Between 265 & 485 SQ/FT Nick's Two-Car Detached Vdub Garage

[nicholam77]

No projects, or chores, or anything really for me over Thanksgiving break. Just family and kid time. After Thanksgiving day, we spent the weekend in Wisconsin at my in-laws' cabin. With my kids running around it's less relaxing than it sounds, but one bonus of them waking up at 5:30am is I got to witness and snap this sunrise:



Hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and scored lots of Black Friday tool deals

 

[nicholam77]

Post-Thanksgiving has been a whirlwind for me. Lots of stuff going on but to top it off this weekend our water heater decided it was a good time to leak.



Not too bad and I happened to catch it pretty much when it started. Previous owners installed in 20 yrs ago, so it had a pretty good run. Still an expensive headache to sort out amongst everything else.

Before all the craziness I did have a chance to get the 3D printer back up and running. Pretty easy, just took apart the hot end and cleaned it out, there was a big solid chunk blockage that came out. I threw away the existing nozzle and took the opportunity to install a 0.6mm nozzle for the first time.

I did some reading on the cheap all-metal hot end I got, and it's fairly well reviewed and made for the Ender 3 series so I was confident I should be able to get decent results. The main thing I changed was retraction to 3mm @ 40mm/s as recommended by some reviewers. The last print I had done was with the standard Ender 3 Cura settings which I believe the retraction is set to 5mm, which was probably WAY too much for an all metal hot end.

I didn't even do any tuning yet, just cleared the blockage and went straight to printing a large model

Still getting a little stringing / gooeyness in the infill area, but everything else laid down pretty nicely!




I'm not sure why the lines on the top of the model are so defined, they feel fairly smooth but maybe it's just the larger nozzle. I'm already appreciating the faster print times with the 0.6mm.

In case you're wondering what it is, it's a tray for a Tekton hook and pick set:



Didn't really need this, but turned out not bad and at least I got a mostly successful print out.

That's all for now...

 

[wreckdiver1321]

I like that little tray, that turned out pretty nice.

You had awesome luck catching the water heater that quickly. Take it from me, that turns into a massive headache in a big hurry. I have a lot of customers who had it wreck a good portion of their homes when the water heater let go. No fun at all. Crappy to have to spend the money and energy on replacing it, but could have been a lot worse.

 

[nicholam77]

I like that little tray, that turned out pretty nice.

You had awesome luck catching the water heater that quickly. Take it from me, that turns into a massive headache in a big hurry. I have a lot of customers who had it wreck a good portion of their homes when the water heater let go. No fun at all. Crappy to have to spend the money and energy on replacing it, but could have been a lot worse.

Thanks, Tom. The previous owners had installed a huge water heater for our fairly small 2200 sq ft house — 75 gallon tank. We never ran out of hot water, and I was going to replace with the same size since I'm used to it, but the plumber talked me into a 50 gallon instead. And I think that was the right call. It doesn't make sense to waste money on a larger unit or unnecessarily heat extra water all the time. The new unit is in and working great, and you're right it would have been a catastrophe to dump 75 gallons into our finished basement.

---

It was 9° F last night but I made it out to the garage to install some new WeatherTech mats in my car. I had been holding out, hopeful of a Black Friday promo, but sadly there wasn't so I ordered them anyways.

Monster Mats designed an Mk7 GTI specific mat set that echos the 'honeycomb' motif found elsewhere on the car, which is what I've been running year round since I bought it. They do a good job of collecting snow melt in the honeycombs, but the protection of the carpet around the sides and under the pedals is not great:



I pulled them out and vacuumed as best I could.

The new mats fit pretty nice.




I really need to give this car some love. It feels neglected. Not only did I not seal / wax it before winter, I didn't even wash it. Not even through a car wash. It's been unwashed for months at this point and caked with salt.

I will say I came very close to purchasing an ECU tune over Black Friday, but ultimately chickened out because I didn't have a master plan for the inevitable clutch replacement, or enough research put into it. I've gone back and forth on doing this for ages, weighing the cost and reliability vs. the fact that I intend to keep the car long term and would like to take it to the next level. My lowering springs have also taken a toll on my stock shocks and in an ideal world I'd like to switch to coil overs, but that's even more $$$.

Winter isn't really the time to be acting on it anyways, but maybe this spring I'll figure out what I want to do. Maybe.

 

[ebarker9]

I will say I came very close to purchasing an ECU tune over Black Friday, but ultimately chickened out because I didn't have a master plan for the inevitable clutch replacement, or enough research put into it. I've gone back and forth on doing this for ages, weighing the cost and reliability vs. the fact that I intend to keep the car long term and would like to take it to the next level. My lowering springs have also taken a toll on my stock shocks and in an ideal world I'd like to switch to coil overs, but that's even more $$$.

Winter isn't really the time to be acting on it anyways, but maybe this spring I'll figure out what I want to do. Maybe.

