MAKERGEAR M2 User manual

2
V4 Rev. E
Made in the USA since 2009
User Guide
jk

Contents
1‐Welcome
2‐Warning&ImportantSafeguards
4‐What'sIncluded
5‐SetUp
8‐Slicing.STLor.OBJFiles
10‐ChangingFilament
11‐M2Features
15‐What'sTheFunction?
16‐Maintenance&TechnicalSupport
17‐Shutdown&Storage
18‐Warranty
19‐WhatDoes"M2V4Rev.E"Mean?
20‐AboutUs

Withtheexceptionofminimalsetup,yourM2is
readytoprintout‐of‐the‐box.Toensureboth
safetyandhighqualityprinting,carefullyfollow
theSetUpinstructionsincludedinthisbooklet.
Thismachinewasassembledandtestedatthe
MakerGearshopinBeachwood,Ohio,USAand
wasfullyoperationalatthetimethatitwas
shipped,asdemonstratedbythesampleobjects
includedwithyourM2—thesewereprintedon
yourmachinebeforeshipping.Thisbookletcan
alsobefoundontheMakerGearwebsiteat
www.makergear.com/pages/m2‐assembled,
whereyoucanalsoaccessmorespecific
instructionsandresources.
WELCOME
YourMakerGearM23DPrinterhasarrived!
1
DonotchangeyourM2'sfirmwareunlessyou
knowexactlywhatyou'redoingorhavebeen
instructedtodosobyMakerGearSupport.
Donotremovethefilmofyellowpolyimide
tapefromyourM2'sglassbed;thisfunctionsas
yourprintsurface,andshouldbefacingup.

READ ALL INSTRUCTIONS
CAREFULLY BEFORE
PRINTING!
PLEASE
SAFETY FIRST,
INSTRUCTIONS SECOND!
2

ImportantSafeguards
1.Toprotectagainstelectricalshock,donotputthe
machinebody,cordorelectricalpluginliquid.Ifyour
printerfallsintoliquid,donottouchit.Instead,unplug
theunit,thenremoveitimmediately.Donotreach
intotheliquidwithoutunpluggingtheunitfirst.
3
2.Thismachineshouldnotbeusedbychildrenunless
supervisedbyanadultwhounderstandstherisksand
precautionsinvolvedinusingthismachine.Toavoid
potentialinjuries,closesupervisionisnecessarywhen
unitisusedbyornearchildren.
3.Unplugpowercordfromoutletwhennotinuse.To
unplug,grasptheplugandfirmlypullitfromelectrical
outlet.Youshouldnoteverpullthecord.
4.Avoidanycontactwithmovingparts.
5.Keephands/hair/clothingawayfromattachmentsof
printerwhiletheunitisoperatingtoreduceriskof
injurytopersons,and/ordamagetotheunit.
6.Donotoperateyourunitif:damagedcord/plug,
malfunctioning,droppedordamagedinanyway,
ornotoperatingproperly.

What'sIncluded
PowerSupply—ensure
thatthevoltagesettingis
correctforyour
outletbeforepoweringon.
Toolkit,M3driver,tweezers,
filamentguidetube,
polyimidetape,USB
cord,feelergauge,and4
extrabedhold‐downclips.
1kgspoolof1.75
mmblackPLA(colormay
vary).
4
Spoolholderwithscrews
andsamplebracelet,both
ofwhichprintedonyour
M2usingfilesonthe
includedSDcard.

SetUp
Carefullyremovethefoamfromthe
topoftheprinterandfrominsidetheprinterframe.
RemovetheHBPfromitsslotinthefoamandplaceiton
the4legged“Spider”insidetheframe,withtheglass
facingup.Removetheprinterfromthebottomfoam.
Remove(andpleaseread)WARNINGsheetfrom
underneathyourglassbedbyremovingthebinderclip.
Rotatethebedhold‐downclipstopointtowardthefront
andbackofthebedinordertosecuretheglassinplace.
UnpackthepowersupplyandsettheVoltageSwitchto
thevoltagesuppliedthroughyouroutlet.Thereareonly
twosettings:115V(for100–130V)and230V(for220–
240V).Youmustfirstdetermineyourcountry'sstandard
voltagebeforeusingtheM2powersupply‐usingan
incorrectvoltagesettingmaycauseseveredamage.
1
2
5
3InstalltheSpoolHolderwiththefourscrewsusingthe
3mmallenkey,ensuringthatthelongersideisfacingup.
PlaceyourPLAspoolontheSpoolHoldersothatit
unwindsupwardsthroughtheFilamentGuideandfeedit
through.CutthePLAsothetipisflat,thenfeedthefila‐
mentintotheFilamentGuideTubeandintotheFilament
Drive(Ifyouhavetroublefeedingfilamentwithaflattip,
thentrycuttingitata45degreeangle).

