difficult to put together (since the number of parts will increase.) and 2) it will cost more to make (but that's more our issue because we will have to absorb the cost). 

Anyway, here are some pics (excuse the mess):

CNC parts 1
CNC parts 1

 

CNC parts 2
CNC parts 2

 

CNC parts 3
CNC parts 3

 

CNC parts 5
CNC parts 5

 

CNC parts 4
CNC parts 4

 

From the pictures, you guys probably already have an idea of how it will be put together. Anyway, once it was put together, we noticed that it was slightly more rigid that the original metal delta design (on the right). The 20mm extrusions and the 8mm thick circular bracket is more rigid than the 3mm bent sheet metal. 

Ok so that's it for now, please tell us what you think about the contingency. Your input is very important.

Thanks again Everyone!

P.S. If you haven't yet, please join our google groups. And also if you want to reach us, ask questions or give feedback, please email us directly at blueeaglelabs@gmail.com or at info@blueeaglelabs.com. 

Have a great week ahead of you!! :) 


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #9 Sheet Metal Quality Issues October 24 2016, 3 Comments

Hi Folks,

The 1st 5 samples have arrived, and only 3 of them are worthy of shipping to the 1st few backers. Some of the bends were not in the right place. We have noted this to the manufacturer, and there will be 5 more that will arrive in 1 to 2 weeks (already queued up in the factory). The packaging looks like it took some stress, but luckily it didn't affect the final dimensions of the sheet metal inside, below are some pics:
packaging - while it didnt affect the contents, we will request more padding
packaging - while it didnt affect the contents, we will request more padding

 

3 of the 5 sets are looking good, this is one of the good ones
3 of the 5 sets are looking good, this is one of the good ones

Other updates:

  • The GeckoTek beds are going through the last stages of manufacturing (silkscreening the logo).
  • Haydn's arms hit a few delays (not his fault). He should be receiving some raw materials this week as well, then he will build the arms. I'll keep you posted on any developments on this.

Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #8: Parts are starting to ship in October 10 2016, 0 Comments

Hi Guys,

Quick  update:

Sheet metal parts have been ordered early last week. They are doing another sample of 5 (a second batch of 5 - we already have the 1st 5 and have requested some minor changes be made), then, when we are satisfied with the results, they will proceed with the rest of the higher volume order. We expect the 5 to be ready by mid-next week.

Below is a sample from the packaging we will use. This is a sample layout only, the final will be more clean.

Sheet metal parts sample packaging
Sheet metal parts sample packaging

 

Silicone heaters are also manufactured, and will be shipped here today/tomorrow.

Heaters that will be shipped here from overseas
Heaters that will be shipped here from overseas

 

Lastly, the MKS BASE (most expensive part on our parts list) are here as well.

32 Bit Controllers
32 Bit Controllers

 

Thanks everyone, and please feel free to contact us if you have any questions/concerns :)

Have a nice week ahead!


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #7 - Some Delays September 25 2016, 0 Comments

Hi Everyone,  

Hope you all had a good weekend!  

On Monday we received the funds from Kickstarter, and we have been able to order:  

• The electronics boards  

• GeckoTek base and plates  

• Haydn’s Arms  

• Custom silicon heaters for the GeckoTek

This week we will be ordering:  

• Motors  

• Bearings, wheels, belts and pulleys  

• Hardware  

• Hotends  

• And hopefully the sheet metal parts!  

As you may know, we thought that the funds would have dropped into our account sooner than it actually did. The most time crucial order are the sheet metal parts. The factory took on a larger job, and could not agree to prioritize our order because of our relatively smaller quantity. Unfortunately, this sets us back a little bit. They would not be able to run our order for another 2 weeks, and it would take them about 2 to 4 weeks more to manufacture, inspect, paint and pack and ship the goods. So as not to delay the non-early birds, we decided to have the factory run production for both batches all in one go. It won’t affect the sequence by which we fulfill our kits though. Basically, we hope to be shipping the early birds around the end of next month, then shortly after, we will ship the non early birds.

Parts ordered last week should start shipping the coming this week and the next. Once we get them, we will start prepackaging them into your kits so that as soon as the sheet metal arrives, we can just drop them in the bigger box and ship out. 

We’re sorry for the delay. If you have any questions, please feel free to email us. (The fastest way to contact us would be by email, since it would go straight to our phones)

Have a great week ahead of you!  

Sincerely, 

Arn :)


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #6: Fund transfer from Kickstarter is underway September 19 2016, 0 Comments

Hi Everyone, 

Just a few quick updates: 

- We finally got the email from Kickstarter saying that the funds are being transferred to our account from Kickstarter. We expect the funds to drop into our accounts in the next business few days, and as soon as they do, we will start ordering the parts from our suppliers. Order sheets are lined up, and we just need to email them out.