I have a 2017 Golf R and I'm debating the same. I'd probably only consider the APR Stage 1 in low torque but all of the warnings about clutch replacement are pretty dire. I generally don't drive that hard and have never had to replace a clutch on a car that I've owned so I still think there's a good chance that I'd be alright, but it would be a pretty large expense if it does start slipping.

 

[nicholam77]

I have a 2017 Golf R and I'm debating the same. I'd probably only consider the APR Stage 1 in low torque but all of the warnings about clutch replacement are pretty dire. I generally don't drive that hard and have never had to replace a clutch on a car that I've owned so I still think there's a good chance that I'd be alright, but it would be a pretty large expense if it does start slipping.

Yeah, I believe the clutch in the R is the same as in the GTI. The clutch replacement is the big expense like you said, if there wasn't that to worry about I'd tune in a heartbeat. I am also a conservative driver, 99% puttering around town with the kids in the back, or babying it half the year in winter, and I have very low miles on my 2016 (37,000). I also baby it mechanically, rev-matching all my shifts both up and down. I'm not trying to go to the drag strip, I just want a little more oomph and better drivability. I've also tried talking myself into "well maybe it wouldn't slip for me given my skill and driving style etc etc"... but I've landed on just including it in the cost of extra power. Knowing Stage 1 R levels I'm pretty sure you'd be needing a clutch, too.

Every time I look into it I get overwhelmed at the amount of options for tunes and clutches. I know APR is popular and established, but if there is slippage or any issue, I'd love to be able to flash back to stock settings at home instead of a dealer. That being the case I was looking at EQT with the Cobb Accessport, which seems to be the hot new thing, and also Unitronic which I think is *slightly* more conservative and has the UniConnect cable. Unsure on what clutch, but probably something OEM-ish retaining the dual-mass flywheel, maybe the Sachs Performance.

It's really annoying for us manual owners that VW won't put a better clutch in from the start! Then again the DSG car + DSG tune kind of evens it out. It would be a lot of money to throw at a (6 yr old?!) car at this point, but seeing the market and new Mk8's being listed for $50k and all that nonsense makes me realize I'm probably not going to be able to afford another 'sporty' yet practical car anytime soon. Might as well live it up and drive this one into the ground!

That's my reasoning, but then tomorrow I'll be like "do I really want shell out for the occasional on ramp pull?", and then get cold feet again.

 

[Denwood]

I hear you on the car and salt deal. It's been dipping to -20 at night, so washing a car in this weather is a waste of time. It literally is covered again just driving it home from the car wash.

It's been quite some time since I've done a VW clutch, but my autocrossed 84 Scirocco ended up with a Quaife, close ratio 5, and a lightened flywheel so I got pretty good at pulling it out..ha. I suspect my tuning days are mostly over, but I do miss that car a lot...and so do my kids.

I had a set of Weathertec's in my audi, but the EV came with Tuxmats (tuxmat.ca) which actually are quite nice as well...maybe a slight step up from the Wt's. One thing I did like a lot is that the Weathertecs were designed to work with the A3 floor anchors, just like yours.

 

[ebarker9]

That's my reasoning, but then tomorrow I'll be like "do I really want shell out for the occasional on ramp pull?", and then get cold feet again.

Yeah, but the fun of that on ramp pull...

 

[Bob Heine]

Nick, Our 2004 PT Cruiser Turbo is coming up on 20 years old and 50,000 miles.

I swapped the computer for a Stage 1, upgraded the intake with a CAI and 3-inch aluminum tubing (original was plastic and rubber accordion 2.5-inch) and exhaust with Borla 2.5-inch exhaust (original was 2.25). Loaded a Diablo 93-octane tune and turned a boring car into a fun car. It's an automatic (because my license is restricted) so I rarely slam the pedal to the floor from a dead stop. At about 20mph it lit the front tire up. Replaced the age-cracked Goodyear 205/55-16 tires with Riken 225/50-16 tires and it no longer smokes the tire, just a brief squeal that sounds like a hurt pig. Biggest issue with the extra power has been the engine mounts. Ripped the originals up in the first 5,000 miles and mistakenly glued stiffeners to the replacement set.

They were giving up before it registered 10,000 miles. Third try was a set of poly dog bones that transmit slightly more vibration than the stock ones but are still holding up at 49,000 miles. The lower mount is welded tube but the top is a little fancier:

Sadly, those dog bones exposed the weakness of the stock mounting bolts -- the top mounting bolt sheared off at 12,000 miles so I replaced all of them with stronger allen bolts. Only suspension mod is a set of Eibach springs but I replaced the struts with Gabriels at 40,000 miles.

No rust but the paint is fading in the Florida sun. Liane loves the car so it will get a re-paint one of these days. If I can't rent a booth, I may have to do something about a home-made one in the garage.

 

[kaymccampbell]

Makes me glad we never hotrodded the PT.

 

[nicholam77]

I hear you on the car and salt deal. It's been dipping to -20 at night, so washing a car in this weather is a waste of time. It literally is covered again just driving it home from the car wash.

