AM8 Y Rod Holder

I've had trouble with my last Y rod holder - it split and was very large and cumbersome. Typically, I would've gotten something off Printables.com, but I couldn't find any that supported full travel for the plate. So, I designed this model real fast in Tinkercad.

It is best printed as the file is saved. No supports are necessary unless your printer has trouble completing cylindrical holes. 

Do note that I have built tolerances into the model for holding the rod tight enough but not too tight. I didn't want to add a hole for a set screw, so I just dialed in the proper size (the hole measures 8.1mm, not 8. This works perfectly on my printer and holds the rod snug) and went with that.

This design mounts on an Anet AM8 2020 extrusion frame, but could likely be used on any 2020 or 2040 extrusion-built printer. It is best mounted with M4 or M5 screws, not M3 - M3 won't hold it down strong enough, and it is possible the screw head wouldn't be large enough. 

Hope this works out for ya! Please consider leaving a comment/make! 

• File updated to V2 - after using this rod mount for a month or two, I couldn't help but notice that the rod on one of the holders started to slide with my printbed every so often. Clearly it wasn't tight enough on the rod. Instead of tightening it up and making it hard to put in the rod, I've now added a second version of the design called “Y Rod Holder V2” which has a small flat wall to prevent the rod from moving in and out. No tolerances were modified for this file, simply the addition of the wall. 

• File update, V2.1 and V1.1 - Ran a big print the other day that put the nozzle at 220mm in Y, and when it did, the bed hit the rod mount on the front. You using this file may not run into the issue, in fact, some of you may have extra 1 or 2 MMs in Y travel. There's factors here: Y position of nozzle in relation to X axis, placement of X axis gantry in relation to lower Y frame, home offsets, bed size, and even more. I've just taken off a millimeter to allow further travel for those struggling with this issue. The new file is now named “Y Rod Mount V2.1” and “Y Rod Mount 1.1”.

• File updated to V2.2 - I've now deleted V1.1, as I just had the V1 design ruin a print 23 hours through. The rod slid out the back and dropped my bed, effectively making my print useless. I have also thinned up the mount once more so I can get full travel. The wall thickness of the top portion is 6mm, allowing lot's of space for extra travel. I have also put in more space so the Y rod can go just beyond the frame. My y rod is a tad long, or maybe my frame is a tad short, and so the holders were a little strained. I've taken out that strain with this update, V2.2. Updated pictures and an x-ray screenshot are provided.