4Insertthe6PositionPowerSupplyConnectorintothe6
PositionElectronicsConnector
intheelectronicscase—notethatthepowersupply
connectorshouldrununderallotherwires.Next,plugthe
powersupplyintoawalloutletandflipthepowersupply
switchtotheonposition.
6
DownloadtheMakerGearQuickStartAppvia
http://www.MakerGear.com/pages/QuickStart‐
App.Carefullyfollowtheapp'sstep‐by‐stepinstructionsin
ordertocreateyourfirstprint:
5
ConnectInstalldriver(Windowsusersonly),
connecttoM2.
CheckPlatformCheckstartingheight,check
bedlevel,makeadjustmentsusing
instructionsprovidedbytheapp.
LoadFilamentHeatHBP&extruder,properly
extrudefilament.
PrintSelect"Bracelet.g"fromyourSDcard,
click"Print".
Toaccessthe
M2QuickStartAppTutorial,visit
http://www.makergear.com/pages/quickstart‐app
SECURELYINPLACE
*PLA:
ABS:
220°Chotend,70°Cheatedbedrecommended.
245°Chotend,110°Cheatedbedrecommended.

7
Ifyouwishtoremoveorchangeyournozzle,youmustfirst
removetheentirehotend.Anyattempttounscrewthenozzle
directlyfromyourM2willdamagethehotend.
Someofouruserschoosetoprintwithanozzlethatiseither
largerorsmallerthanthe0.35mmnozzleincludedontheM2
inordertoaccommodatespecificprintingneeds.Ifyouplanto
printwithdifferentsizednozzles,werecommendkeepingeach
nozzleinstalledinaseparatehotend‐thisallowsyoutoswitch
betweennozzlesmoreeasily.
Afterprinting"bracelet.g",youwillbegiventhreeoptions:
6
ClickRetryifyourfirstprintwasunsuccessful‐thiswill
returnyoutothecheckplatformsectioninordertoidentify
andaddressanyissueswithyourplatformthatmayhave
causedprintdefects.
ClickPrintAnotherFileifyourfirstprintwassuccessfuland
youwanttoexperiencemoreMakerGearMagic.
ClickDonetonavigatetothe"Advanced"tab,whereyou
canfindmanualcontrolsforyourM2aswellasareal‐time
displayofthetemperaturesandcoordinatesofyour
extruderandHBP.
ANoteAboutNozzles
VisitourYoutubechannelforstep‐by‐stepinstructionson
howtoremovetheV4hotendandremove/mountanozzle.

SlicingFiles
Ifyoutrytodownloadandprintafilefromtheinternet,
you’llnoticeitsformatiseither.STLor.OBJ,whichyourM2
isunabletoread.Inordertoprintthesefiles,youmustuse
specialsoftwaredesignedto“slice”theminto“.g”or
".gcode"format—thisfileformat,knownasG‐Code,gives
yourM2step‐by‐stepcommandsforwhere/howtoextrude
material.Thestepslistedbelowwillhelpyousetupyour
slicersettingstoslicea.STLfilestoredonyourSDCardinto
.gformat.
Print"hexa.g"fromtheincludedSDcard,whichwehave
slicedforyouusingSimplify3Dsoftware.Thisshouldtake
about15minutestoprint,andwillserveasacomparisonto
yourslicedversionofthesamemodel.
8
RemoveyourSDCardfromthecardreaderonyourM2
andinsertitintoyourcomputer'scardreader—thiswill
enablesignificantlyfastertransferoffilesbetweenyour
computerandtheSDcard(ifyourcomputerdoesnothave
anSDcardreader,thenyoucanuseanexternalUSBcard
reader).
2
Movehexa.stlfromyourSDcardontoafolderstoredon
yourcomputer.
3

