Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

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thingevery
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Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by thingevery »

I'm struggling to get my Rostock Max v1 up and running. It's the one with the clear plastic body and LCD. The only upgrades I've done are the addition of an Onyx heated bed (v1 I assume), and I just swapped the PSU with the thin box/rail kind. I think the problem I'm having involves the firmware or at least the settings in my Configuration.h file.

I've experimented with various versions of the Arduino IDE and Repetier Host on an old Mac laptop. The combo that seems to work the best is Arduino 1.0.6 (with the pins_arduino.c file added) along with Repetier Host 1.2.0. I'm able to compile and upload, and then I can control the motors, heat the machine, and extrude plastic.

But I just can't seem to get the configuration right. It seems like every movement goes much farther than it should. For instance, if I set the _MAX_LENGTH values to 360 and lower the nozzle down to the glass, the Z value will still be about 123 or so. And if I try to jog it over towards the Z column, for instance, by the time I get to Y70, the arm is just about parallel with the column. Also, the farther I move the platform from the center, the higher it goes. At the edges it's raised more than a cm.

It wasn't always this bad. I seem to remember it moving fairly accurate distances and staying pretty level. Here's what I've tried so far:
  • Repetier-091-ROSTOCKMAX-master (with inverted Y axis)
  • Firmware-master (with modified v2 settings)
  • Marlin-for-rostockmax-rambo-master
  • Marlin-for-RostockmaxLCD-master
In addition to the above, I've copied other people's R.MAXv1 Configuration.h files I've found online, and I've gone through the settings several times to try and figure out the correct geometry, etc., but no luck.

Does anybody out there have a Rostock MAX v1 that hasn't been upgraded and is properly configured? If so, please share your settings or give me some idea what to do. Thanks.
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by geneb »

For a stock v1, the only firmware you really should need is the 091 listed above. You'll also want the 1.6.0 version of the IDE.
Make sure you run the clear_eeprom program before you upload the firmware. There might be a value in there that's catching you.

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thingevery
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by thingevery »

Ok, I'm sure I've tried that combination, but I'll do it again today and report back.
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by thingevery »

Ok, I've installed the 091 firmware (with #define INVERT_Y_DIR true) using Arduino 1.6.0.

One thing I noticed is that the RAMBo hardware profile doesn't show up in Arduino 1.6.0 when placed in /hardware/ as the instruction show here: https://reprap.org/wiki/ramboLCD. But it shows up if I move it to /hardware/arduino/. But then it won't compile because the profile is missing a platform.txt file which defines build "recipes". Also, 1.6.0 doesn't have the eeprom_clear script in the examples dropdown. I verified all of this on both mac and linux.

So I set the Board to 'Arduino Mega 2560 or Mega ADK' and then it compiles and uploads without error.

Then, in Repetier Host 1.2.0, I home the machine with G28. At that point, my axis show X=0.00, Y=0.00, Z=350.00. After lowering the nozzle down to the glass (enough to cause friction on a piece of paper), the Z=123.90. Shouldn't it be much closer to zero?

Just in case the RAMBo profile was necessary, I also uploaded the firmware using Arduino 1.0.6, in which the profile works correctly. But my Z height test showed the same results.

So far, I've been subtracting the 123.9 from 350 and setting the height to 226.1, and then attempting to level it from there. But as I mentioned above, as the nozzle approaches the perimeter, it lifts up considerably.

Where am I going wrong?
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by geneb »

Are you not setting the z-zero point through the control panel on the printer?

g.
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thingevery
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by thingevery »

I've tried it a few different ways. Before today, I hadn't really explored the LCD menu, instead trying to do everything through the Repetier Host interface. But unfortunately, it doesn't seem to change things when using the LCD.

Here's what I did:
  • Home with G28
  • Lower the nozzle down to the glass
  • Advanced Settings > Calibrate Z Height > Set new Z=0.00
  • Advanced Settings > Calibrate Z Height > Home Towers
At this point, the Z height reads 114.60 mm. And if I bring it back down to 0, the nozzle was about 182 mm above the glass.

So I went through the process again. This time, I made sure to reset the EEPROM heights to 360 for all axis. Then I brought the nozzle down to the glass. The Z showed 122.7, so I subtracted that from the 360 and set the heights to 237.3 in the EEPROM. I set the new Z=0.00 and homed again. Now the Z showed 237.3 and when I enter G1 Z0, it returns to the glass.

But when I try to level it, I still have the same problem. The edges are on average about 11.2 mm higher than the center. And the Z column's arms are vertical at Y80. Here's a quick video to demonstrate: https://files.catbox.moe/5t5vvp.mp4

It seems like something is wrong with the dimensions.

I've been digging through the Configuration.h file trying to see if there are any measurements in there that look way off. One thing I noticed was the line: #define PULLEY_TEETH 20
Should that correspond to the number of teeth on the stepper motors? Because mine only have 15.
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by geneb »

Try changing it to 15 and see how it works.

g.
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by thingevery »

Hmm, that seems to have made the problem even more exaggerated. Now it thinks the Z height is only 176.55 mm. And when leveling, the height of the nozzle is about 23 mm higher near the towers than it is in the center. There must be some other dimensions that are off.

I've attached my Configuration.h file. Would you mind giving it a quick glance to make sure I've chosen the correct settings for this printer?

Sorry for all the questions. I wish it was something quick and easy. But I really appreciate your help so far!
Attachments
Configuration.h
current settings
(51.85 KiB) Downloaded 268 times
geneb
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by geneb »

The setup looks ok to me. I would clear your eeprom again and then reload the firmware. If the pulley you have is one of the old machined ones, it does have 15 teeth and not 20. BTW, is your printer made from Acrylic?

g.
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thingevery
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by thingevery »

Hmm, no luck.

But yes, I've got the clear acrylic body, dark tinted deck below the Onyx and same material for the cheapskates. Arms look like black injection molded plastic.

Here are some pics just to be clear.

https://files.catbox.moe/bnvw4d.jpg
https://files.catbox.moe/zbapal.jpg
https://files.catbox.moe/lytvng.jpg
https://files.catbox.moe/y6yo21.jpg
https://files.catbox.moe/qwlc43.jpg
geneb
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by geneb »

That's a very rare beast! I'm told only around 30 exist. I would email [email protected] at this point - I suspect they can help more than I can at this point.

g.
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thingevery
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by thingevery »

Ah, that makes sense. Ok, I’ll email. Thanks so much for your help.
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by PartDaddy »

Woke up in middle of the night, 36 acrylic then it was decided melamine would survive shipping much better (and it did ;) )

I wanted to post here and just express my appreciation for the 10,000's of customers who have supported my business and brand.

I'll be helping through the SeeMeCNC support system, but basically will update everything with the new firmware and v1 values.

The very first Rostock MAX v1 printer is quite a site to see. It's acrylic. We have it still to this day. Here's a video.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Lg3IokWYeQ
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thingevery
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by thingevery »

Thanks, PartDaddy! I can't wait to get this thing working after all this time.
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by Ben »

Did you get yours working right in the end?
I have one exactly the same except for a replacement hot end that I've dragged out of storage and am trying to calibrate again
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thingevery
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by thingevery »

Unfortunately, no. I never had time to mess with it. I ended up getting rid of it. Good luck with yours, though!
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Re: Help me resurrect my Rostock MAX v1.

Post by Ben »

Ah, that's unfortunate but I know the feeling.

Mine works, its just that the prints are about 5-10% undersized on the XY axis which is apparently usually caused by an incorrect arm length setting but mine measures correctly... I'm sure I'll figure it out eventually.

It's only been in storage for about 5 years before I pulled it out again
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