Building a Hangprinter!

If you want to 3D print really large parts, you have two options – either build a really large 3D printer with its own rigid frame or use the frame you already have: Your house! And that’s exactly what the Hangprinter is doing: It’s a fully featured frameless 3D printer that uses the room it’s set up in as a frame and suspends itself from the walls and ceiling with high-strength line.

The Hangprinter Playlist

Hangprinter

Sounds crazy? It is! It’s one of the most unique 3D printer designs out there, so – obviously – we are going to build one.

Together with creator Torbjorn Ludvisen and sponsor Trinamic, we’re spending a week in Hamburg, converting the Trinamic lunch room into a Hangprinter workspace and of course, you can follow along as well!

This page is going to serve as documentation for the project and as future reference if you want to build your own. It’ll get updated as the build progresses!

Discuss the Build

If you want more info directly from the Hangprinter core team, you can always find the most recent files for the Hangprinter on GitHub and progress updates on the blog.

BOM

These are the parts we used for the build! Many parts are free for you to swap for your favorite choices as long as they will provide the same functionality.

Electronics and 3D-printery bits

Trinamic TMC2130 on the Watterott SilentStepStick
Trinamic TMC2130 on the Watterott SilentStepStick
Part Function Qty needed Seen at
15-lead (or more) ribbon wire Connection electronics - effector 5m E3D / Aliexpress
E3D Volcano 1.75mm / 12V Hotend 1 E3D / Matterhackers
E3D Volcano copper nozzle 1.2mm Hotend 1 (optional) E3D / Matterhackers (brass)
E3D Titan Aero 1.75mm Extruder 1 E3D / Matterhackers
RAMPS Mainboard 1 Aliexpress
Arduino Mega 2560 clone Mainboard 1 Aliexpress
12V 7.5A (or 10A) power supply Power supply 1 Aliexpress
TMC2130 SilentStepStick Stepper motor drivers 5 Watterott / Filastruder / Digikey
PTFE tube 4x2mm 10cm E3D / Aliexpress

For the crucial components, we’re using high-quality, genuine parts such as a the E3D Volcano and Titan Aero. It is a bit longer, but you can also use a regular, non-Aero Titan. The Hangprinter needs to push out a lot of filament reliably, so if you decide to go with the budget option of a knocknoff Titan and Volcano, the entire extrusion system will top out at a lower volumetric flow rate and may overall not be as reliable as the real deal – and the last thing you want is a jam in the middle of a 5kg print! Other high-performance extrusion hardware like a Bondtech extruder is also going to work.

Mechanics

Mechanical components for the Hangprinter
Mechanical components for the Hangprinter
Part Function Qty needed Seen at
Fused fishing line (30lb or more) Effector suspension 60m Amazon
13mm (1/2") square wood profile Effector frame 3x40cm, 1x20cm local
M3x5 screws, length 5 mm Fastener 16
M3x10 screws, length 10 mm Fastener 2
M3x25 screws, length 25 mm Fastener 13
M8x50 (or longer) countersink screws Fastener 4
M3 nuts Fastener 25
M8 nuts Fastener 4
M3 washers Fastener 35
M8 washers Fastener 4
608 bearings Spool bearings 8 Aliexpress
623VV bearings Line bearing 12 Aliexpress
4x10 ~ 4x20 wood screws Fastener >20 local
MDF or plywood sheet Assembly base 47x47cm local

 

We went with 13mm beams for the effector instead of the standard 15mm ones. You can go with either one – the 15mm version can be built with 15mm wood, thin-walled aluminum tubing or carbon tubing available from Hobbyking. 13mm are close enough to 12.7mm, which is 1/2″, so you can go with locally available parts. We used 13mm beech hardwood beams, but again, thin-walled aluminum or carbon tubing in that size will work just as well!

Printed parts

Printed parts for the Hangprinter
Printed parts for the Hangprinter

You can support me without spending a single penny!