- Everyone except one has answered their survey, so thanks for not delaying this! 

- If you haven’t yet, please join our forums on https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/blueeaglelabs 

Thanks again everyone, and as usual, if you need anything or have any questions, please feel free to email us at blueeaglelabs@gmail.com or at info@blueeaglelabs.com Have a great week ahead of you!

:)


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #5: Campaign closed at just under $50K September 06 2016, 0 Comments

Hi Metal Delta Backers!

We will be making these updates at least every week, and to save time (yours and ours) we will be doing it in this simple bullet format. :)

  • First, thank you again for your support! We finished just under 50K, and although the stretch goal was not met, we will try our best to include the stretch goal in your kits anyway (we think we can do it but no promises).
  • We are currently communicating with the suppliers so that they can prepare for the volume orders. This involves figuring out which parts go in which bag, final price adjustments, and forecasting for future demand as well as defective items.
  • In order for this to happen smoothly, please answer the surveys as soon as possible. We need to know what you pledged before we make the orders.
  • This is also a chance for you guys to add any upgrades that you may have missed. For example: if you wanted the GeckoTek upgrade, but wasn't able to add it to your pledge amount, just mention it on the survey, then contact us at blueeaglelabs@gmail.com or info@blueeaglelabs.com to adjust and complete the transaction.
  • As soon as the funds drop into our bank account, and we get enough response on our survey, we will proceed with ordering from the suppliers. ETA on the small parts is 2 weeks after we place the order. ETA on the sheet metal parts is 3 weeks after we place the order.
  • Also, very important, please sign up and join our google groups: https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/blueeaglelabs. This is where we will support you guys during your builds.
  • Here's a small picture of some calibration pictures from last night. these are 230mm diameter circles within 1% on the proper scale. Just thought you guys might like it :)
1st layer calibration circles
1st layer calibration circles

 

  • Last but not the least, we have a limited inventory of filament that you guys might be interested in. These will work great with your printers, and if you are interested in them, we will make them available later this week for purchase on our website. If there is space in your kit boxes, we will throw them in there to save on shipping.

Best,

Blue Eagle Labs


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #3: Just a few days left! August 29 2016, 2 Comments

Hi Everyone!

We have a few more days left on the kickstarter campaign! Please share this project with your friends and family so that we might get a few more backers before the campaign ends. =)

And now for some updates:

• Inventory Check

We went through our current inventory also started contacting suppliers for the electronics and other small items like pulleys and belts so that they can do their prep work and hit the ground running when we finally place those orders. Here are some pics:

V-SLot Open Beams!
V-SLot Open Beams!

 

High Res Motors and Regular Motors
High Res Motors and Regular Motors

 

Silicone Heaters with imbedded thermistors
Silicone Heaters with imbedded thermistors

 

A crate of 300mm Boro Glass!
A crate of 300mm Boro Glass!

 

• Stretch Goal

In brainstorming on a stretch goal, We wanted something that would really maximize the value of the printer without being too difficult to implement.. So here's what we decided:

If the current trend continues and we get funded at the $50K level, we will have enough margin to convert the LCD holder and controller mount from plastic to metal: This serves a dual purpose, it will allow mounting for the controller board (will fit RAMPS and MKS Base) and also will allow the screen to be mounted rigidly onto the frame. Here are some before and after pics:

Before: LCD Screen holder made of acrylic
Before: LCD Screen holder made of acrylic

 

After: Steel LCD mount + controller holder
After: Steel LCD mount + controller holder

 

After: Steel LCD mount + controller holder
After: Steel LCD mount + controller holder

 

• Overseas Sheet Metal Supplier

Lastly, We were in touch with the quality control company, for another 'dry run' sample of the sheet metal parts. They currently have 5 sets from the factory which will be set up for powder coating (they'll send us pictures once they're ready). When we get our hands on the 5, we will start making orders for the rest of the printers.

So that's it for this week! Please remind your friends and family to go check out our campaign and share!. Thanks again everyone and we're really excited to see these printers out there in the wild! :)


Forum Name Change August 22 2016, 26073 Comments

Hi guys,

Just a quick heads up that we changed the forum name from "Kossel Clear" to "Blue Eagle Labs Support" so that we can support both Kossel Clear and Metal Delta printers in just one place. Post away! =)

Best,

BEL Team


Metal Delta KS Campaign Update #2: Halfway through our campaign! =) August 19 2016, 0 Comments

Hi Everyone,

We are moving into the 2nd half of our campaign! Thanks again for all your support! Please tell your friends and family about our project, and please like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter, Instagram, and Google+ =) 

First, We’d like to invite you to join our google groups forum at https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/blueeaglelabs. This is the primary resource for you in getting support for our 3D printers. We have some very smart experts on there from our previous project! It’s a great community, everyone is real friendly and nice (some of whom have become our friends and business collaborators as well! ).