It's been quite some time since I've done a VW clutch, but my autocrossed 84 Scirocco ended up with a Quaife, close ratio 5, and a lightened flywheel so I got pretty good at pulling it out..ha. I suspect my tuning days are mostly over, but I do miss that car a lot...and so do my kids.

I had a set of Weathertec's in my audi, but the EV came with Tuxmats (tuxmat.ca) which actually are quite nice as well...maybe a slight step up from the Wt's. One thing I did like a lot is that the Weathertecs were designed to work with the A3 floor anchors, just like yours.

I need to come visit you and get the Noxudol treatment

I probably could do a clutch job if I really put my mind to it and picked up a few tools, but it's not something I really want to do. I've had many times where whatever car task I've attempted ended up way harder than the YouTube video, haha. Being my only car, and used daily, I can't really have it on jack stands in the middle of the garage for weeks if I get stuck. However I envy you and others who are willing and capable to do that kind of work.

The Scirocco sounds awesome. I wish I could swap a closer ratio transmission, the gearing on the GTI is a bit weird. Even the R has different ratios despite having more power, but I guess it has AWD. Still, it feels like VW geared the Mk7 GTI purely for fuel economy.

Those tuxmats look great. The weather tech is pretty good but I wish it completely covered the dead pedal and further under the accelerator and brake pedals.

Yeah, but the fun of that on ramp pull...

This is the type encouragement I need!

Nick, Our 2004 PT Cruiser Turbo is coming up on 20 years old and 50,000 miles.

I swapped the computer for a Stage 1, upgraded the intake with a CAI and 3-inch aluminum tubing (original was plastic and rubber accordion 2.5-inch) and exhaust with Borla 2.5-inch exhaust (original was 2.25). Loaded a Diablo 93-octane tune and turned a boring car into a fun car. It's an automatic (because my license is restricted) so I rarely slam the pedal to the floor from a dead stop. At about 20mph it lit the front tire up. Replaced the age-cracked Goodyear 205/55-16 tires with Riken 225/50-16 tires and it no longer smokes the tire, just a brief squeal that sounds like a hurt pig. Biggest issue with the extra power has been the engine mounts. Ripped the originals up in the first 5,000 miles and mistakenly glued stiffeners to the replacement set.

That is awesome, Bob! I didn't know they made tunes for PT Cruisers. I bet it has surprised a few people, haha.

Even though my ECU is stock, I'm already using poly engine and transmission mounts, and have some aluminum bits in the voids of the rubber dogbone bush. Like you said, some minor vibrations but to me only noticeable when starting from a stop.

Since I already have mounts, the only thing I'd likely need is to replace the clutch either before or after it gets toasted. The average Stage 1 tune for 93 Octane adds roughly 100 hp / 100 ft-lb, so.... quite a bit.

 

[iadr]

I find the Weathertechs slippery when putting my foot in.

Problem scenario - I've worked for car dealerships for almost 20 years in Canada. Stepping into someone else's car with the seat adjusted wrong, varying makes and model's ergonomics, in winter. If it has Weathertechs, there's a very real chance of a painful slip.
IMO using plastic as they do, for this purpose is a bad idea.

 

[nicholam77]

I find the Weathertechs slippery when putting my foot in.

I would agree with you on that. I've had them in my wife's vehicle for 5 yrs and never had an issue but I know what you mean.

---

Knocked out a quick 30min project yesterday.

When getting the water heater replaced I had to move a bunch of stuff out of the attached laundry room so the plumbers could have a clear path.

Our laundry room is a mess, a catch-all for tools and supplies that don't have a proper home, as well as food and beverage storage overflow. This is after I did a big cleaning and reorganization after putting stuff back:



The thing that irritates me the most is the stuff on the floor. It seems like every time a Costco trip happens we end up bringing half the store home with us and nowhere to put it. My wife is a big bubbly water drinker, and it got me thinking if there was a way to move her drinks somewhere else.

Upstairs in the kitchen we have a slim pantry cupboard that's packed full (ignore the empty shelf, that's used too, I had just taken the stuff out — you'll see why later).



The small bottom compartment has a pull-out drawer, but I've always felt that space could be more efficient.



Also I don't know why we have Dr Pepper, lol, neither of us drink soda.

Anyways, I remembered the previous owners had left some extra bits from their kitchen remodel up in the attic, and what do you know I found an extra piece of shelving!

There are shelf pin holes in the bottom section already so my plan was to add a shelf above the drawer, and relocate a lot of the drinks out of their packaging.

To do this I pulled one of the existing shelves, and traced it onto the spare material.



And then I think you can probably guess what happened next.



Installed:



And all loaded up:



It's a pretty deep cabinet (19") so it holds quite a few drinks. Easily 50 or more. I was able to throw away a lot of boxes and packaging, and now when my wife wants to restock the fridge it's right there next to it for her. And there is more room in the laundry room for paper towels and that sort of thing.

