JMP
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue May 14, 2013 9:34 pm

Need example for SD printing on Rep2

I have a replicator 2 running sailfish in which I always print from SD card.
I am trying to figure out the workflow on getting an x3g file to copy to my SD card. It seems that I need to use the GPX tool to get that x3g file created, but there isn't much documentation on how that works. Has anyone successfully done this and if so can you give an example of what was put into Creator's post processing command and if there needed to an ini file created, edited for GPX for this to work? This software looks great but I'm having a problem getting over this first hump.

Thanks,
Jason
Simplify3D
Site Admin
Posts: 310
Joined: Sun Feb 10, 2013 8:28 pm

Re: Need example for SD printing on Rep2

Jason,

You can find some basic instructions on the GPX google group (https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgr ... -converter). Essentially, all you do it add GPX as a post-processing script with the appropriate flags for whatever machine you are running. For your Replicator 2, you would want "-m r2".

We are already drafting up better documentation and tutorials for this process, so I hope those will be available soon.

Let me know if there's anything else I can do to help!
JMP
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue May 14, 2013 9:34 pm

Re: Need example for SD printing on Rep2

I put this in the post processing script

/Users/preuss/Documents/gpx/gpx -p -m r2 "[output_filepath]"

and it did indeed output an x3g file in the same directory as the gcode file. Now I need to figure out these GPX ini files, but those are questions for a different forum.
JMP
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue May 14, 2013 9:34 pm

Re: Need example for SD printing on Rep2

I have been in contact with the GPX author and I guess I don't need to do anything else if I want the print to have the same properties as what I have specified in creator. Hopefully will have some time this evening to do some printing and see the results of all this.
JMP
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue May 14, 2013 9:34 pm

Re: Need example for SD printing on Rep2

I tried a print of my x3g file and there were problems. In the software I had centered the print but when my printer did the print it placed it in the back right corner, so far back that a good part of the print was off the platform. I used the profiles from the author of the GPX found here https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic ... 2z6HEZDA2A
Any suggestions on what I need to adjust?
taerog
Posts: 11
Joined: Fri May 17, 2013 2:23 pm

Re: Need example for SD printing on Rep2

I am very interested in this program as a all in one front end app for the replicator 2 and 2x.
This program has all of the parts I would need (very comprehensive feature set that take a tool chain of ~3 other programs to manage if even possible) but VERY concerned over current and future support for the makerbot replicators.

If this is shown to currently work well with the makerbot printers (good workflow in a single app) and future support (within reason) I would be very interested in getting a license or two.
Currently I am slicing in one program, viewing/Varafying in another and building the x3g file in yet another. Or swap slicers due to real limitations that do not seem to be getting addressed . . and not liking the mess. (heck I even went to port GPX to use it and spent time just getting that simple but crazy useful converter that whpthomas made to work because of the lack of support in slic3r)

Any news or help with real world use of this program with makerbot hardware would be quite helpfull.
JMP
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue May 14, 2013 9:34 pm

Re: Need example for SD printing on Rep2

I did a little more testing.

I took the gcode file that creator put out, put it into repG to create the x3g file, and got the same results. This suggests to me that gpx is working fine but the gcode I am getting out of creator is off. My guess is that the axis are are reading zero at the wrong place or something. Anything you can suggest for me to adjust to get working gcode?
slipshine
Posts: 86
Joined: Sat Mar 16, 2013 10:27 pm

Re: Need example for SD printing on Rep2

They have added a offset that allows you to move where the home is.

You might try using that.
JMP
Posts: 19
Joined: Tue May 14, 2013 9:34 pm

Re: Need example for SD printing on Rep2

I gave the offset a whirl.

After some trial and error I came up with an X offset of -270 and a Y offset of -127. This places the print pretty much centered on the build plate. I think there is probably a better fix for this, my print is rotated 180 degrees from the gcode preview, but at least it is now usable.

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