STACKER 500 User manual

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UserGuide
MODEL500(2015KS)
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©Copyright2016STACKER,LLC
Minneapolis,MN55427
http://stacker3d.com
STACKER®istheregisteredtrademarkofSTACKER,LLC.
Revised:20February2016
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STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE2
UserGuide
MODEL500(2015KS)
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TABLEOFCONTENTS
1. Introduction
2. Warnings
3. UnpackingandFinalAssembly
3.1. LocateHardwareboxes&FilamentRail
3.2. UniversalFilamentRailInstallation
3.3. FilamentDriveIdlerAssemblyHardwareInstallation
3.4. FinalTapeRemoval
3.5. CableTies
3.6. BlowerFans
4. DownloadSTACKERRUNSoftware
5. PrinterSetup
5.1. PowerUpPrinter
5.2. LevelThePrintBed
5.3. AdjustingNozzleHeight
5.4. ChangingNozzles&FilamentGuideTube
5.5. LoadingFilament
5.6. ManualcontrolviaSTACKERRUN
5.7. SDCardPrinting
5.8. FirstPrint
5.9. MultiPartPrinting
5.10. MultiMaterialPrinting
5.11. SlicingEngine
6. TurningOffyourPrinter
7. VolumetricCalibration
8. Calibrationofx/y/zaxis
8.1. VrefSettings
9. UsefulInfo
9.1. PowerSupplyDataSheet
9.2. InstallingtheLCDSmartController
9.3. FilamentSettingsGuide
10. TermsandConditions 

STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE3
1.Introduction
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TheSTACKERModel500isahighperformance3Dprintercapableofproducingeverythingfrom
oneoffprototypestomultiplepartproductionruns.Togetthemostoutofyourprinter,pleaseread
throughthisUserGuidebeforeoperating. 
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ItisalsohelpfultobefamiliarwithsolidmodelingCADapplicationsinordertocreateand
manipulatethepartsyouwanttoprint.Forexample,asimpledesignmodificationorsplittinga
modelintosectionswillallowyoutoprintitfaster,better,andwithouttheneedforsupportmaterials.
ThefollowinglistofCADappsisagoodbalanceofpowerandvalue,someofwhicharefreeand
haverobustonlinetrainingandusercommunities.Nearlyalloftheseappswillexportyourmodels
tothepreferred.stlfileformat.
● Sketchup
● Autodesk123DappsincludingMeshmixerandTinkercad
● openSCAD,netfabstudiobasic,GeomagicDesign
● Fusion360,SolidWorks,Inventor,SolidEdge
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Beforemakingyourfirstprintsyouwillbedirectedtodownloadsoftwareandviewonlinetraining
materialsatthelocationsbelow.
● Printersetupsupporthttp://stacker3d.com/kickstartersupport
●STACKERRUNsoftwaredownloadhttp://stacker3d.com/kickstartersupport
●STACKERRUNdocumentationhttp://www.repetier.com/#documantation
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STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE4
2.Warnings
STACKER3Dprintersareindustrialmachinesthatshouldneverbeoperatedaroundchildrenorleft
unattended.Carefulsetupandtrainingisrequiredforoptimalresults.Readthroughthisguideand
viewonlineresourcesbeforeturningonyourprinter.
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Note,thisprintedcopyoftheUserGuidemaynotbethemostcurrentversion.Werecommend
downloadingtheUserGuidefromourwebsitetoconfirmyouhavethelatestversion.Therevision
dateisnotedonthecoverpage.
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PleasereadandtakeseriouslyallWarnings.Unsafeoperationofa3Dprintercanresultindamage
toyourprinterandseriousinjurytoyourself.TheWarningspagesareincludedintheboxwithevery
printerandarealsoavailableatthiswebsiteaddress:
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● http://stacker3d.com/kickstartersupport
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STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE5
3.UnpackingandFinalAssembly
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IfyouhaveaSTACKER500Desktopmodel,youmustfirstcompleteallthestepsofthepagetitled
“UnboxingAssemblyInstructionsforDesktopModel500.”Ifthispagewasmissingfromyourprinter
pleasedownloadithere:
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●http://stacker3d.com/pdf/desktopstartstkr500ks.pdf
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Ifyouhaveafullheightmodelthatarrivedonapallet,carefullycutawaythepackagingandsetthe
unituprightonitscasters.
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3.1.Locatethetwohardwareboxesanduniversalfilamentrail
TwosmallboxesandtheUniversalFilamentRailareeitherlocatedatthebottomofyourboxifyou
havethedesktopmodelorattachedtoyourprinterwithstretchwraponfullheightmodels. 
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Box#1containstheRightandLeftUniversalFilamentRailBrackets,shownbelow.
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STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE6
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Box#2containsthreemainhardwarebags: 
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STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE7
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3.2.Attachtheuniversalfilamentrailassembly.
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Step1.LocatetheUniversalFilamentRail,thetwoFilamentRailBrackets,andthetwoFilament
RailScrews.
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Step2.Removethefour5mmx16mmSocketHeadCapScrewsthatalsosecuretheplasticwire
harnessesclamps(seephotobelow).Thesescrewsarelocatedonthebluecoloredcorner
brackets.YouwillreusethesescrewstomounttheFilamentRailBracketsinthenextstep.Usethe
supplied3mmhexwrenchandan8mmwrench/socket/pliers(notprovided).
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Step3.Attachthefilamentrailbracketsusingthehardwareyouremovedinthepriorstep.Notethe
orientationintheimagebelow.Also,makesureallfourscrewsgobackthroughthewireharness
clamps.Failuretosecurethewireharnessescouldresultinseriousdamagetoyourprinterduring
operation.Repeattheinstallationonboththerightandleftsidesoftheprinter. 
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STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE8
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3.3.Installthefilamentdrivehardware.
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Step1.Locatethefilamentdriveidlerassemblyhardware.Eachfilamentdriverequires(2)
compressionsprings,(2)M4x30mmSocketHeadCapScrews,and(2)M4Thumbnuts,asshown.
NotetheredcoatingontheScrews,thisredcoatingwillpreventthethumbnutsfrombackdriving. 
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Step2.Attachthefilamentdriveidlerassemblyhardwaretoeachofyourprinter’sfilamentdrives,
asshownbelow.Thesmallknobsshouldbeflushtotheendofthescrews.Usethesupplied3mm
hexwrenchtoholdthescrewswhileyouhandtightentheknobs.
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STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE9
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3.4.Removethepackagingtape.
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Toprotectyourprinterduringshipping,weattachedseveralpiecesoflowtacktapetotheXgantry,
YShaft,ZShaft,andglassbed.YouMUSTremoveallofthispackingtapebeforecontinuing.
Cleanoffanyresiduewithanalcoholwipe,ifnecessary.
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3.5.Attachthecabletiesonyourfilamentguidetubes.
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Usethesuppliedziptiestosecurethewireharnessesandguidetubestogether,asshownbelow.
Usefourtiesperguidetubethreeasshownandoneziptiethroughthespecialbracketmounted
oneachfilamentdrive.

STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE10
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3.6.Attachtheblowerfans.
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YourSTACKERcomeswithoneormore50mmblowerfanpreinstalledatthefactoryfortesting
purposes.Pleaseusethispreinstalledfanasareferencetoinstallyourotherblowerfans.Itis
criticalthatyourblowerfansarepositionedcorrectlyduringtheoperationofyourprinter!If
thefansarepositionedintheintheincorrectposition(seeimagesbelow),theblowerfanswillcrash
intotheframeofyourprinterwhenyouhometheYaxis.Topreventpossibledamagetoyour
printer,besuretolowerthefansandkeepthemcorrectlypositioned. 
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IMPORTANT!Theblowerfanwillcrashintotheprinter’sframeif
incorrectlypositioned. 
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STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE11
AttachingtheBlowerDuct:Theimagesaboveshowthe50mmblowerductattachedtothefan.
Theseblowerductswerenotincludedwithyourprinter,butanSTLfileoftheblowerductsis
availableonourwebsite,soyoucanprintyourown:http://stacker3d.com/kickstartersupport
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Whenattachingtheblowerduct,makesureitisattachedwiththeproperorientation,otherwisethe
blowerductcancrashintothebedwhenhomingtheZaxis.
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Ourblowerductprintsa“T”onthetopoftheducttohelpidentifythetop. 
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Iftheblowerductisinstalledupside,itcancrashintoyourbedwhenhomingtheZaxis.Ifyou
chooseprintandinstallblowerducts,besurethattheyareinstalledcorrectly.  

STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE12
4.DownloadSTACKERRUNsoftware
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Beforeturningonyourprinter,pleasedownloadSTACKERRUNsoftware.Itisavailablefor
downloadfromourKickstarterSupportPage.
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●http://stacker3d.com/kickstartersupport
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DownloadSTACKERRUNandfollowtheinstallationinstructions.Builtintotheprogramareother
onlineresourcesforlearninghowtousethissoftware.Pleasefamiliarizeyourselfwiththesoftware
beforecontinuing.
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STACKERRUNsoftwareisanenhancedversionofRepetierHost,somostofthedocumentation
availablefromtheirwebsitewillbehighlyapplicable.Youshouldalsopaynotetotheinstruction
manualsavailablehere:
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●http://www.repetier.com/documentation/repetierhost/rhinstallationandconfiguration/
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STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE13
5.PrinterSetup
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5.1.PowerUpPrinter
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BeforeyouturnonyourprinteryoumustconnectthepowercordandUSBcable.
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YourprintershipswithaNorthAmerican10ampcordwithaC13/14connector.Thisisacommon
“computer”typepowercord.TheC13/14plugiswidelyavailablealmostanywhereintheworldtofit
yourspecificpoweroutlets.IfyouarenotusingNorthAmerican115vACpowerandoutlets,please
purchaseapropercordatyourlocalcomputerorelectronicsstore.
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Note:thepowersupplycanaccept115to230voltsofACpower.Thepowersupplyisauto
switchingwhichmeansthatitwillinternallyadjusttoyouroutlet’svoltageautomatically.Wehave
attachedadatasheetforthispowersupplytohelpyouproperlyconnectittoyourpowersource
anddeterminecompatibility.PleasereferencethisdatainSection9.1.
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Wealsostronglyrecommendusinganuninterruptiblepowersupply(UPS)withyourprinter.Any
suddenlossofpower,nomatterhowbrief,willlikelycausetheelectronicsinthisprintertoreset,
andthiswillruinyourprint.Ifyouwanttopreventthepainandsufferingassociatedwithlosinga
multihourlongprint,thenwerecommendaUPS.Furthermore,powerspikesandbrownoutscan
damagetheprinter’selectronics.AnygoodqualityUPSwillsaveyoufrommomentarypowerlossor
brownouts.Wecannotstressenoughtheimportanceofthisveryinexpensiveinsurance.
Uninterruptiblepowersupplies(UPS)arewidelyavailableatyourcomputerorelectronicsstore.

TheprovidedUSBcableconnectsyourprintertoacomputer.PleaseconnecttheUSBcabletothe
controllerhousingasshown.






STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE14
YourprinterispoweredonbyutilizingthepowerswitchlocateddirectlyabovetheC14powerinlet
foryourpowercable. 



Beforeturningonyourprinterforthefirsttime,confirmthattheUSBcableisinstalledcorrectlyand
thatyourSTACKERRUNsoftwareisupandrunningonyourcomputer.



5.2.LevelThePrintBed

Yourbedispreleveledatthefactorywhichenablesustomakeatestprint.Duringshippingyour
bedlevelingcanchange,soyouneedtomakesureyourbedislevel.Wegiveyouanaluminum
setupblocktohelpyousafelylevelthebedwithoutcrashingyourprintheadsintotheglass.For
mostusersthebedwillstillbelevel,andallyouwillhavetodoisperformafinaltest.