The laundry room still needs a full re-think, but that's a project for Future Nick.

Like I said at the top of the post, this only took me 30min and I love little projects that make everyday life more organized and efficient.

 

[nicholam77]

IKEA Alex boxes + Nozzle Clogs

After clearing the hot end clog from having my retractions set too high, I thought everything was working as it should with the 3d printer. As a little tester project, I printed some organizational boxes for the IKEA Alex drawer units that are the base cabinets of my office desk, to store some of the printer accessories and organize the drawers a little better.



Turned out fine, but I noticed the first layer was under-extruded:



I gave E-steps a quick check since I hadn't recalibrated with the new hot end. It wasn't off by much (97mm extruded instead of 100mm), but I saved the corrected value anyways. Next box, first layer looked good.

And so I printed a bunch of these.



They were from a Thingiverse file, but I ended up just using the measurements and designing additional sizes in Fusion360, with extra compartments, etc.



Some of these larger boxes were 5 hr prints.




As you can see everything was going fine, until on the 7th or 8th box, I got the dreaded extruder clicking at the beginning of the print. Filament was barely coming out and made a crispy mess on the print bed.

Figuring it was another blockage, I took the hot end apart, but everything looked good as far as I could tell. So I put it back together and extruded some filament manually. It seemed to be coming out ok. Started another print.

SAME THING. Extruder clicking and slipping.

So I took the extruder arm off to check the gear. Looked pretty clean?



The gear has a little wear in the middle but it's barely noticeable to the naked eye.



I mean maybe that's the problem but it doesn't look bad to me.

When reassembling, I adjusted the gear height so the filament would contact a "fresh" section.

Same thing, extruder slips. I also played with the tension of the release arm and that didn't change the results, either.

So now I don't know what to do. Order a new extruder gear, perhaps a hardened steel one? Try a dual-gear metal extruder? Take the printer apart and make sure the voltage is good on the new motherboard to the extruder motor? Play around with slicer settings (temperature etc)? Not only on the GJ boards here, but at my work too I know multiple people with Ender 3v2's or the Ender 3 Pro. They have not had constant issues. It just seems like it shouldn't be... this hard.

The micro center near me as the Ender 3 S1 for $279 right now. Seems like a smokin' deal and I'm so tempted to just get that and Craigslist the 3v2. I'd sort of feel like a cop out, and I don't know that it will fix all my problems, but it would be a fresh start and it has some serious upgrades like the direct drive dual-gear extruder, powered dual-z axis, and CR-touch auto leveling. What I do know is I'm tired of having to fix something every couple of prints. It's literally been 3x prints, problem, 3x prints, problem, for the longest time.

Thanks for listening to my rant.

 

[slodat]

I love the printed bins. I've printed hundreds of them. All sorts of sizes. Never thought of white filament for these. White would be great for kitchen drawers and such.

 

[kaymccampbell]

If you're going to get the Ender, get the Pro. Mine's been well behaved right out of the box.

 

[MadeByMiller]

PRUSA!!

 

[loganb]

I'll stir the pot because that's what I do best...

Bambu Lab X1 Series | Desktop 3D Printer | X1C - Bambu Lab

Bambu Lab X1 series are state-of-the-art desktop 3D printers with CoreXY high speed and multi-color capabilities, built for both beginners and professionals.

bambulab.com

Likely going to cancel my Prusa XL pre-order for one of those instead....I think the ease and speed would be handier than the size increase the XL would bring....and I'll probably eventually still buy a larger format Creality

 

[Denwood]

Nick, that Makita track saw keeps photo bombing your thread I had mine out last night. Best tool ever.

Are any of the 3D printers anywhere close to plug and play reliable? I don't miss messing with our Alaris (which was a $50K tag) and purchasing the liquid modeling/support monomers at $600 a litre, but that was 5-6 years ago. It printed with a few very expensive "ink jet" type heads and UV curing. When everything was "on" it would print very nicely, however it nearly always needed tweaking on and was stupidly expensive to operate.

I would have hoped that there should be current desktop printers that are more in the "bulletproof" category, particularly in the filament/extruding category ??

 

[nicholam77]

I love the printed bins. I've printed hundreds of them. All sorts of sizes. Never thought of white filament for these. White would be great for kitchen drawers and such.

Thanks @slodat ! I only had white and black filament and I thought white would go with the IKEA unit better. 3d printed bins and small parts organization are super satisfying!

If you're going to get the Ender, get the Pro. Mine's been well behaved right out of the box.

Thanks for the input, Kay. My friend from work has the Ender 3 Pro as well and claims no issues, ever. I don't think it gets used that heavily, though. But I know he is a surface-level user and just uses the default slicer profile, etc. The Pro would definitely be the most economical option for a new printer, but it's really the same thing as the 3v2 I have. Or the tech is the same. In fact the 3v2 is the upgraded one with silent stepper drivers and better LCD display. But still Bowden setup, single Z motor, PTFE-lined hot end, etc.

