Hello everyone,
Recently, re:3D’s in-house Open Gigabot (OGB) was shifting during prints and I discovered that the right belt tensioner mount was wiggling even though the screws mounting it to the rail were tight. Instead of simply printing another belt mount of the same design, I decided to update the left and right belt tensioner mounts with a feature we’re adding to the belt mounts on our newer Gigabots. I also made a couple minor changes to help increase this part’s strength. I found the old design was also a bit longer than it needed to be, and adjusted that as well.
Old Right Belt Tensioner Mount
As you can see, the old design has quite a bit of unnecessary material extending past where the screw mounting holes are located, and the part is also thin at the 90° bend.
New Right Belt Tensioner Mount
The new design has been shortened and made thicker at the bend. The right belt mount has been updated to only have indents instead of through holes where the heads of the screws sit on the bottom of the bridge rail. The left belt tensioner mount no longer has the extra holes that are needed on the right belt mount. This is all intended to give the part more strength.
The biggest update to the belt tensioner mounts is the new feature we’re adding to all of our printed belt tensioner mounts, the extra tab on the back of the belt tensioner mount. The new tab on the back provides extra support to help prevent the belt tensioner mounts from coming loose or moving around during printing.
New Left Belt Tensioner Mount
New Right Belt Tensioner Mount
As with many of our printed parts, it is recommended that the belt tensioner mounts are printed in Polycarbonate to give the belt mounts the strength they need. The new tab on the back of the belt tensioner mounts is designed to use an M5x12 screw with a washer (a fender washer is recommended, but a standard washer will work too!).
The STL file for the left and right belt tensioner mounts can be found on re:3D’s sketchfab account (Link), or contact us at support@re3d.org to order the printed parts.
Happy printing!