@3dprinting I wasn't kidding when I mentioned that forklift. _This_ was the state of the Z axis when I received this printer.

2/n

@3dprinting One of the first things I did was repurpose the metal reinforcing brackets that used to support that crossbeam into supporting the bottom where the electronics housing used to be. These needed two M5x12s and two M5 hammer nuts each. I couldn't reuse their existing M5s, as they were designed to go into tapped holes in the frame and were thus too long.

3/n

@3dprinting Oh, almost forgot. Anyone who's interested in what an Endorphin is can check out the project page here: https://endorphin3d.com/docs

The tl;dr of the Endorphin is that it's a minimal set of Ender 5 upgrades designed to fix many of its issues, by making use of an unusual choice of kinematics (hybrid CoreXY). Unlike something like a Mercury One, which is a near-total rebuild, this is a small set of upgrades.

4/n

@3dprinting I won't limit myself to the Endorphin's upgrades though: at minimum, I will have to rebuild the entire Z axis, and I'll have to do plenty more besides. However, I always liked the Endorphin for how small and simple it was, and thus, decided it would be a workable project that can use up a bunch of workshop junk.

5/n

@3dprinting One of the first _printed_ upgrades will be some brackets to reinforce the frame. I found one that I liked here: https://www.printables.com/model/82832-90-degree-bracket-for-2020-extrusion-for-ender-5-p

However, the intended print orientation is somewhat suboptimal (thanks, Slant3D!), so I modified it a bit to add a sacrificial layer, which allows it to be printed in a more optimal way. I'll need quite a few of these: I'll start with the ones reinforcing the two Z columns at the front.

6/n

@3dprinting For material, I'm sticking with my 're-use' theme and using KiwiFil rPETG, which comes from 100% recycled feedstock. It helps that I have about 1.5kg of it lying around too. As I have no plans to enclose this printer, this will work fine, and will look amazing, as it's Race Car Red.

For those interested, this is the filament: https://www.kiwifil.shop/products/race-car-red-rpetg-100-recycled-1-75mm-1kg

I _will_ make an exception for the toolhead fan duct, which will be made of ASA, but that's a future Koz problem.

7/n

@3dprinting I'll also need to find some way of covering various bare extrusion ends (four in total) that are left by removing the top-front crossbeam and the original screen mount. I'm thinking of using these: https://www.printables.com/model/642540-2020-end-cap-with-chamfer

If anyone can suggest a better one, I'm all ears (eyes?).

8/n

@3dprinting One more-than-mildly annoying problem with the Ender 5 (in any variant) is that two of its motors are not really reusable. The original E motor has a round shaft with a weird press-fit gear on it, which makes it hard to use for anything. Additionally, its weird dual-shaft Y motor isn't too great for anything either. The X and Z at least can be re-used (and match AFAICT).

Not a huge issue for me though, I have two LDO Speedys gathering dust.

9/n

@3dprinting Stage 1 of the Endorphin needs some idlers of a type I don't have, so unfortunately I had to order some. Luckily, Powge had them, and they weren't expensive. Still waiting for them to arrive though.

10/n

@3dprinting One down, _many_ to go. I'll publish the design as a remix of the original. This also shows how vibrant the Race Car Red PETG looks next to the black extrusions.

11/n

@3dprinting Decided to publish my remix while I wait: https://www.printables.com/model/1413551-ender-5-4-bolt-corner-bracket-slant3d-optimized

#3DPrinting #FDM #3DDesign #FreeCAD

12/n

@3dprinting So, time for some absurdism. Remember that destroyed Z axis I posted pics of earlier? Seems like the Z motor was also a victim: the shaft is _so_ bent it has _visible_ runout.

However, not all is lost! I thought I had two LDO Speedys in my workshop junk pile, but it turns out I actually have _four_.

Yes, I am going to run _Speedys_ on my _Z axis_. Like an absolute maniac.

13/n

@3dprinting A little bit later, progress! Unfortunately, I ran out of the M5x10 bolts I need to make more brackets, but even these four make the frame _feel_ stiffer.

I also printed some covers for the extrusion ends exposed by some of the stuff I removed, which looks much better.

Next step would be using some 2020 extrusion covers to hide the rather ugly holes drilled in the extrusion in several places. Going to try these: https://www.printables.com/model/208845-2020-aluminum-extrusion-cover

14/n

@3dprinting Predictably, that design didn't work out. However, I found a design that I could remix, and now, the ugly holes can be covered!

I under-printed by about 6mm, so I'll probably just fix that up later.

The design I worked from is here: https://www.printables.com/model/1169141-slot-cover-for-2020-extrusion . I'll post my remix later.

15/n