My feeling isn't that the Pro or standard Ender 3 are better than the 3v2 — I think they are all fundamentally very similar and for a variety of reasons some people have great luck with them and some not so great experience. I could roll the dice with any of the base Ender 3's and see if I have a better result, but knowing the problems I've had to trouble shoot, some upgraded parts (especially direct drive) are attractive to me.

PRUSA!!

Yeah, I know. Prusa seems to have an almost Apple-like cult following. Not saying that is bad, it seems like everyone is happy with their i3 MK3S+. I believe the hype. But my hurdle is this is not my main hobby. I don't have an extensive CAD background. I'm not selling my creations or doing high volume. I just want to play around and have fun without spending the majority of my time trouble-shooting. I understand that the MK3 would give me that, but to me the results and parts I'm making are not worth a $1,000 machine yet.

I'll stir the pot because that's what I do best...

Bambu Lab X1 Series | Desktop 3D Printer | X1C - Bambu Lab

Bambu Lab X1 series are state-of-the-art desktop 3D printers with CoreXY high speed and multi-color capabilities, built for both beginners and professionals.

bambulab.com

Likely going to cancel my Prusa XL pre-order for one of those instead....I think the ease and speed would be handier than the size increase the XL would bring....and I'll probably eventually still buy a larger format Creality

That Bambu X1 looks really cool! Same comment as to @MadeByMiller though, not ready to spend $1k on a printer. But you should definitely get it

Nick, that Makita track saw keeps photo bombing your thread I had mine out last night. Best tool ever.

Are any of the 3D printers anywhere close to plug and play reliable? I don't miss messing with our Alaris (which was a $50K tag) and purchasing the liquid modeling/support monomers at $600 a litre, but that was 5-6 years ago. It printed with a few very expensive "ink jet" type heads and UV curing. When everything was "on" it would print very nicely, however it nearly always needed tweaking on and was stupidly expensive to operate.

I would have hoped that there should be current desktop printers that are more in the "bulletproof" category, particularly in the filament/extruding category ??

Yeah my Makita is for sure one of my favorite tools. Aside from its usefulness, it's just fun to use. Your review of it on your home theater build was a big influence it me picking one up!

Like @MadeByMiller and @loganb and @slodat and many others with attest to, I think the go-to reliable FDM printer is the Prusa i3 MK3S+ by Josef Prusa. And I'm guessing if something does go wrong, I expect the customer service is much better than something like Creality or any of it's clones.

 

[nicholam77]

Ok, so it's currently printing:



I swapped the extruder gear for the original one that came with the OEM plastic arm extruder.

It hasn't slipped, but I'm still skeptical. Extruding manually with the blue dial seemed a bit forced. The first lines it was putting down for the model perimeter looked to be varying thickness and opacity, so I'm not confident it is extruding consistently. We'll see how the print turns out if it makes it through.

I'm still really tempted to pick up the Ender S1 on that deep sale price, and then if I like it either sell this one in a working condition on the marketplace, or possibly iron out the extruder/clogging issue as time allows and keep it as a 2nd machine. Still thinking about it but I'll try to keep printing these boxes, and if I run into more issues that's probably going to be the tipping point...

 

[Bob Heine]

I am not going to buy a 3D printer. I am not going to buy a 3D printer.

****, there's a $244 Ender 3 Pro and spool of filament in my Cart!

I will wait until it goes lower. I will wait until it goes lower.

I don't need a 3D printer. I don't need a 3D printer.

I need to go to a meeting....

 

[MadeByMiller]

If you continue to have problems, you might try swapping spools of filament if you haven't already done so. You may have an issue with the filament being too far out of tolerance causing the slipping, that would explain why the problem seems intermittent as well. Or just throw the works in the garbage and get that Prusa haha! On that topic though, I understand the cost issue. Consider the value of your time with all of it spent working ON this printer though, and also consider the value of the items you're printing vs. having to buy them. It would also serve as good motivation to improve your 3D modeling skills! As much as I've seen you use your printer in this thread already, I think the Prusa would be a good investment if you can swing it.

 

[nicholam77]

I am not going to buy a 3D printer. I am not going to buy a 3D printer.

****, there's a $244 Ender 3 Pro and spool of filament in my Cart!

@Bob Heine not sure you have Micro Center (electronics / hobby store chain) in Florida, but the Ender 3 Pro has regularly gone on sale there for $99. An absolute killer deal. There might be other deals like that out there.

If you continue to have problems, you might try swapping spools of filament if you haven't already done so. You may have an issue with the filament being too far out of tolerance causing the slipping, that would explain why the problem seems intermittent as well. Or just throw the works in the garbage and get that Prusa haha! On that topic though, I understand the cost issue. Consider the value of your time with all of it spent working ON this printer though, and also consider the value of the items you're printing vs. having to buy them. It would also serve as good motivation to improve your 3D modeling skills! As much as I've seen you use your printer in this thread already, I think the Prusa would be a good investment if you can swing it.