Secondly, we need to tell you why our project is different from a lot of other 3D printer Kickstarters (which perhaps was not explained well in the KS page). Recent 3D printer Kickstarters have come in at really low price points, and thus making it very lucrative for a lot of people. The Kickstarter prices others have offered are sometimes even lower than what we would expect to get directly from our suppliers. Which means that some of these projects are probably working with very slim margins (or maybe even none at all!) That seems to be problematic, and it is probably the biggest reason why a lot have failed to deliver. 3D printers are inherently complex, with many parts that need to be sourced from various origins, tested individually, then tested together, and then eventually need to be shipped to the same warehouse and kitted, awaiting its final delivery. With a project this complex, something is bound to go wrong – be it the supply chain, the design, or the quality and specs of the parts. 

There needs to be a buffer. We realized this on our first project back on 2013. While we priced higher than other printers, it was comfortable enough that we didn’t need to pull our hair whenever a tracking number doesn’t update on the USPS/UPS website. Since 2013, prices have dropped even further, with newer printers trying to differentiate with lower price points. As a result, Kickstarter has been littered with unfinished 3D printer projects. Our goal is to reduce the risk for you, even if that means a slightly higher price point. Yes, the higher price point makes it less lucrative, and we would expect a lower funding amount as compared to other KS printers, but it’s a good and honest price. It’s a price point that does not put the backers at risk, and is yet justified by the design and quality of the product. So we just want to thank you for being the awesome backers that you are – for being the ones that don't jump at the lowest price, but rather evaluate decisions based on value. Your pledges are safe with us. =) 

This weekend, we will begin ordering the smaller parts for your printers (for the early birds). We will use some leftover funds from our previous Kickstarter for this initial procurement. Parts should be here in about 2 weeks. 

We will also begin taking inventory of the parts that we already have at hand such as the v-slot extrusions, borosilicate glass, wiring, and a few other smaller items. (We do have a lot of filament on hand too, and are contemplating offering them up as a reward. What do you guys think?) 

We are also contemplating adding a few extra parts to the kit that might make the build easier for you. (For example, we are contemplating laser cutting an additional piece of steel which can be used as a jig when lining up your extrusions. )

Our short term goal is to have all the parts (with the exception of the sheet metal parts) on hand by Sept. 10. 

That’s it for now, please let us know if you have any questions. =) 

Sincerely, 

Blue Eagle Labs Team


Funded! Thank You Metal Delta Backers! August 05 2016, 0 Comments

A HUGE THANKS to you, our initial backers!! We reached our campaign goal in less than 24 hours!

Even if this is our second Kickstarter project, we are still incredibly thrilled and grateful for all the support and feedback. Your trust is very important to us, thus we are happy to answer any questions you might have about your pledge and the project. We will also make sure to provide you timely updates and information on our progress.

That said, our campaign is far from over. Please continue sharing the news about the Metal Delta! The bigger our campaign gets, the more resources we'll have to provide you the best Metal Delta possible! :)

Once again, thank you all for your support. Have a great weekend!!

- Blue Eagle Labs Team


We're back on Kickstarter with a souped-up all metal printer! August 04 2016, 1 Comment

Hi Everyone,

We just wanted to announce that our second 3D printer project - the Metal Delta - is now live on Kickstarter. Here's the page:

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blueeaglelabs/the-metal-delta-build-your-own-metal-delta-printer

Here are some key features of the Metal Delta:

  • All Metal Frame/Design – made of hot rolled steel; very rigid and allows user  to 3D print designs with superior accuracy and precision
  • Easy Build – part count is kept to a minimum, screws thread directly onto the metal parts and parts were designed to allow quick and easy mounting of hot ends, extruder gears and pinch wheels, carriages, and belt tensioners
  • Large Build Volume – at 250mm diameter x 280mm height, it has one of the best size to cost ratio compared to other delta printers on the market
  • Comes with a FREE 1-year commercial subscription to Autodesk® Fusion 360™ (limited time-offer; subject to applicable terms and conditions)
  • Lots of Upgrade options: Laser Engraver, Dual Extrusion, Ultra-Precision Magnetic Ball Joints, GeckoTek Bed, High Resolution Motors
  • Tested by experienced 3D printer enthusiasts/experts, some of whom were  backers from our previous Kickstarter


Pledges for the Metal Delta start at US$499 for a basic PLA early bird kit and US$549 for a basic ABS early bird kit. We expect to start fulfillment by September 2016.
 
