This artical is aiming to provide some detailed guidance on installing the Extension board and solving some frequently occured issues after installed the extension board.
We will focused on the cable connection during the installing and the limit switch fault after installed the extension board.
Installation of the extension board.
Step 1. Make sure the printer is turned off, installing with electricity on will may cause short circuit and destroy the electronics. Please first refer to the guidance video to finish the first 3 steps in the video , Remove the original PCB and cables and install the extension board .
Step 2. Insert the small FFC cable one end to the connector on the mainboard, Insert another end to the connector on the extension board, Please notice that ,to insert the cable, ensure the wire exposed side face downwards.
Step 3. Plug the Y and Z axis limit switch cable connectors to the corresponding color connectors on the extension board .
Step 4. The most important step, This step was missed in the video ,
Insert the limit switch cable connector originate from the mainboard (white connector with Y and z limit swithc cable combined）.
The cable is shown below, it should be included and installed in the original machine, but the cable could be faulty when using with Extension PCB.
Before insert the cable , Please check if the cable is faulty, for some cables the connector was wired reversely in factory, which is defective when use with Extension PCB. The defective cable can work with the original small PCB board, but not with the extension board, it will caused the limit switch unable to be triggered on Y and Z axis. That means when initializing the printer, the z axis will not stop and will keep moving even when reached the end cap and causing the initialization to fail.
The reason for the issue, is before releasing the extension board, The small PCB will work on any polarity of limit switch. So it does not matter, if the connector is wired correctly or not, but when connected to the extension board polarity does matters.
That 's why you may found the limit switch can work with the original PCB but not with extension board. For some early buyer may have this issue, and please contact our support team to get a new and correctly wired cable (or you may simple reverse the wire by yourself). We added this cable in later extension board package, so when install the extension board, Use the new cable .
After confirming the cable is good, connect the two 2-pin connectors to corresponding connectors on the mainboard and the 4-pin white connector to the extension board's white socket.
Step 5, The final cable connection is shown as below, Do not change the stepper motor cable and keep them stay in original postion and inserted on mainboard, Dont need connected them with extension board.
Step 6, Then refer to the video to finish the installing the cover and the assembling of other parts. If you need use the heated bed, please make sure the heated bed FFC cable need be inserted to the extension board with the exposed wire side facing upward.
Comments
25 comments
Thank you Joshua for this great tutorial!
Hey Joshua, how come my package didn't come with a new transfer cable, I used the original Pyz white connector and still works?
@Arnold,
Because we have dispatched some extension board without the cable inside to EU and US warehouse before we realized this issue ,So some early buyer may dont see the cable in package, But we added it later, The future buyer will see the cable, If you dont have it, Please contact us to get one.
@Joshua, no I didn't get one. I also didn't get the yellow power adaptor but I assumed it wasn't included if you order the 220W power supply. But why is my extension board working with the stock cable?
@Arnold
Yes, In the new package we canceled the yellow power adapter ,after a while , we added the limit cable in the package , So the orders during this period ,May no cable inside the package, But the further orders will come with it .
Not all but most of the original cables are can work with extension board, But some of them can not , and then they need replaced the new cable .
@Joshua, I am so lucky then! Everything works :D
@Arnold,
Yeah, You are lucky if the original cable works!
Hi Joshua,
thanks for the more detailed instructions on the extension board. What I'm struggling with is to figure out how to correctly install the heated build plate. The old guide for the beta plate is not applicable/transferable to the new model. How the FFC cable is connected is clear from this guide here.
I've 3 questions remaining:
1. I am wondering about the new mount for the plate to the linear rail bearing block. In my case it's not possible to firmly and evenly mount it. Either there is a gap or it's off angle. Because of the dent where the sheet was folded (see photos with semi-fastened screw). Is it required? Is mine faulty?
Edit: Next photo is with the screw fastened, that results in a tilted bracket:
2. What is the purpose of the printed parts? Where do they go?
3. The cable with two screwable connectors (red/blue) is for an alternative power source, if the Tiertime 220 W power supply is not used, right?