True, my filament is old-ish and hasn't been vacuum sealed. Unfortunately that's the case with my other roll, too. But good tip.

My time is valuable, yes. That's probably the biggest selling point for me. The value of the stuff I've printed, not so much in my opinion. Sure, buying organizer bins for example would be more expensive than printing them, can't argue with that. But they aren't something I need. It's cool and useful but more of a novelty for me. As in if I didn't have the printer, I wouldn't be buying off-the-shelf bins instead. That's just one example, but I'd say most things I've printed fall into that category - cool, fun, even useful, but not something so necessary I would have spent money on a real product.

However, there are a few things I've printed that have solved real problems, and don't have an equivalent product, like the router baseplate adapter for my LR32 shelf pinning system, the spacer for the Blum hinge plate, the flip stop for my MFT fence, and probably a few others. Those custom designs really are valuable, but... $1,000? I could have bought an actual Festool router, and a spendy off-the-shelf MFT fence and still not hit that. Sure, maybe one day it would catch up. I might change my mind on this eventually, but for now I still struggle to see the value proposition in my use case.

This is not to say I don't think the Prusa is worth its price tag. And I do think it would be a good fit for me and I would enjoy it. I'm just not quite ready. I've kept my eye open for used Prusa's, but there never seem to be any!

On the 3D modeling front, I do intend to pursue that more. That might be one of my winter activities after we get through the holidays.

Thanks for the comments!

 

[Snapped-off]

I will say I came very close to purchasing an ECU tune over Black Friday,

I just bought a stage 2 tune for my Q5 TDI along with the associated emission extraction tubing. Got a whopping 15% off.

Just waiting for the dieselgate warranty to expire before installing.

 

[loganb]

I'll keep my eye on FB marketplace, I've got a standing search for Prusa and I'm close enough that it shows me MSP area stuff when I scroll down past the search radius I set(helps there aren't a huge number of results for Prusa). There was one for $600 a month or two ago...only 1 I see now is 800 or so which isn't a bad price as it has some add on's but not a huge discount off new. Maybe Feb or March you can find one that was an Xmas present and the recipient lost interest

 

[nicholam77]

I just bought a stage 2 tune for my Q5 TDI along with the associated emission extraction tubing. Got a whopping 15% off.

Sweet. I shoulda came prepared on Black Friday. If I knew what I wanted and had a parts list for the clutch I'm sure I could have gotten some good deals. It just didn't feel right pulling the trigger without more research. Jealous, though!

I'll keep my eye on FB marketplace, I've got a standing search for Prusa and I'm close enough that it shows me MSP area stuff when I scroll down past the search radius I set(helps there aren't a huge number of results for Prusa). There was one for $600 a month or two ago...only 1 I see now is 800 or so which isn't a bad price as it has some add on's but not a huge discount off new. Maybe Feb or March you can find one that was an Xmas present and the recipient lost interest

Thanks!

What do you know it made it through the print:



This box is for the ferrule crimping kit I bought to stop my Ender from melting itself.



Not sure I need this many ferrules on hand, but it looks tidy.

I'm going to keep going with this new (old) extruder gear and see if the slipping pops up again. If not, maybe the other gear was worn. If it does, it must be something else with the hot end or extruder motor.

 

[jbrentd]

Outstanding work, as usual, on the nightstands! I envy the woodworking skills on GJ.

On your GTI, is there something inherently wrong with the clutch design that causes so much concern? I chipped my B5 with 120k miles, then K04'd for another 40k miles to 180k miles...all on the original clutch. I drive very similar to how you describe your driving.

 

[nicholam77]

Outstanding work, as usual, on the nightstands! I envy the woodworking skills on GJ.

On your GTI, is there something inherently wrong with the clutch design that causes so much concern? I chipped my B5 with 120k miles, then K04'd for another 40k miles to 180k miles...all on the original clutch. I drive very similar to how you describe your driving.

Thanks @jbrentd !

On the clutch, it's not so much the clutch design as how much headroom there is on this engine. The consensus is it's been massively de-tuned so as not to compete with other higher performance models that use the same engine — such as the Golf R, GTI Clubsport, Audi S3, etc. Some of those versions have some upgraded internals, but it's the same bones. As such, the average Stage 1 ECU tune with no extra hardware, typically adds about 100 ft-lbs of wheel torque to the stock 258 ft-lbs of crank torque. The stock pressure plate can't hold that much added torque. I've seen the number 325 ft-lbs as a general guide of what it can hold. Could be more, could be less, but a Stage 1 usually puts it right at the limit.

APR's Stage 1 for example claims 351 ft-lbs at the crank.

Some may be able to get by for awhile with no clutch upgrade, depending on driving style, the tune they got, and maybe luck of the draw. But it's almost inevitable that it will need to be replaced sooner than later. There are also many accounts of stock clutches slipping the first day of the tune.