Please share our project with your friends and family!

Cheers,

BEL Team


Precision Magnetic Carbon Fiber Rod Assembly now available! February 07 2016, 1 Comment

Hi Everyone,

We want you to know that Haydn Huntley and our team have decided to team up and produce the best magnetic ball joints/arms solution anyone could find. It will be $60 plus shipping per set.

Here's the description along with some pictures:

"Haydn's Carbon Fiber Arms with CNC Machined Delrin Sockets"

This fully assembled Precision Magnetic Arm Delta Solution comes with 6 carbon fiber rods, 12 precision machined Delrin cups with embedded magnets, and 12 ball studs.

All arms are precisely assembled, and hold tolerances of less than 50µm (ball) center to center dimensions using custom jigs.

All Magnetic Holder Cups are precision machined from black Delrin. Delrin has great material properties for 3D delta applications: It has high wear resistance, low coefficient of friction (reducing energy loss through friction). There is no need for lubricants, and will reduce overall noise on your delta.

All joints are also tested to at least have 1 kg holding force on each end.

The Chrome Ball Studs are cleverly designed with hexagonal base for easy tightening and standard M3 threads that would easily adapt to popular carriage and effector thread sizes.

Carbon fiber is the choice material for the rods, which have a high strength to weight ratio.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Beta Testers Wanted! October 14 2015, 4 Comments

Hi Everyone!

It’s been 2 years since we launched the Kossel Clear on Kickstarter. Since then, we’ve had enough time to rest and recoup. We've been busy working on a newer version of our printer, and will be launching it soon on Kickstarter. We put a great amount of effort into it, and after many various iterations, this is where we are. It was designed to be one of the better delta printers out there in terms of ease of build, quality, and flexibility:

Metal Frame:

We're using 20X20 openbuilds extrusions which will allow taller prints than your current KCs (315mm height x 200mm dia). The thicker extrusions make it more rigid, and allow the rollers to slide directly on the channels rather than the edges of the extrusions. 

For the Top and Base plates, we used 3mm hot rolled sheet metal: laser cut, precision CNC bent, powder coated, and then tapped. It's ready to accept M5 and M3 size screws. This design solves many problems: motors can now be mounted directly to the base, eliminating the need for multiple joins, unnecessary screws. The idlers are screwed on directly to the top plate, and since it's metal (instead of plastic), it's much harder to strip the threads. We also positioned multiple screw holes on the frame to allow for future expansion, in case some of you would want to mount a camera, or a spool holder, or add more extruders.

Metal Extruders:

The extruder design allows the bowden tube to thread directly on to the part, allowing it to come as close as possible to the extruder gears. The new design uses springs with adjustable tension instead of the binder clips that we're all used to. Threading the extruder hinge also allows you the option of installing a push to fit, if preferred.

Metal Carriages and Effector:

They are bent at an angle that will allow the full 180 degree range of movement for the ball joints, but we also put a small acrylic shield on the back side in case any of your kids stick their finger the rail while printing.

Multi filament (Dual Extrusion):

We designed a y-connector that will allow the easy swapping of filament and would mate easily with an E3D. here's a similar concept: http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:301982

Magnetic Ball Joints:

These ball joints will be sourced from our current supplier (some of you may have purchased from us in the previous months), with a few changes: magnetic force has been reduced to a holding force of 0.5kg each. (The old 1kg ones was overkill and there were some complaints that the force was too strong causing some undesired movements on the carriages). 

To ensure that the lengths are precise, we installed nylon nuts in between the aluminum rods and the ball joints. This allows the builder to adjust every single arm to the desired length. Making it adjustable will allow the user to control the precision on each arm using regular 1ft calipers. They also have the option to seal it permanently with epoxy if desired. The arms in the photos have been adjusted to be within 15 microns of each other.

 

Launching a new product is difficult, and even if we are a 2 year old startup, we’re still pretty lean. We will need your help with testing the printer and helping us see potential issues with it. We need feedback to help us decide just how ready this printer is for Kickstarter. Right now we only have one prototype (in the photos). Any type of feedback is crucial, but we went ahead and listed a few specific things that we were hoping beta testers would be able to help us with.

1. Calibration Notes - how did you calibrate? what difficulties did you encounter? What is the best way to instruct a noobie on how to calibrate?

2. Dual Filament - what are the most common issues you've encountered? what are your preferred speeds and temperatures? What are your preferred gcode switching routines?