Thanks!
@superhans , don't use that bracket semi-mounted on the linear rail guide-block, I can't imagine needing a dent as in the photo. Hopefully it has not altered the threads in the guide-block.
If you have some lint-free towelettes, please wipe the sides of the guide-block where it meets the rail and clean-up the dust etc gathering. Also, do you have some really light oil, like sewing-machine oil or hair-trimmer oil that is frequently included for maintenance of said appliances. Not much is needed, but should be added in the side grooves on the guide-block every 5-10 hours of printing. They do say they are self-lubricating, but the grooves on my guide-block become dry frequently.
Looks like those printed parts attach to the top of the angled bracket (with dent) , so they probably are sandwiched between the build-plate and the angle bracket.
I'll have a quick look at the installation guide now.
Thanks for looking into it Brent! Will definitely apply your maintenance tips for the guide-block. I have no prior experience with parts like that, so any guidance is welcome :)
Regarding the black screw, not to worry, it's the original one. The photo is a bit misleading. I can fasten the screw more, but that forces the bracket to tilt upwards opposite of the screw because of the dent. (Edit: I updated my post above to include a photo of the tilted state)
Still unsure about the printed parts. The right one on the photo has the same clips as the extension board cover base, that snap into the extruded rods. Maybe it's just supposed to be a cable guide along the z-axis. The one with the hole, still no clue.
Here is a photo of the bottom of the new heated build plate:
Edit: Regarding the sandwiching theory, I tried a couple positions, but it doesn't really make sense to me. For better perspective I included the photo. First I thought it would be a spacer, but it's too thick.
I noticed what looks like a nick on the linear rail, on the left towards the end of the rail in the first photo submitted. I recommend to check for any nicks or significant scratches on the rail where the guide-block meets the rails. Any raised scratches and/or nicks in the rail grooves can easily blow-up a bearing because of the tight tolerances between the guide-block and linear rail.
I could not find any documentation that would help-me help-you, I recommend waiting to hear from support on the issues you've raised, especially that dent!
That bracket is definitely defective, I'm concerned with the threads "in" the guide-block not the screw/bolt
Right, it looks like a scratch on the photo, but I just closely inspected the area with a LED flash light and luckily it was just a bit of dust that got into the picture, but thanks for keeping such a close eye!
And thanks very much for looking into it, much appreciated! I will wait for a response, that will document the heated build plate upgrade for all buyers.
Can you post a pick of the plastic part with those 4 posts near to the guide-block.
Got ya, with the thread. I was gentle and didn't overdo it and the thread looks perfect still. There is a german saying regarding fastening screws that roughly translates to "after firm comes off". I try to apply that wisdom most times :)
Thanks again and good night!
Edit: Here the photos of the printed part with the clips:
Is there no insulation between the bracket and the heated build-plate? Seems like there would be too much heat-transfer from the heated build-plate into the guide-block. Going to look at the guide-block documents from the manufacturer for the safe operating temperature info...
That's a great snippet of wisdom!!
Alrighty, until next time...good journeys to you!
Yes, you're right, the extreme temperatures won't prolong the guide-blocks lifespan.
Wow, yup, there's the relation not seen in separate photos...lol. OK, changing recommendation...try not to push that part into any unsuspecting holes!
K, grab some sleep! Tomorrow it will be...
Will do, good night to you later!
@superhans, the plastic on the left with a hole goes to the rear Y axis guide and secured by one of the screws. The other plastic with an angle is the ribbon cable holder used to secure the ribbon cable, the wide groove is the ribbon cable guide. Both were covered in the older videos that you can find here - https://youtu.be/stUvDT2asPI
Thanks Arnold, for some reason I must have overlooked the video entirely, although I searched through the FAQ/help sections and did a video search, that should have brought it up. Weird...
Jason Wu also published a additional guide just now:
https://support.tiertime.com/hc/en-us/articles/360023857753-Installation-Guide-of-Heated-Build-Platform-for-Cetus-MK3
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