So the choice is either take the gamble and see how long it holds out, or take care of it up front knowing it will fail eventually.

Golf R owners have even bigger gains so they for sure need it, and any Stage 2 or big turbo GTI build is easily going to be in the 400 hp / 400+ ft-lbs range.

 

[jbrentd]

Thanks for the info! It sounds like that would all apply to my son's 2011 A3 with the DSG. I am wondering if the same would apply to my 2013 allroad with the 8-speed AT.

 

[nicholam77]

Thanks for the info! It sounds like that would all apply to my son's 2011 A3 with the DSG. I am wondering if the same would apply to my 2013 allroad with the 8-speed AT.

I'm not sure if those Audi models have the same engine (EA888 2.0T TSI Gen 3) or not. They might, as I think it came out around 2013 but not positive. If they are the previous Gen 2 or 1.8T then the torque gains are probably a bit less, but either way you shouldn't have a problem with the DSG as I think that has much more clamping force than a standard clutch pressure plate. That's the case with the Mk7 Golf GTI and R, anyways. DSG owners who tune don't have to worry, even with massive gains.

As for the 8-speed AT, I have no idea. I think torque-converter automatics can generally take a lot of torque.

You should probably do some Google-fu instead of take my advice, but I would wager neither of those transmissions would have issues with whatever tunes are available, especially Stage 1's.

 

[nicholam77]

A quick print for the workshop.

Space is tight between my car and the wall when parked, and I've snagged on the Makita big boi rail a few times. One time even ripped my jacket.



I found this guide rail end protector on Printables, and it worked well:




Other than that it's been clearing snow for the past 3 days.




Off to go sledding!

 

[MadeByMiller]

A quick print for the workshop.

Space is tight between my car and the wall when parked, and I've snagged on the Makita big boi rail a few times. One time even ripped my jacket.



I found this guide rail end protector on Printables, and it worked well:




Other than that it's been clearing snow for the past 3 days.




Off to go sledding!

Hey, jackets aren't cheap to replace! Shows you how valuable your 3D printer is and another notch in the pros column of the Prusa investment!

 

[Trapps]

The last time we spoke about snow, you were going to keep it on that side of Lake Michigan. Same request...

Caps look great! These are things that make me consider a 3D printer, but I've reduced my new 'want' tool budget. Well, diverted it is more accurate. Perhaps in the future.

Is there room above the window for the long rail? If it's not a daily use item that might also be a move to consider. One of my 2 rails is mounted higher; I can get to it without a foot stool but it is bit of a stretch.

 

[wreckdiver1321]

Been a similar situation here, not a lot going on.

Your neighbor has a Toyota Land Cruiser. If it's clean you should sneak some parts for me. Like, the doors.

 

[nicholam77]

Hey, jackets aren't cheap to replace! Shows you how valuable your 3D printer is and another notch in the pros column of the Prusa investment!

I mean... you're not wrong

Is there room above the window for the long rail? If it's not a daily use item that might also be a move to consider. One of my 2 rails is mounted higher; I can get to it without a foot stool but it is bit of a stretch.

Yeah there probably is, but just barely. It would be a bit of a PITA because it would go behind the garage door track, but it's true, it's not a daily use item at all. To be honest I haven't even used it yet. Waiting for that next big cabinet project!

I'll try to keep the snow up here, so far it seems like we're doing a good job

Your neighbor has a Toyota Land Cruiser. If it's clean you should sneak some parts for me. Like, the doors.

Lol! Good eye

Despite being covered in snow right now, the Land Cruiser is definitely clean. They are car people and they have... lots of cars. Since they moved in a few years ago I've seen the Volvo, Land Cruiser, 3-series, Audi S3, and Honda S2000, although I think those last two are gone now.

But the biggest jealousy factor is what's in the garage — a pair of silver 911s. Yes, two. One is a 993 Carrera S and the other is a 996 Turbo. The Turbo has an aftermarket exhaust and I can definitely hear that thing cold start from anywhere in my house, lol. But I don't mind. They are both regularly driven and wrenched on (although not in winter), so they have a good home.

 

[wreckdiver1321]

Lol! Good eye

Despite being covered in snow right now, the Land Cruiser is definitely clean. They are car people and they have... lots of cars. Since they moved in a few years ago I've seen the Volvo, Land Cruiser, 3-series, Audi S3, and Honda S2000, although I think those last two are gone now.

But the biggest jealousy factor is what's in the garage — a pair of silver 911s. Yes, two. One is a 993 Carrera S and the other is a 996 Turbo. The Turbo has an aftermarket exhaust and I can definitely hear that thing cold start from anywhere in my house, lol. But I don't mind. They are both regularly driven and wrenched on (although not in winter), so they have a good home.

I've got an eye for them now, it's almost an affliction.

I'll probably be buying another one sooner than later actually. I love them but I dunno if I'm ever going to get past the rust-bucket-ness of the gold one. I know I can sell it and pretty much break even once the body work is done, so I think I may do that and ditch it to get that rot out of my life.

