To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed
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A quick situation sketch: I just installed a new heated bed on my delta => from bottom to top:
- list itemsilicone heater
- 3M
- 6mm cast alu
- 2mm regular alu
- 3M
- PEI
The idea is to have a removeable top plate, without relying on magnets (just paper clamps) so that I can quickly cool down the removed printsurface. As the surface is thin I can also flex the plate if required, to remove finished prints.
The issue: removing the top plate and flexing it, actually deforms the sheet and bends it. Thus making it out of shape for the next print.
My question: Would swapping the 2mm alu top plate with something like springsteel resolve my issue. What are you guys' thoughts?
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I would use spring steel because it has memory and returns to shape. That's the spring part. Regular sheet can bend and stay warped.
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@timcurtis67 said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
I would use spring steel because it has memory and returns to shape. That's the spring part. Regular sheet can bend and stay warped.
That's what my idea was as well. Sadly it seems spring steel sheets large enough (>=450mm) are not easy to find.
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I have a couple of these: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000145002586.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.aff14c4dDnCFRA
I'm very happy with them so far, however even though its spring steel it will still move/flex if only held on by clips. I tried this first before moving to magnetic sticker sheet as a temp solution (It might lose magnetic strength due to the heat over time, but a month in its holding up well)
if/when that fails I'll look at adding permanent magnets under the bed
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@Nxt-1 said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
My question: Would swapping the 2mm alu top plate with something like springsteel resolve my issue. What are you guys' thoughts?
What material are you printing? With ABS or HIPS for e.g. and rather small 20x20cm spring steel if you only attach it with clips on the border the steel will bend, lift and deform during print when ABS warping forces start to act... I guess Nylon or PC would be even worse. If you are printing ABS or other high warping material you have to find another way... no clue how the magnetic stickers work with ABS bed temperatures. I tried spring steel (with kapton over it) some 10 years ago and gave up as it was good only for PLA in my setup
... moved to printbite while back and I don't need to flex my bed 
... apart from TPU that's not that easy to remove from printbite (works great once you figure it out) never had issue removing part after the plate cools down. -
@smece said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
@Nxt-1 said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
My question: Would swapping the 2mm alu top plate with something like springsteel resolve my issue. What are you guys' thoughts?
What material are you printing? With ABS or HIPS for e.g. and rather small 20x20cm spring steel if you only attach it with clips on the border the steel will bend, lift and deform during print when ABS warping forces start to act... I guess Nylon or PC would be even worse. If you are printing ABS or other high warping material you have to find another way... no clue how the magnetic stickers work with ABS bed temperatures. I tried spring steel (with kapton over it) some 10 years ago and gave up as it was good only for PLA in my setup
... moved to printbite while back and I don't need to flex my bed ... apart from TPU that's not that easy to remove from printbite (works great once you figure it out) never had issue removing part after the plate cools down.I mostly print PLA, but a variety of specials as needed. I am very reluctant to go the magnetic route for a number of reasons.
- Loss of magnetic flux due to high bed temperatures.
- Low hold strength, partially due to rather thick bed stackup.
- Practicality of adding magnets to the underside of the silicone heater.
- Added cost.
I hope just the clamps on the side will suffice. I also think that the warping of the plate will be reduced with round beds compared to square beds, just due to the shape.
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@Nxt-1 no idea if the shape of the bed would make any difference, tried only square ones but the abs is able the crease the steel bed easily
...dunno about magnets, I have "fridge magnet" like mat on ender5 (it came with it) and printer some hours so far with 110C bed and the mat is still as magnetic as it was the first day (glass on top of magnet) .. I was expecting it to be damaged (lose magnetic properties) after the first print but it didn't after first, second third... it's not an old printer, has less than 100 hours under its belt but still almost 100 hours at 110C and it's still magnetic
.. dunno how time affects this (tbh I believed it will either lose magnetic properties on high temp or not, didn't think time plays any role here) -
@Nxt-1 said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
Loss of magnetic flux due to high bed temperatures.
There are magnetic sheets that are specified for high temperature (100C+).
Low hold strength, partially due to rather thick bed stackup.
If you use those adhesive magnetic sheets above the aluminum bed, the bed thickness doesn't really matter.
I am using this stack and am very happy with it. I need to remove the top and flex only for large objects. Most of the time I just scarp it gently.
Insulation (comes with its own adhesive)
Silicon heater
3M
6mm tooling aluminum
3M
magnetic sheet
steel plate
3M
1mm PEI.Edit: this is the insulation I am using https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32878669055.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.27424c4dKwyD8W if your bed is larger you cut cover it with multiple pieces. Easy to cut and apply.
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I started looking at a local-ish store that specializes in magnets. The offer ferrite magnets that should hold up to a working temperature of 230°C, which is more than enough. I must admit I do not know whether the (spring)steel holds its ability to be attracted by magnets at high temperatures or it's just the magnets that are the potential issue.
@zapta Thanks for the insulation link, I am quite interested in that. It's cheap as well.
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@Nxt-1 said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
I must admit I do not know whether the (spring)steel holds its ability to be attracted by magnets at high temperatures or it's just the magnets that are the potential issue.
just magnets
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Whambam for example have magnetic sheets that can sustain 150c. Do you plan to print with higher bed temperatures?
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I'm using a flexible magnetic bed, made out of normal steel (0.5mm or 0.75mm, I don't remember; I can check if you want), and it works great. You don't need to bend it @180° to remove parts, so no worry to permanently deform it.
I'm using it for more than a year, now, and no problem.
Frédéric
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@zapta said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
Whambam for example have magnetic sheets that can sustain 150c. Do you plan to print with higher bed temperatures?
I have seen quite a bit about Whambams in other groups but I find them quite expensive and they largest they offer is still to small for what I need.
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@fma said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
I'm using a flexible magnetic bed, made out of normal steel (0.5mm or 0.75mm, I don't remember; I can check if you want), and it works great. You don't need to bend it @180° to remove parts, so no worry to permanently deform it.
I'm using it for more than a year, now, and no problem.
Very interesting, do you feel the steel holds its shape well after bending? Also, do you know what grade of steel you are using?
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@Nxt-1 said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
Very interesting, do you feel the steel holds its shape well after bending? Also, do you know what grade of steel you are using?
Yes, the steel sheet remains perfectly flat once on the magnetic bed. But as said, I don't bend it much.
I don't know what grade it is; I bought it in a big DIY store: I think it is very basic steel!
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@fma said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
@Nxt-1 said in To springsteel or not to springsteel? Removeable heated bed:
Very interesting, do you feel the steel holds its shape well after bending? Also, do you know what grade of steel you are using?
Yes, the steel sheet remains perfectly flat once on the magnetic bed. But as said, I don't bend it much.
I don't know what grade it is; I bought it in a big DIY store: I think it is very basic steel!
Must be something in the likes of feritic stainless, otherwise I'd expect rusting, no?
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Yes, it is galvanized... But it is not a special steel.