Ifyourbediswayoutofadjustmentyouwillneedtofollowthefulladjustmentprocess.Youbegin
thisprocessbyhomingthezaxisonthealuminumsetupblock,andthenyoulevelthebedtothe
nozzles.Then,youhomethezaxisonthesetupblockagaintoadjustthegapbetweenthenow
levelbedandthenozzles.Finally,youhomethezaxiswithoutthesetupblockanddoafinaltest
withabusinesscard,a0.007”feelergaugeora0.20mmfeelergauge.Microadjustmentswillbe
madewiththeadjustmentknobonthezprobe.

Levelingyourprintbedisamandatoryfirststep  beforeyoucanprint.Ifthebedistoofaraway
fromyournozzletheprintwillnotsticktothebuildplate.Ifthenozzleistooclosetothebuildplateit
willpreventthefilamentfromflowingoutofthenozzle,andthiswilleventuallycausethefilamentto
jambecausethefilamentwillstripoutinsidethefilamentdrive.


STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE15
VIDEOALERT!Pleasewatchtheshortvideo“BedLeveling”locatedonourKickstarterVideo
SupportPage.

●http://stacker3d.com/kickstartervideopage/

FULLADJUSTMENTPROCESS

Step1.ConnectyourprintertoSTACKERRUNsoftware.ClicktheConnectbuttonlocatedin
theupperleftcorner.Adropdownmenuwillallowyoutoselectthecorrectmodel,asshownbythe
arrow.






Step2.HometheZaxisonthealuminumsetupblock.
PlacethealuminumsetupblockunderthezprobeadjustmentscrewBEFOREhomingthezaxis,
asshownbelow.

 

Next,opentheManualControlTabandpresstheZhomebutton inSTACKERRUN.

NOTE:Youmustusethesetupblockunderthezprobeasshownabove.Ifyoudonotuse
theblock,youcouldcrashyourbedintothenozzlesandcausedamagetoyourprinter.


STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE16


IMPORTANT:Thesuppliedsetupblockisonlyusedduringbedleveling!Oncethebedis
level,youdoNOTusetheblockwhenhomingtheZbedpriortoprinting.

Inthenextstepyouwillremovetheblockfromunderthezprobeandmovetheblocktodifferent
locationsonthebed.Thesetupblockisusedasagaugetosetthebedtothesameplaneasthe
nozzles.Youarenot“leveling”thebedwithalevel.Youaresettingthebedtothesameplaneas
thex/ygantry.

Step3.MovetheX/Ygantrytothebackofyourprintbedandpositiontheheads,asshown
below.ThepreferedmethodformovingthegantryisviaManualControl.Pressthebuttonuntilthe
gantryhasmovedtotheback.


Positionheadsoneandtwoontheleftsideofthegantry,andifyouhavea4headmodelpush
headsthreeandfourtothefarrightsideofthegantry,asshownbelow.Youusehead2for
levelingthebed.


STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE17


Step4.Adjustthetwobacklevellingscrews.Movethesetupblockandtrytoslidetheblock
andcardunderthenozzleofhead2.Ifyournozzleismorethan.100”or2.5mmaboveorbelowthe
setupblock(whichisunlikely)youmayneedtoadjustthezprobescreworzprobebracket;these
adjustmentproceduresareatendofthisstep,shoulditbenecessary.



Beginbyadjustingthebackleftlevelingscrew(foundunderneaththebed)withthesupplied7mm
nutdriver.Note:Therearethreelevelingscrewswithheavydutysprings.Whenyouadjustthe
leveleryourareactuallymovingthe4mmhexnut.Fornow,onlyadjusttheleftbacklevelingscrew.
Turnthenutdriverclockwiseorcounterclockwiseuntiltheblockandbusinesscardslideunderthe
nozzle.Theblockshouldmakeslightcontactwiththenozzletip.

Next,slidehead2tothefarrightofthegantry,asshownbelow.Adjusttherearrightlevelingscrew
untilthenozzlemakesslightcontactwiththesetupblock,justlikeyoudidontheleftside.

STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE18


Next,slidehead2backtotheleftsideofthegantryandrepeatthelevelingprocess.Finally,slide
head2totherightagain,andonceagain,repeatthelevelingprocess.