3. Arduino Due Feedback - We are also currently talking to the repetiere folks to produce an all in 1 software solution for us for the standard ramps setup, and also for the Arduino Due (which will be offered as an upgrade). 

4. General User Experience - how did you feel building it? how did it fee when you finished your 1st print? how do you feel about it after a month? or 2 months? 

We are looking for 20 beta testers that:

a) know how to manually calibrate deltas

b) know their way around repetiere and marlin firmware or smoothieware

c) can research solutions and troubleshoot on their own.

d) are fairly confident that they can build this printer just from the pictures below.

If you fit the description, and/or you think you can help, we would be glad to offer this kit to you at cost. Please contact us directly at blueeaglelabs@gmail.com :) 

Thanks again everyone for your continued support! If you have any questions, please email us directly at blueeaglelabs@gmail.com or just post them here.

P.S. Please note that the printer in the pics are PLA only, but we will have an ABS version (still in the works).


Magnetic Ball Joints Upgrade How To: February 02 2015, 1 Comment

Hi Everyone,

 Here are some instructions on how to install the magnetic ball joint upgrades:

  • Peel off the protective layer from the acrylic.

 

 

  • With the “M” engraving facing you, drill in the screws for the belts (M3 16 or longer) all the way in. Make sure your torque setting is at its lowest.

 

 

  • Drill in an M3-10 screw in to part “N”. Note the orientation of the part.

 

  • Use and M3-14 screw to secure it on to the faceplate.

  • This is what it should look like:

 

  • Throw in the ball joints!

 

  • Secure them with some nuts. You may also throw in some washers to sandwich the acrylic if you want!

 

  • Throw in the M5 nuts, add spacers, and add the wheels and secure with the nuts. (The wheels are to be taken from your old carriages, they’re not included in the upgrade purchase). Make sure that you install only 2 wheels at this point.

 

 

  • Position the assembly into the edge of the extrusion, then affix the 3rd wheel and tighten appropriately. 

  • Here’s another picture of the assembly on an open beam extrusion:

 

  • After installing the 3rd wheel, it should look like this:

 

  • Attach the ball joints onto the new effector and secure with bolts.

 

  • Undo the rods, put a drop or 2 of threadlock.

Ewwww….

 

  • Attach the rods..

 

Congrats, on your upgrade! Remember, you will need to manually calibrate the machine afterwards :)

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Coming soon: How to install the 110V silicone heater and round Boro glass

 


Stuff we've been working on November 15 2014, 3 Comments

Hello Everyone!

It's been so long since our last post.. Since then, we've been able to fulfill all the backlogged printers, took a few small vacations, had time to relax and recollect, and then went right back to tinkering. Here's an update on what we've been working on:

 

 

  • We redesigned the acrylic parts to reduce part count, and got rid of (almost) all the 3mm pieces
  • Some acrylic parts are also heat bended as in the picture
  • For the print surface, we used a round borosilicate glass with a silicone 110V heater (max 140C)
  • We're using magnets dabbed with thread lock (for grip); but we may revise this method. The point was to have the glass be easily removed for easy access to the electronics.

 

 

 

  • We used magnetic ball joints and fastened them to the bigger acrylic effector plate with nylon nuts.
  • Printing PLA with a direct bowden and all metal setup is difficult, so we are also looking around and testing a few all metal hot ends.
  • For the rods, we are using aluminum instead of carbon fiber. It's easier and cheaper to manufacture.

 

  • We simplified the carriage design and are now using 6mm acrylic. It's a LOT more rigid, and a lot easier to put together.
  • Notice the custom delrin V rollers. The objective here was to keep it light with just 1 small bearing.
  • We also decided to keep the adjustable screws for those that want to calibrate manually.

 

Let us know how we did. If we missed anything that deserves to be upgraded, just drop a comment here or on our forum. We intend to make the ball joints and arms, the rollers and carriages, and the heated bed available as an upgrade to the original KC.


June Update June 07 2014, 1 Comment

Hi Everyone, 

We've been soooo busy! Here are some updates:

Kits

All but 5 pre-ordered kits have been shipped. We expect the forums to be very busy soon, so thanks again to everyone for being so helpful with fellow builders! :) You are truly awesome!

 

Assembled Units

The custom packaging has been finalized, ordered and received.. We're shipping the 1st 4 units this week, and hope they get to their destination in one piece. :) 

We don't think that the calibration will be spot on when it reaches the destination, but we are hopeful that it won't be so bad. Before we send out the printers, we test the electronics, then manually calibrate, and also calculate the z probe offset. We have it print for a few hours, then when everything checks out, we send the z probe offset to the recipient, and we store it in the sd card (if they ordered an LCD). Oh and yes, we will ship them with Marlin, rather than Repetiere.