DownloadthemostrecentversionofSlic3rfromslic3r.org.
Yourslicersettingswillbeincorrect.Tocorrectthem,click
“LoadConfigBundle”under“File”andselect
the"config.ini"fileavailableonyourSDCard.
9
5
Useyourprintercontrolsoftware(e.g.,Printrunby
Pronterface,availableat
http://www.pronterface.com/#download)
toinstructyourM2toprinthexa2.gfromyourSDcard.
4
Import"hexa.stl"intoyourslicingsoftware,slicethefile
(i.e.,clickexportin.gformat),andthennameit"hexa2.g".
Transferthisnew.gfiletoyourSDcard,ejectthecardfrom
yourcomputer,andtheninsertitbackintothecardreader
onyourprinter.
6
*
Ifyouexperiencepersistentissues,youcanalwayscontact
MakerGearSupportvia:
Ifthisprintdoesnothavesimilarstrengthandappearance
tothe"hexa.g"samplethatyouprinted,seetheonline
resourcesofferedbyyourslicingsoftwareproviderinorder
tofamiliarizeyourselfwithdifferentslicingsettings'impact
onvariousaspectsofprintquality.
http://www.makergear.com/pages/support

3
2
Cuttheendofyournewmaterialsothetipis
flat/round,andfeeditintothefilamentdrive.
1Afterensuringthatyourhotendishotenoughto
printwithyourcurrentfilamentmaterial,usethe
manualcontrolsinyoursoftwarepackageto
"Retract"whilepullingfilamentgentlyuntilitis
releasedfromfilamentdrive.
Afterplacingthetipofthenewmaterialintothe
filamentdrive,usethemanualcontrolsin
yoursoftwarepackageto"Extrude"thefilamentuntil
youcanseeitextrudingfromthenozzle.Thismay
requiregentledownwardpressure.
Ifswitchingbetweenfilamentmaterialtypes(e.g.,
PLAtoABS),heatyourextrudertothehottest
printingtemperatureofthetwomaterialsinorder
topurgetheoldmaterialandproperlyextrudethe
newmaterial.
4
10
*Ifunabletofeedfilamentproperly,thentrycuttingthe
tipatananglebeforefeedingitintothefilamentdrive.
ChangingFilament
*TheM2allowsyoutoprintwithmanydifferentfilament
materials;however,werecommendusingnon‐experimental
filamentmaterialsprovidedbyMakerGear.

M2Features
1Z‐FineAdjustKnob
2HeatedBuildPlatform
3X‐AxisRail
4X‐AxisBelt
5Z‐AxisLeadscrew
610mmLinearRods
7Z‐AxisLimitSwitch
8SDCardReaderSlot
9ManualResetButton
10USBPort
11SpoolHolder
11

M2Features
12X‐AxisLimitSwitch
13FilamentGuide
14Y‐AxisRail 15Y‐AxisBelt
166PositionElectronicsConnector
17Y‐AxisLimitSwitch
12

M2Features
1750mmFan
1840mmFan
19FilamentDrive
20ExtruderWireMount
21V4HotEnd
13

M2Features
20ExtruderWireMount 21V4HotEnd 22V4Nozzle
14
1750mmFan 1840mmFan 19FilamentDrive