ZProbeHeightAdjustmentScrew.Seesection5.7laterintheguide.

ZProbeBracketAdjustment.Whenlevelingyourbed,itispossibletorunoutoftravelonyour
zprobeheightadjustmentscrewand/oryourlevelingsprings.Ifthishappens,youcanmakemacro
heightadjustmentsbymovingtheentirezprobebracketupordown,seebelow.

IMPORTANT:IfyoumakeanyadjustmentstotheZprobebracketorheightadjustment
screw,gobacktoStep2!

 

Step5.AdjustthefrontLevelingScrew.Whenthebackareaofyourbedislevel,movethe
gantryallthewaytothefrontbyhomingtheYaxis. 

MAKESUREYOURBLOWERFANSAREDOWNANDINTHECORRECTPOSITION!

STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE19
Pressthe buttoninthemanualcontroltabinSTACKERRUN.OnlyhometheYaxis!Now
thattheheadsareallthewaytothefrontofthebed.Now,placehead2inthecenterfrontofthe
bed.Asbefore,usethesetupblockwhileadjustingthelevelingscrewsothatthenozzlemakes
slightcontactwiththeblock. 


Step6.Movethegantrybacktotherearandreadjustifnecessary.Repeatthelevelingprocess
inStep4,butyoushouldonlyneedverysmalladjustments,ifatall.

Step7.Finalcheckandadjustmentwithsetupblock.Youmustnowrehomethezaxisonyour
setupblockandretestthelevelness.Fineadjust,ifnecessary.Usethesameproceduresassteps5
and6above.IMPORTANT!Ifyouneedtoadjustthegapbetweenthenowlevelbedandthe
nozzlesyouneedtoadjustthezprobemountingbracketupordownaccordingly.Seeabove.

Step8.Finalcheckandadjustmentwithbusinesscard,a0.07”feelergauge,or0.20mm
feelergauge.Youmustnowrehomethezaxiswithoutthesetupblock.Useabusinesscardor
feelergaugetocheckthegapbetweenyourbedandnozzles.

IMPORTANT:todialintheperfectlayerheight,simplyturntheadjustmentscrewonthe
zprobeandrehomethezaxis.Seesection5.7FirstPrintformoredetails. 


STACKER500KSUSERGUIDE20
5.3.NozzleHeightAdjustment.

Allthenozzlesmustbeatthesameheight.However,duringthelevelingprocessyoumaydiscover
thatoneormoreofthenozzlesneedsaslightupordownadjustment.Theeasiestwaytoadjustis
thenozzlesistorehometheZAxis,anduseabusinesscardor0.07”/0.20mmfeelergauge.Note,
thismethodonlyworksifyourbedhasbeenleveled.

Usethesupplied7mmnutdrivertoloosenthetwonutsonthefrontofthehotend,shownbelow.
Looseningthesetwonutswillenableyoutomovetheentirehotendupordownaccordingly.Allow
thenozzleheighttobesetbythethicknessofthebusinesscardorfeelergauge.Whenretightening
thetwonuts,besuretomovebackandforthbetweenthetwonutsandtightenthemgraduallyand
equally.Donotovertighten!



5.4.ChangingNozzles&FilamentGuideTube

YournewSTACKERprintercomeswithfour0.50mmmidtempnozzlesandguidetubes
preinstalledatthefactory.Togetprintingrightawayyouonlyneedtoinstallthefilamentguidetube
intothefilamentdriveandloadfilament.

Thefollowingstepswillinstructyouonhowtoproperlyremoveandreinstallnewnozzlesand
filamentguidetubes.PleasefollowthesestepsVERYCAREFULLY.Yournozzleswillnotwork
properlyiftheguidetubesarenotproperlyseatedintothenozzles.

VIDEOALERT!Pleasewatchtheshortvideo“ChangingNozzlesandFilamentGuideTubes”
locatedonourKickstarterSupportPageunderSTACKER500TrainingVideos.

●http://stacker3d.com/kickstartersupport