That said, we are still asking you guys to be diligent enough to pursue the manual calibration process before they use their machines. At this point, nothing beats a manually calibrated printer.

In terms of time frames, the extra help that we hired had decided to pursue a job with a bigger company…so this kind of throws us off a bit. We will be looking for replacement help, right away. All the assembled units are physically built up. What's still yet to be done is the installation of the electronics and calibration. If you have a burning need to know how your printer is doing, or where we are in the build, please contact us via email directly. Since the printers are in different stages of completion, there's not one date that we can pinpoint. It is best just talk to you guys 1 on 1. 

We know it's taken a long time, but we hope that we still have your trust that we are working very diligently to get these printers built properly, and shipped out as fast as possible.Here are some pics. Please forgive the clutter in the background.

 

 

 

Sincerely,

Blue Eagle Labs Team

 


April Update April 21 2014, 6 Comments

Hi everyone,

A couple of updates:

New Extruder

We have released a new extruder with the kits that are going out. We designed it so that the Bowden tubes run up as close to the bearings as possible to prevent the filament from popping out. We also moved the notch that the binder clip catches farther from the pivot point to allow more springiness. This will make it perform better for print jobs with multiple retractions. Lastly, we made it out of acrylic and screws. The idler has an M8 screw holding the bearing in, so the bearing won’t wiggle around like before. Having laser cut pieces will also ensure that the idler bearing is always perpendicular to the filament. This last modification means that the Kossel Clear now has 0% printed parts in its BOM.

 

All the parts necessary to build this have been prepacked in a small plastic bag, so you will know exactly which screws and parts will be needed to put the extruder together. Photo instructions are on our website. We also have a short instructional video for the extruder on Youtube.  

 

If you have received any molded extruder parts, please let us know and we will send you the updated acrylic version.

 

 

Video Reshoot
The Kossel Clear has evolved since we started the project, and we needed to update the build instructions and make it easier to follow. We got some help with reshooting a new set of instructional videos from start to finish. We already have some episodes up on Youtube, and will hopefully finish uploading everything by next week.

 

Written Documentation
The Wiki is coming along, but we are also expecting a complete written guide on how to build the Kossel Clear. ETA is 1 month.

 

Batch 2 Kits
We’ve been shipping a lot these past weeks, at this point, we have about 8 kits left to fulfill for batch 2. To the last 8 who have not received their kits yet, we are unable to send them off because of a shortage in Misumi extrusions (we damaged a few sets last week). We have ordered replacements from Misumi, which will arrive 1st week of May. If you cannot wait for Misumi extrusions to come in, we could offer Open Beam upgrades for $20. This offer is for everyone who hasn’t received their printers yet (assembled, batch 2, and web orders).

 

Assembled Units   
As we have stated in a separate update before, the production of assembled units are separate from the kits. We split our team up to tackle these orders separately. We have built a handful of printers from start to finish, and are calibrating them. The current obstacle is packaging. We have been going back and forth with a local packaging company asking them to design packaging which will ensure that the assembled units are protected (see below pics). We drop tested it last week and we need to go through another revision of the foam cutting die, then another 10 days for production until we have the packing material ready.  

 

In assembling the units, the team has decided to build the remaining printers as an entire batch rather than individually. This means all the remaining printers will be built at the same time. Doing this will allow us to delegate the subcomponents that need to be built to more people (i.e., 1 person in charge of lower brackets, 1 other person in charge of electronics, another for belts etc..). Those that work part-time will be able to help build their subcomponents at home after work, and they are free to ask their friends to help out if they wish. This will speed up deliveries for everyone.  

 

So where are we exactly? All the acrylic subcomponents are built, and all power supplies are attached. We have yet to complete the electronics wiring, and hotend/extruder subcomponents.

 

 

 

 

Website Orders
There are about 35 website orders remaining that are all Misumi extrusions. As mentioned earlier, Misumi said they'd have the parts in by May. We can confidently say that we can get all 35 out in 1 week, so please expect your kits to start shipping very soon.

 

We’re Almost There!!!
If you haven’t received your printer yet, we just need a little bit more patience from you. We are sorry for the delays, and we are thankful for all the support you guys have shown us. If you are currently building right now, and need some help, please try the forums first, and if you do not get the help you need, please email us so that we can help you.

 

Have a great week ahead! :)

 

 - Blue Eagle Labs Team

Quick Update February 26 2014, 0 Comments

Hi Everyone,

 

Just a very quick update…

 

Batch 1:

We have shipped out all but 1 order last Monday. The last remaining Batch 1 kit had incomplete shipping information, which was just resolved yesterday, and we will ship it out today.