What'sTheFunction?
Z‐FineAdjustKnobForlast‐minutechangestothedistance
betweenyournozzle&bed.
HeatedBuildPlatform(HBP)Controlsglassbedtemperature.
X‐AxisRailGuidesyourextruderduringside‐to‐sidemovement.
X‐AxisBeltKeepsyourextruderin‐syncwithyourX‐motor.
Z‐AxisLeadscrewRotatestomovebedup&down.
10mmLinearRodsGuideyourbedup&down.
Z‐AxisLimitSwitchSets"home"positionforZ‐axismotion.
SDCardReaderSlotRetrievesstoredcommandinfo.
ManualResetButtonStopsallcurrentM2operations.
USBPortReceivescommandinfo.
SpoolHolderKeepsyourfilamentspoolsecureduringprinting.
X‐AxisLimitSwitchSets"home"positionforX‐axismotion.
FilamentGuideGuidesyourfilamentfromspooltoguidetube.
Y‐AxisRailGuidesyourbedduringfront‐to‐backmovement.
Y‐AxisBeltKeepsyourbedin‐syncwithyourY‐motor.
6PositionElectronicsConnectorBringspowertoyourM2.
Y‐AxisLimitSwitchSets"home"positionforY‐axismotion.
ExtruderWireMountHouseswiringfortheextruder.
40mmFanCoolsyourfilamentdrive.
50mmFanHelpssolidifyprintedlayers(asneeded).
FilamentDrivePullsfilamentintoyourextruder.
15
SimpleexplanationsofM2Features.

16
Maintenance&Support
Weekly(every50hours)
Ensurethatyourbedisatthecorrecthightandproperly
leveled.Todoso,opentheMakerGearQuickStartapplication
andfollowthecommandswithintheSetUpprocessinorderto
completethefollowingsteps:
Ensurethattheprintsurfaceisfreeofdefects(tornorbubbled
tape)anddust/dirt/grease,andreplacetapeorcleansurface
withappropriatecleaner(alcohol/waterat50%/50%
recommended).
1)CheckStartingHeight2)CheckBedLevel
Monthly(every200‐250hours)
Ensurethemachineisfreeofdustandfilamentdebris,andclean
ifnecessary.Focusareasincludefansandfanguards,filament
surfaceandfilamentdrive,andtheentireframe.Cleanoilfrom
theXandYlinearrailsandapplyafreshcoattoeach.Adotof
oilineachofthelonggroovesontheXandYrailsissufficient.
Onceapplied,movethataxisthroughitsfulltravelmultiple
timestospreadtheoil.
TechnicalSupportlivesonourwebsite
athttp://www.makergear.com/pages/support
Formoremaintenancetips
visitMakerGear.wikidot.com

Shutdown&Storage
IfusingyourM2regularly,thenturnoffthepowersupplyand
unplugboththepowersupplyandUSBcordswhenfinished.
IfstoringyourM2foraperiodof1‐2weeks,followthe
instructionslistedaboveANDstorethefilamentspoolinits
originalbag(fullysealed,withthedesiccantpacketinside).
IfstoringyourM2foraperiodof2weeksormore,followthe
instructionslistedaboveTHENcoveryourentiremachinein
ordertoprotectitfromthebuildupofdustandotherairborne
particles.
TechnicalSupportlivesonourwebsiteat
http://www.makergear.com/pages/support
DONOTunscrewyournozzledirectlyfromyourM2!
Tochangeorremoveitsnozzle,youmustfirstremovethe
entirehotend.VisitourwebsiteandYoutubechannelforstep‐
by‐stepinstructionsonhowtoremovethehotendandchange
itsnozzle.
17

Warranty
NewM2sorderedfromMakerGearorfromanauthorized
MakerGeardistributorhaveaSix‐MonthNon‐
TransferableLimitedWarranty.MakerGearwillreplace
defectivepartsonM2sthatareunderwarranty.
Replacementpartsmaybeneworrefurbishedandinclude
freeshippingintheUSonly.Non‐UScustomersare
responsiblefortheshippingcostsforreplacementparts.
TheM2hasanopendesign(noproprietarycartridges)and
M2ownersarefreetouse3rdpartyfilament.However,
theMakerGearhotendisonlycoveredwhenMakerGear
filamentandauthenticMakerGearcomponentsareused.
Duetovariancesinquality,MakerGearisunableto
providetechsupportforissuesrelatedtothirdparty
filament.Ifyouareusingfilamentorextrudercomponents
fromathirdparty,youmustcontactyourvendorfor
technicalsupport.Thesix‐monthwarrantyofferedby
MakerGeardoesnotcovermachineabuse.
Exceptions
18
TechnicalSupportlivesonourwebsite
athttp://www.makergear.com/pages/support