The tension of the conveyor belt of 3D printer seems to be a simple thing. You can set the tension and check whether it is normal. If it’s really loose, the teeth may slide, and you’ll make some changes in the print and destroy it, but it’s a simple repair. But we heard you ask, how do you determine the correct tension? This is a video showing some measurement techniques and analysis of a typical 3D printer (video, embedded in the figure below), which only uses a set of luggage scales. A simple theory is that tighter belt tension will lead to an increase in radial load on the stepper motor bearings, which in turn will lead to an increase in motor temperature due to friction. After setting some tension values on one of the belts, note that the tension value at the upper end of the range will cause the measured temperature to rise by 2 ° C and cause a significant increase in noise. This is bad for the motor.
Check the specification table of typical nem17 stepper motor. The maximum working radial force is 28n. Therefore, simply put, the tension value that causes the load to exceed this value will only shorten the service life of the motor. Even if the setting is very loose, the print quality will not change significantly until the belt is loose enough to cause the shaft movement to lag significantly behind the motor input.
As (lost in technology) suggests, perhaps the old adage of adjusting the belt tension to “middle C” may actually be too tight, causing you more problems than it solves?
Obviously, over the years, we have reported many problems with 3D printers, such as this huge belt driven printer, but it should be noted that even simple things like belt clips can make mistakes in poor design. Finally, when we consider belt drive, here is a cool belt drive extruder to consider.
I’ve been 3d printing for 4 yrs. now on a modified Tevo Tornado. All my belts have been replaced with T8 screw rods or Ball screws except for my X-axis. I have never heard of the “middle C” tightening method. Can you please explain what this is? Thanks for your help. Walt C.