Welcome to the Cumbria & Scottish Borders Area Group Forum

 Martin Pearson has been busy again and produced a really useful Servo Mount. The gcode file produces a single print of three pieces which need to be separated and slightly cleaned before assembly. Holding a standard SG90 servo a piece of stiff wire is attached to the servo arm and passes through the vertical slot of the slider. The clip on lid provides a method of attaching micro switches which can provide feedback on the position of the slider at both ends of  its travel. Keith found that he had to glue a small shim to the contact surfaces to make sure the switch activated. This might be down to the type of micro switch being used. I used one with an actuating arm and the range of movement available in the mounting slots was ideal without any modification. A partially assembled example is shown below. The base has two mounting holes for securing to the baseboard and the slider can be installed with the actuator bar facing  left ( as in the picture) or right. The three p...

When you are designing and printing 3D parts, it is essential to have accurate measurements. My original set of digital calipers was bought around twenty years ago and have served me well. Unfortunately the electrical connections have eventually worn out, battery life was becoming shorter and replacements are not cheap. I decided to bite the bullet and invest in a new set at about one fifth of the price I first paid.  Surprisingly they even came with a spare battery. They are light weight and measure up to six inches / 150 mm with a very clear display. You will sometimes find that what you drew in CAD is not what is actually printed.  It is essential that you are able to measure that difference accurately to be able adjust the drawing and then print what you originally intended. This tool will certainly help

Sunday's Zoom meeting had our largest audience so far with 19 members attending from various parts of the country. Alan Geekie gave us an excellent and well received presentation on 3D printing that included FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling) and SLA (Stereolithography apparatus) types He first showed how we can source "things to print" using sites like Thingiverse. His own filament printer was the Prusa i3 Mk 3S which is available either as a kit (£699) or pre-assembled (£899) and features a self leveling bed. It also benefited from an additional multi material upgrade kit and he demonstrated the start up sequence of leveling, homing, clearing remaining filament from the hot end and then beginning the print.  The process of slicing where a 3d object drawing file (.stl) is broken up into the x,y,z drawing coordinates for each individual layer was also explained. Alan then moved on to resin printers using another Prusa model, the SL1 and its associated curing and washing mach...

Due to the density on the LM317 module circuit board, the fitting of securing screws through the two available 3.1 mm holes is potentially problematic. There is also a potential for shorting on the soldered pins under the board.  I designed a holder in Sketchup that resolves both problems. The hollow area provides clearance for the soldered pins and two holes are provided for securing to a baseboard. The module simply clips on to the two plastic pins. If anyone is interested, I can send you the .skp file and/ or the .stl file if you have a 3d printer. Here is an image of the completed unit alongside my almost completed freight yard. Might be able to print a few for those without printers Andy R

Thanks to everyone who attended Sunday's Zoom meeting. There were five regular Hawick Men's shed attendees and a further two from other areas. Nice to see you all. Martin Pearson sent me his print file for a solder reel holder that conveniently fits on the PCB holder that Keith Torrington showed us during the meeting.  It's a very useful and robust tool for holding the PCB firmly while assembling your electronic project. I bought mine years ago and they are much better than the traditional " extra hands" type that use crocodile clips to potentially damage your board.  https://amzn.to/2OmJPww  is a link to the Amazon Site. I had to slightly modify Martin's file by reducing the external diameter from 20 mm to 19 mm so it would fit my particular solder reel. Thanks for sharing Martin. For those interested in 3D printing, we are hoping to confirm that Alan Geekie will be available to give a presentation on that subject at our next Zoom meeting. Lookout for your in...