Core One Side Door for Filament (and/or toolbox).

Core One Side Door for Filament (and/or toolbox).

[LATER: CoreONE+ did not exist when this door was designed. The new C1+ spool holder though does stick outside the perimeter of the machine rather too much (by about 15mm).   KennyB made a nice shorter spoolholder but even that was a little too long, so I remixed his here:  https://www.printables.com/model/1628649-core-one-spoolholder-an-even-shorter-version-for-d  This fits nicely inside the drybox as described here.]

This provides 'drybox' storage for filament while printing.

The starting point for this was from @jonnieZG - his Core One side door: https://www.printables.com/model/1406178-prusament-core-one-side-door-for-filament-or-toolb for which I'm very grateful.

His door handle is perfect so I used it - twice.  All other parts I created and are downloadable here. 

Objectives

I wanted it to be easy to use, modular, and good looking.

For good looking, I chose to put a black edge on the pespex and to extend the door to the full width and height of the side 'space'.   I also used Prusament PETG Galaxy Black which matches the metalwork very well.

For ease of use (and looks), I mounted the 2 handles vertically - enables the door to be guided to position more easily.  I also put a bar (also black) below the door to provide a positive base when positioning it. 

For modular, I did not mount the hygrometer (see parts list later) on the perspex, but used its magnet to fix it on the lower metal shelf.   And the dessicant box is completely stand-alone. 

The container for dessicant beads is stealthily good looking with its colour and design echoing the Prusa spool.  It's large as it has to work quickly to remove moisture from the air when the door is replaced.  I put the beads inside it in a large custom bag made from insect netting. 

Like the bar under the door, and the door itself, the dessicant container is held in place with adhesive-backed flexible mag strip.  Double sided-tape would work too, but messy if it ever needs to be removed.

Parts list:

Perspex (preferably clear) 3mm thick, 360x344.  This is 4mm all-round smaller than the space we're covering; the extra 2mm on each edge is supplied by the printed edging pieces.

Two handles, see: https://www.printables.com/model/1406178-prusament-core-one-side-door-for-filament-or-toolb/files.  Note the recommended screws/nuts, 4 of each will be needed. 

Bottom bar, 7 parts in total (4 small joining pieces and 3 bar sections), comprising 3 distinct parts,  .

Edging pieces, 10 in total, comprising 4 distinct parts

Dessicant box, one large print

Hygrometer with magnetic back: eg on Amazon https://www.amazon.co.uk/DOQAUS-Thermometer-Hygrometer-Temperature-Greenhouse/dp/B0876NB9KT   FWIW this item seems more accurate than some cheaper hygrometers. 

Adhesive Magnetic tape: eg on Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/GAUDER-Magnetic-Adhesive-Magnet-Backing/dp/B07FFJCW91   There are other & cheaper tapes; this one has 3 advantages: it does indeed seem to be stronger than average, the adhesive is better than average, and because the roll is a relatively large dia., the tape uncurls and flattens better than other I have used.  As usual YMMV.   About 2.5m in total needed.

A small amount of household glue suitable for plastics. Does not have to be strong; super glue is not recommended. 

Some notes about the parts

I printed all parts (except the handles) in PETG Galaxy Black.  PLA (and others) should be fine too.

When printing the handles, slice them with the largest flat part of the handles on the bed.  That works fine and no support needed.   Use the info and instructions provided by @jonnieZG for mounting them. 

The printing orientation of all parts should be obvious. The narrow edging strips worked with no brim. They need to stand on edge and are very narrow.  They were deliberately designed to be as unobtrusive as possible and hence thin.  In any case, remove them from the bed carefully. 

Some parts are in more pieces than necessary, but having joints off-centre can look best.  The perspex edgings if made to my measurements will have approx 0.25mm gaps which look 'deliberate'.  

Construction Notes

Bottom support bar

Print the 7 pieces (all in one file) at the same time. Note how they join together and use a smear of glue on the pins to fix them in place and join the parts permanently.  Note that the facing out side of each piece has slightly chamfered edges. 

Present the bar to the lower edge of the side of the printer. Note that it will partly cover the heads of some plastic rivets.  However the mag tape is thicker than the rivet heads, so with tape under it, the bar will be clear of those rivets.  Cut a 360mm length of mag tape and (leaving the protective layer in place) attach it to the printer where the bar needs to go.  Note where the rivet heads appear, and trim the mag tape at those places to enable the tape to lie flat on the metal. 

Remove the protective strip and stick the mag tape firmly onto the printed plastic bar.  Attach it to the printer.

Door

Cut 3mm perspex to 360mm x 344mm. Clean and debur the edges.

Print the handles now and the provided screw hole template.  Decide where you want the handles and use the template to mark the position of the holes and drill them now.  Remember the countersink (if using).

Print the edge pieces now.  You want 2 each of the corner pieces,  2 each of the 240mm lengths and 4 of the 154mm lengths. 

Check the edge pieces for fit. I suggest use a careful small dab of glue near the end of each piece to hold them firmly to the pespex. Check that the pieces are firmly bedded to the perspex and that any small gaps are about the same size - for looks. 

Attach the handles.  Decide which is going to be the door's top edge and mark it in some way. 

Attaching the door

Present the door to the printer, using the lower bar to support it, and note the area it is going to cover and where the mag tape edging is going to go.  Remove the door and cut lengths of mag tape as required and attach them to the printer (protective tape still in place).  To keep this as air-tight as possible, try to use continuous mag tape lengths (I was not so successful) and just trim it where it needs to clear the plastic rivet heads.  Give a generous clearance: it will make mounting the door easier, and the mag tape is plenty strong enough to take the door's weight. 

This is where the ‘top’ of the door that you have marked is important. Once the mag tape is stuck onto the door, it will only mount that way up because the rivets are not symmetrical vertically.  They are however symmetrical horizontally which means that the door you are making will mount perfectly on the left side of the printer too - toolbox style, if desired.

When you are sure that you have got a complete strip of mag tape all around the edge of the opening, and that there are no significant air gaps in it, present the door again, again using the lower bar. Check visually where the mag tape will attach to the door, and look for any obvious problems.  Practice placing the door in place in EXACTLY the right position.

You only get one chance at the next step, so be 100% sure you are ready …

When all looks good, remove the door and carefully (without disturbing the mag tape) remove the protective tape to expose the adhesive. Now CAREFULLY place the door in EXACTLY the right position, starting from the position of the bottom bar, ensuring the door is perfectly central.   Press it into place all round.  Make sure most of the mag strip is adhesively attached before removing the door and giving the mag tape a very firm push to fully contact the adhesive.

 Dessicant container

The dessicant box is the only part to use a significant amount of plastic, but even then only 60g.  Print time will be 4 hrs+.  Use a layer of 0.2 or less to allow the overhangs to print as well as possible without supports. Print it upright - in itself a good test of the printer!

Use 4 vertical strips of mag tape on the back of the container.

Hygrometer

I just use it as is. The magnet is just powerful enough to hold it. Use a bit of mag tape for a more positive fix if desired.

Wrap up

That's it. Hope you found this fun & useful.  To improve air-tightness, you might like to (if you have not done already) fix the rather large gaps at the corners of that big inset metal plate in your printer.  I just used a few lengths of black electrical tape. There's also one rather large hole which could fit a nice oval blanking grommet printed in TPU.  An inch of black tape works fine too.