 

Batch 2:

We will resume shipping the batch 2 orders this week. Our goal is to ship 10 a day, but right now we are still having issues with the printed/molded parts. The quality is not where we want it yet. We are in talks with a local manufacturer that will help us produce the molded parts right away. They have a fast turnaround and can supply all the remaining parts in a few days. We are on track for shipping all of batch 2 by the end of March.

 

Assembled Units:

We have one assembled unit and 3 in production. We have just trained an extra person to help work on the assembled units and are in talks with another individual to help out. Our goal is to ramp up the output to 1 per day.   

 

Website Orders:

Hang in there!! We haven't forgotten you! We are shipping yours right after batch 2 (independent of the assembled units timeline).

    

Instructions:

We have made arrangements to outsource the written instructions. Please be patient with us on this. Regarding the audio on the youtube videos, the latter videos do not have audio yet. We are still producing the audio for the remaining videos.  

 

:)


Acrylic Production, Printed Parts, New Space, and New Timeline February 07 2014, 3 Comments

Hi everyone,

We have a couple of updates:

Acrylic Production:

This past 2 weeks our shipping has been very limited. We had problems with our laser ventilation and cannot cut continuously. We have just been recently able to resolve it. We have made a deal with a local space for them to let us use their laser. Now we have the original 60 watt universal laser plus an additional 50 watt epilog laser at our disposal.

Printed Parts: 

We are currently looking into molding rather than printing parts. This will allow us to make parts faster and more consistently. We will continue using our printers for the printed parts, but as soon as the molding is figured out, we will try and shift to that manufacturing method.

 New Space:

As some of you guys may know, we are borrowing warehouse space in Arcadia, while using our garage in Irvine for staging and packing. The garage got too crowded too fast, and driving up to Arcadia has become too cumbersome. We were able to rent out some space for very cheap. The space is very bare, just some shelves, fold up tables and chairs. We will make sure we spend as little as possible and be as lean a startup as possible. Total amount we have spent on the shelves and tables/chairs is less than $500. (yay Costco!)

New Timeline: 

The small issues that have come up, such as the need for an extra laser and the need for more space may seem trivial, but they do cause delays so we try to hold out on our current methods as much as possible, until it is absolutely necessary. That said, here are new deadlines we have set for ourselves:  

Kickstarter Batch 1: 3rd wk Feb (Top Priority) 15 units  

Kickstarter Batch 2: Last week of March  

Kickstarter Assembled Units: Last Week of April

Website Pre-orders: 6-8 weeks lead time for new orders. For earlier orders, please email us at blueeaglelabs@gmail.com if you would like an update on the the status of your order. 

Risk:  

While the local manufactured parts are causing the delay, we would just want to remind everyone that the rest of the parts for your printers are here, and there is very little risk of us not delivering. While timeliness may be an issue, the longer you wait, the better the product gets. 

Best,  

Blue Eagle Labs Team

P.S. Thanks to everyone on the Kossel Clear Forum who have helped move this project forward. You guys have been a great help to us in providing assistance to the newcomers. You guys are awesome!   


Auto Calibration Instructions November 08 2013, 20 Comments

AUTO CALIBRATION HOW TO:

Background:

To be able to successfully print out a first layer on the bed, you need to make sure that the molten plastic from the nozzle will adhere well to the bed, so that the lower layers of your print will not dislodge, while the printer is building the object. A number of factors will affect adhesion, such as:

    • Correct temperatures of the heat bed and the nozzle (ideal temps will vary based on the quality of the filament)
    • Ambient temperatures
    • How clean the heatbed is: is it dirt free, are the oils smudges on the bed from your fingers
    • Sometimes, cleaning the boro glass with some brands of alcohol leaves residue that causes the glass to reject the plastic that is layered on it.
    • Nozzle height: printing too high from the bed will guarantee a failed print. Printing too low will block the flow of plastic, and also ruin your print. One way to test if your nozzle is at the correct height is by using a piece of paper as test. Get a regular piece of bond paper and slide it under the nozzle. The paper should be able to go through, and you should feel a slight drag from the nozzle. If the nozzle is too high, you won’t feel the drag. Too low, and the paper won’t go through.
    • Bed Leveling. the bed needs to be the same distance from the nozzle throughout the bed.

The autocalibration command is a very helpful tool that Johann Rocholl created for these delta printers. The “G29” is a sequence that will use the printer’s effector to probe the bed at multiple points. It measures the ‘flatness’ of the bed as well as the bed level, and compensates any irregularities so that the printer prints perfectly every time. The idea is that before every print, you can issue the command to ensure the flatness of the bed.

