Prusa i3 bed probe - mechanical switch parts by i-make-robots

Last crawled date: 3 years ago

After testing I've decided this method is not only not good, it makes things worse. I've left it here so you can learn from my mistake.
With a bed probe your printer can compensate for an uneven bed. In theory this makes your printer a little more fire-and-forget.
The probe switch connects a limit switch to a servo arm. The probe mount holds the servo under the extruder and manages cables. See pictures for explanation.
This method is garbage because the servo doesn't bring the arm down to the same angle every time. The measurements are wildly different and the software thinks the bed is at a crazy angle. End result: hitting bed, damaging nozzle, printing mid-air... everything wrong you could never want.
Next I'm going to try an induction probe.
You can find out more about things I make athttp://marginallyclever.com