Anyway, I definitely see myself owning a few more Land Cruisers.

They sound like my kind of people! Sounds like a good stable and good people to be curating them. Several in that list I'd be happy to own. It's always fun having car people as neighbors, even if their interests are way different.

 

[fourmotioneer]

Given just how much effort you put into perfecting the clutch feel on your car (I’ve done none of the mods but totally agree that the MK7 clutch is odd and tricky…), have you considered how that upgraded clutch might affect the driving experience should you choose to upgrade? Best way I can describe the clutch feel on my brother’s Stage 3 GTI is “agricultural”. Kills the fun for the 99% of time you are driving so that you can do illegal speed for 1%.

As a dad with two kids myself, I’d feel silly lugging them around in something like that, but it’s clearly personal preference! I say this as someone with a car disease (I have 5+ engines waiting for a build in the garage…). I was 11 when I saw The Fast and The Furious and I’m still trying to undo the damage that movie inflicted upon my susceptible young mind hahaha

 

[nicholam77]

Given just how much effort you put into perfecting the clutch feel on your car (I’ve done none of the mods but totally agree that the MK7 clutch is odd and tricky…), have you considered how that upgraded clutch might affect the driving experience should you choose to upgrade? Best way I can describe the clutch feel on my brother’s Stage 3 GTI is “agricultural”. Kills the fun for the 99% of time you are driving so that you can do illegal speed for 1%.

As a dad with two kids myself, I’d feel silly lugging them around in something like that, but it’s clearly personal preference! I say this as someone with a car disease (I have 5+ engines waiting for a build in the garage…). I was 11 when I saw The Fast and The Furious and I’m still trying to undo the damage that movie inflicted upon my susceptible young mind hahaha

@fourmotioneer yeah I've definitely considered that, and I totally hear what you're saying. I am sensitive to NVH and I don't want to ruin my car, I'm already on the borderline after doing the BFI mounts. I don't know what clutch your brother's Stage 3 GTI has but I would assume it's pretty aggressive, usually a Stage 3 car is all-out race car. On the contrary I'd be looking at something as OEM as possible that can hold the extra torque. A common option is the Sachs Performance Clutch that can be used with the OEM dual-mass flywheel. It holds 407 ft/lbs, and while I haven't experienced one myself, most reviews say it is very similar to the stock clutch, albeit with a slightly heavier pedal. Which I don't mind.

Another common OEM-feeling Stage 1 solution (I think FCP Euro actually sold a hodgepodge kit for awhile) is to use the OEM pressure plate from the Audi TTRS, and maybe the disc too I can't remember. Which if you source the parts on your own can come out pretty reasonable, just need a good parts list and a shop willing to install it. For peace of mind and ease of use I'd lean towards the Sachs kit, though.

But in any case, I'd be keeping the dual-mass flywheel.

Another reason for wanting to tune, besides being able to go faster, is drivability. This requires more research on my end, but I know tunes release some of the nannies, or try to improve things like emissions-related rev hang. One thing that's always annoyed me is the ECU gives a little fuel as you lift the clutch pedal from a stop. I think it's supposed to help drivers that don't know how to use a clutch or something. But I like to control the takeoff myself — I don't like that the car tries to "help". I would assume this would be removed in a tune. Also things like not being as heavy-handed on the boost limitations in 1st and 2nd gear, etc, etc.

To be honest the stock GTI is not a fast car. It feels quick in 3rd and 4th when you're already going 40-60mph, plenty of passing power on the freeway so to speak. But from a dig it's nothing wild. Any old SUV these days is going to have near the 220 hp mine has. Probably less torque and more weight, but with the advantage of an automatic and the crappy low end gearing of the GTI, I would honestly have to drive like a maniac to beat some of these compact SUVs off the line at a stoplight. Not that I'm out there racing soccer moms , or anybody for that matter, but I would love to wake the car up and feel like the power's there when I want it, if that makes sense.

 

[Denwood]

I am not going to buy a 3D printer. I am not going to buy a 3D printer.

****, there's a $244 Ender 3 Pro and spool of filament in my Cart!

I will wait until it goes lower. I will wait until it goes lower.

I don't need a 3D printer. I don't need a 3D printer.

I need to go to a meeting....

Ya, Nick I may have to stop reading your thread...ha. Every time I read it, I end up looking around at 3D printers again...

I've had my beast of a snow blower out a few times this year. I feel your pain.

I installed a lightened flywheel along with a Quaife on the old 84 Scirocco and it was definitely noticeable on acceleration. I'm sure it cut a few tenths on the autocross course as that is all about low end grunt. I sure miss that visceral, loud and nasty drive. That car was like an angry toddler. It was not "fast" or remotely refined as compared to modern cars (0-60 in about 7 seconds with the pimped 2 litre audi block) but it sure felt fast when you were in the seat. It was a winning car at the autocross track in modified class though over much faster cars.