While the “G29” command is able to measure the bed in reference to the probe, you still need to tell it what the probe’s offset is in relation to the nozzle. You can do this by adding a Z height offset to the G29 command. For example, “G29 Z-0.32”. Here’s a step by step on how to do it:

Check this before homing/autocalibrating for the 1st time:

    • Check the wiring. Are all the wires connected to the right pins?
    • Check that the thermistors are secure on the hotend and heatbed
    • Check that the rollers are aligned to physically touch the endstops
    • Ensure that the magnets on the autocal parts are correctly oriented
    • Be ready to hit the kill switch just in case things go wrong (find the reset button on the ramps, or if you have an lcd, there’s a kill button there too!)

 

 

When you have determined the correct Z probe offset, put it in your gcode prefix in kisslicer as below:

 

When you are done, slice a simple object, and try to print!

 

 

 


Ramps Boards August 30 2013, 2 Comments

Hi everyone,

So last week, we received our 1st batch of electronics from our overseas suppliers. We had ordered a batch of ramps boards for our early bird backers, even before we received the funds from KS. The purpose of this is to be able to:

1) establish trust between us and the factory

2) determine their defect rate

3) be assured that we have more than enough boards for the early backers

4) establish a test procedure that we can use for the succeeding batches

 

We decided to order 10 more boards as buffer in case there is a >30% defect rate, which we think is conservative enough.

Here's a pic of the boards fresh from the factory:

 

We discovered that the header pins were missing, so we had to manually solder the header pins ourselves. It was quite tedious and took up most of our time. We contacted the factory about this, and they agreed to install the headers for the next batches for a few more cents per board. We were only able to test a few, but so far so good.. It looks like the factory is trust worthy enough for our next order: the heat beds.

 

 P.S. these pics were taken at OCGT. (http://www.meetup.com/OC-Garage-Tinkerers/)

 


The OC Mini Maker Faire August 19 2013, 1 Comment

Hi everyone!

We had a booth at the Orange County Mini Maker Faire last Saturday - our 1st ever Maker Faire! We had a great time showing off our printer, and so many people thought that it was the prettiest printer they've seen. Here are some pics:

 

 


We're Funded on Kickstarter!!! July 31 2013, 1 Comment

Thanks to the incredible support of our backers, we've reached 300% of our funding goal in just 24 hours! 

We can't even begin to describe how grateful and thrilled we are, but this animated GIF comes pretty close to capturing how we're feeling:

 

 

Our team is working on stretch goals right now, so please stay tuned as we'll be sharing them on our Kickstarter page soon!

In the meantime, please continue to spread the word about the Kossel Clear! http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/blueeaglelabs/kossel-clear-lets-build-a-full-sized-delta-3d-prin


Kickstarter Approved! July 28 2013, 2 Comments

Great news, everyone!

Our project, Kossel Clear - Let's build a full sized delta 3D printer!, has been approved by Kickstarter! 

We're just going to finalize our Kickstarter page, so please watch out for the details of our launch - we'll be releasing them very soon! 


Auto Calibration July 27 2013, 0 Comments

Here's a vid of the first tests of Johann's auto calibration routine

 

 Pretty cool, huh?


Photo Shoot! July 07 2013, 0 Comments

It was a great weekend to do the photo shoot! Here are some sneak peeks..

 

 

We'll be releasing more photos soon. Watch out for it! :)


Kossel Clear Design Updates June 12 2013, 1 Comment

Hi everyone!

We've made some adjustments to the Kossel Clear based on the feedback from the beta testers:

  1. The screws used in calibration the sliders/rollers had to be relocated to protect it from being accidentally snagged when transporting the printer.
  2. The endstop was moved from the top horizontal beams into the vertical ones. To make it work, we had to redesign the roller/carriage design.
  3. The ball joints were also adjusted wider to allow more room for the belts to play, without interfering with the arm movement.

 


All You Need Is... June 07 2013, 0 Comments

Has it really been almost 2 months since our last update? Apologies for the lack of blog posts, we've been really busy making design adjustments and improvements to the Kossel Clear...plus, we were having way too much fun printing! Speaking of which, here's one more design from Thingiverse that we printed recently:

 

 What would you like to print with your Kossel Clear?

 


BlueEagleLabs.com is Live! April 15 2013, 0 Comments

BlueEagleLabs.com is up and running! A couple of things are not working yet; but, nevertheless, we're super excited that we are finally able to share our Kossel Clear 3D Printer after months of designing and testing. We highly encourage everyone to browse our photos and videos, and please keep checking back as we will be adding a lot more content to our website soon!

If you have any questions or feedback, you can email us at BlueEagleLabs@gmail.com, or leave us a message by clicking: Contact Us.