Goosenecked LED Lightbar Holder for Prusa i3 MK3.

This one is similar to the previous LED lightbar which goes under the MK3S MMU, only this time the bar is mounted on the end of a 5mm x 250mm long section of gooseneck tubing.

The gooseneck tubing itself comes from a PC mike stand bought in a bargain shop and as the PLA and the LED COB striplight are so lightweight, the gooseneck doesn't sag or droop over time.

A 12V, 0.2A power supply provides the required energy and a small in-line rotary control can be fitted to adjust the light intensity.

As long as you're comfortable with some rudimentary soldering and handling of the thin wires which require threading through the gooseneck tubing, it's relatively easy to construct this one.

If you have ideas to experiment with different applications such as a desk lamp etc., this project would make a good start, as all you then need is a solid base and either a mounted toggle switch or and inline switch which can also be adjustable.

Print Settings

Printer Brand:

Prusa

Printer: 

i3 MK3

Rafts:

Doesn't Matter

Supports: 

Doesn't Matter

Resolution:

0.2mm Quality

Infill: 

20% with brims

Filament:
Generic PLA (http://www.amazon.com/s?url=search-alias&field-keywords=Generic+PLA&tag=thingiverse09-20) Colour to suit. 
 

Notes: 

The two halves of the basemount can be printed in black to match the colour of the frame - or Prusa Orange if you prefer!

Post-Printing

Securing the goosneck tubing to the base clamping arrangement is best made using some heatshrink tubing to help it grip on the inside of the two base pieces. The screws I've used are M2 x 6 or 8mm long, depending on whether you use locking washers or not. There are recesses in the rear of the base half of the mounting pair which may need a little superglue to secure the 4x M2 hexnuts in place.

NB: When securing these nuts in place, be sure to insert the screws through the two printed base-halves and attach the nuts to the screws - with the ends of the screws flush with the edge/faces of the nuts - and then apply the superglue.
The clearance available will then give an indication of whether the locking washers are needed for spacing or not.
Once the superglue has cured, the nuts will remain in place and the screws can then be temporarily removed & washers added etc. until finally fastening down.

The two mounting holes which secure the base to the i3 Printer frame are 20mm apart and are M3 size. These same two holes line up with the two holes at the top corner of the i3 metal frame, just behind the uppermost end of the T8 screwthread of the Z axis, either side of the printer frame.

A couple of longer M3 x 25mm screws will be needed to secure it to the frame, due to the additional 7.5mm thickness of the gooseneck frame mounting-plate. Because this mount enables extending the gooseneck over and around from the rear of the printer, this avoids any interference by the gooseneck with the X-axis extruder carriage mechanism.

The mount can be printed in black PLA and thus hide it very neatly out of sight behind the frame. (Mine is printed in white for ease of illustration.)

The LED strip holder is similar to the previous version (which is mounted under the MMU) in shape, but is attached to the gooseneck with a combination of clear heatshrink tubing and E6000 glue.
The LED COB striplight used is the same as previously, i.e. a 12V unit also used for car/ boat/ caravan interior lights as found on eBay: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2-4-6X12V-LED-Car-Interior-White-Strip-Lights-Bar-Lamp-Car-Van-Caravan-Boat-Home/223067435724

The wires needed are any 12V / 0.2A rated with a total cross section of about 1mm each including insulation. A 0.5m length of red & black twin flex is plenty. I suggest threading these wires through the gooseneck first, loosely tying down to the opposite end of the gooseneck with enough left to allow threading through the opening and L-bend of the LED holder (using tweezers & hence the max 1mm of each wire's cross-section), to then be bared/stripped and soldered in place before mounting the LED strip onto its holder using a 165-170mm length of standard heat-resistant, clear double-sided gel tape.

At the base (opposite) end of the gooseneck, you can then attach a thicker and longer length of twin flex cable, terminated at the end with a standard inline 12V power socket, suited to an ordinary 12V mains adapter.
For added convenience, I use an inline rotary control to adjust the LED brightness - which also helps to stop the unit getting too warm over time: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mini-DC-12V-24V-LED-Strip-Dimmer-Switch-Single-Inline-PWM-Led-Dimmer-Controller/312482471854.

Category: 3D Printer Accessories