I’ve recently picked up a TAZ 3 printer. I happen to also have a brand new spare Hexagon toolhead that I bought as a spare for my TAZ 5.
My question is, can I just hook up this TAZ 5 toolhead with hexagon hotend directly to my TAZ 3, or is there something that would have to change on the TAZ 3 to allow it to work?
Don’t want to wreck a perfectly new toolhead, nor damage my TAZ 3 if there’s a compatibility issue.
Wonder if anyone could help answer this question.
OR, should I just keep the Budaschnozzle (presuming that’s what it comes with) on the TAZ 3 and forget about doing the swap altogether. I’m still pretty new to 3D printing (picked up my TAZ 5 in Feburary), and now getting a second printer (TAZ 3) to play with and experiment on. Also in the process of building a flexystruder that I wanted to try out on the TAZ 3 (but that’s a whole other subject whether that’ll work or not). For now, I just want to know if the TAZ 5 toolhead with the hexagon hotend will work on the TAZ 3…
You are going to have to make some changes in the firmware level to get it to work. Basically just telling it the different thermistor and heater core settings. You can find those in the configuration.h section of the Taz 5 firmware. Here’s the actual installation guide thingy to add that hot end to a Taz 3 https://ohai-kit.alephobjects.com/project/taz3-hexagon-toolhead/
If you upgrade the Z axis at the same time to the new Taz 4/5 style you could just upload the Taz 5 firmware directly.
You mention upgrading the Z-axis. Are you talking about the two threaded rods that move the toolhead up and down? I have read something about it, that on the TAZ4 onward, they upgraded the threaded rods for better layer control.
You wouldn’t happen to know where a guy would order those rods and other required pieces for that upgrade would you?
Yup, the Z axis is the up down threaded rod bits. You can get the leadsacrews from Mitsumi USA. Here’s a link to the leadscrew itself http://us.misumi-ec.com/vona2/result/?Keyword=MTSBRK12-420-F7-R8-T9-Q8-S20-E5-FE0-FW7-FY1
You will also need two leadscrew nuts http://us.misumi-ec.com/vona2/detail/110300081660/?HissuCode=MTSRR12&PNSearch=MTSRR12
Two helical couplers, Mitsumi used to carry them as part GSASL16-5-5, you should be able to find them somewhere easily enough though. The leadscrew end shaft and the motor shaft are the same diameter,
You’ll also need 4 608zz bearings, a bunch of M5 heat set inserts, a bunch of M3 heat set inserts (mcmaster carr sells those) an M5 cap screw with a thumbscrew end piece, and a spring that will fit an M5 shaft.
You also will need to reroute your Z axis endstop. it moves from the lower frame to up on the X axis. You’ll end up making a longer endstop wire for it.
Thanks again for the information. I think this is an upgrade I’ll do to my TAZ3 as well. Having a TAZ 5 in front of me during the upgrade is certainly going to help I think!