Flashforge Adventurer 5M (AD5M) Filament Cutter - compatible with DIY enclosure when using my Design8Studio drag chain termination v1.1

Here's yet another great improvement to an already great printer. Built-in filament cutter to make filament changes so much easier. You no longer have to disconnect the PTFE tube to manually cut the filament. Just press the cutter button!  

Kudos to Ben Engelen @BenEngelen_1385989, who brought the blade cutter to my attention. However, whereas he remixed my drag chain termination to get an existing cutter to work, I saw room for improvement in the cutter itself, and also made it so no change is needed to my existing drag chain termination part, which is already in place in quite a few printers.

Note: there is no protrusion on the left side beyond the extruder assembly / print head. It's not possible to accidentally cut the filament by any movement of the print head. The maximum movement to the side does not cause any contact with the cutter's button.

Changes in my remix of the filament cutter

• Lowered the profile (slimmed it down) to make it a lean, mean filament cutting machine, because AD5M space is limited and tolerances need to be right.  
• Cleaned up quite a bit of stray geometry in the cutter body, that seems to have been artifacts from various previous quick-and-dirty remixes.
• Added support for additional blade sourcing. Speaking of which, I am offering three slot widths (0.6mm, 0.7mm, 0.8mm) for the blade holding part of the button, since it seems the blades on some knife products might be different thickness than others. Mine seemed thicker.
• Oriented the cutter body to print at an angle (45 degrees), not only to eliminate need for supports, but to also get the best strength in combatting the layer-line adhesion issue common to all FDM printers.  
• As of June 1, 2024 - added new v1.1 option for cutter body. There is only one tiny difference: slight alteration of the PTFE socket's taper. I'm leaving the v1.0 body in the listing too.

Print info

• Print as oriented.
• Prints with no supports needed.
• Tested with PLA on AD5M. PETG should also work great.
• Brim? Mine printed great without a brim. However, if you don't have decent first layer adhesion, you might want to add a brim to the cutter body. 

Usage note

It's worth checking for clearance, because you don't want the PTFE tube rubbing the plexiglas lid raw and marring it. Regarding the length of PTFE tubing from the Flashforge kit for the DIY enclosure, I cut about 70 mm off (about 2 ¾"). Seems to work fine. Your mileage may vary.

Materials

• Two (2) screws, M3 x 25 mm
• Two (2) springs from retractable ball point pens (approximately 20 mm length, 4 mm diameter; the M3 screw must fit inside it).
• Blade options — dimensions this is designed for:
  • If you already have a razor blade utility knife with snap-off blade sections, you may well already have what is needed. The blade height, from the sharp edge across to the blunt back edge, should be approximately 18mm. The snap-off section should be about 9mm wide. I have a bunch of utility knives with 4.5 mm snap-off increments, so I snapped two of the sections together as one. That worked fine.

• Blade sourcing:
  • Option 1: One (1) segment of snap-off blade from this one (affiliate link):
     
    
     
  • Option 2: Two (2) segments of snap-off blade from this knife (affiliate link):
     
    
     
  • Possible option 3: I've not personally verified, but likely would work: this one (affiliate link):
     
     
     
  • Possible option 4:  I've not personally verified, but likely would work: this one (affiliate link): 
     
    
     

Assembly and installation (videos and instructions)

Assembly Video

This assembly video is good. I did not make it, but it's quite valid for my remix too. It's one that mine is based on:

Installation Video

Instructions for assembly and installation 

Assembly

1. Print both parts (cutter body and cutter button). If you are unsure which button to print, go with the medium one, marked 0.7 slot.
2. Take one piece of snap-off blade and put it into upper part. Use some pliers to avoid an injury. There is a small mark near blade pocket which shows you where the tip of the blade should be. Additionally you can use super glue to fix it in position.
3. Put both screws into the holes.
4. Put ball point pen springs into the holes.
5. Place the button on the main cutter body and press it fully.
6. Tighten the screws. Be careful not to over tighten.
7. Release upper part and check if blade is not visible inside the filament hole. If it is, then loosen the screws a little bit.
8. It is recommended to put some lubricant inside to keep the mechanism running smoothly. Here's an affiliate link to some lithium grease, which is a good choice.

Installation without DIY enclosure 

1. Withdraw the PTFE tube from the AD5M extruder / hotend assembly.
2. Cut the existing filament using your side cutters that came with the AD5M.
3. Insert the assembled filament cutter, with the button facing to the right.
4. Insert the PTFE tube into top of the new cutter. 
5. If the PTFE tube is now too long, cut some off, and then reinsert.

Installation with DIY enclosure, assuming you are using  my drag chain termination part  available here

1. Loosen and remove the two screws that hold the drag chain termination in place. Save the screws for re-use. Temporarily place the drag chain termination to the side.
2. Withdraw the PTFE tube from the AD5M extruder / hotend assembly.
3. Cut the existing filament using your side cutters that came with the AD5M.
4. Insert the assembled filament cutter, with the button facing to the right.
5. Insert the PTFE tube into top of the new cutter. 
6. If the PTFE tube is now too long, cut some off, and then reinsert.
7. Reinstall the drag chain termination using the two screws you saved.

Other cool options for the AD5M

You may also like my other AD5M related design work:

• https://www.printables.com/model/785667-flashforge-adventurer-5m-ad5m-simpler-easier-faste
• https://www.printables.com/model/813334-flashforge-adventurer-5m-ad5m-printed-camera-mount 
• https://www.printables.com/model/814546-flashforge-adventurer-5m-ad5m-nozzle-storage-box-t 
• https://www.printables.com/model/827706-flashforge-adventurer-5-ad5m-led-mod-accessory-buc
• https://www.printables.com/model/828632-flashforge-adventurer-5-ad5m-led-light-bars-mod-ac
• https://www.printables.com/model/834011-flashforge-adventurer-5m-ad5m-side-cutter-mount-v1 
• https://www.printables.com/model/834097-flashforge-adventurer-5m-ad5m-improved-spool-holde 
• https://www.printables.com/model/886714-flashforge-adventurer-5m-ad5m-filament-cutter-comp 
• https://www.printables.com/model/1119699-flashforge-ad5m-enclosure-hinge-remixed-to-be-easi 
• https://www.printables.com/model/1119872-flashforge-ad5m-door-handle-remixed-to-print-witho 
• https://www.printables.com/model/1129412-safety-cover-for-side-cutter-tips
• https://www.printables.com/model/1130485-flashforge-adventurer-5m-ad5m-minimal-diy-enclosur 

Use Klipper stuff on AD5M stock hardware,

• …such as Mainsail, Fluidd, and Klipperscreen, etc, with the stock Klipper install on the AD5M's main board. 
• Get it here: https://github.com/xblax/flashforge_adm5_klipper_mod

Check out other cool AD5M related options here:

• https://github.com/g992/flashforge-ad5m-5mpro-research 

My PayPal tip jar: https://paypal.me/design8studio  

• Lowered the profile (slimmed it down) to make it a lean, mean filament cutting machine, because AD5M space is limited and tolerances need to be right.  
• Cleaned up quite a bit of stray geometry that seems to have been artifacts from multiple previous quick and dirty remixes.
• Added support for an additional blade source. Speaking of which, I am offering three slot widths for the blade holding button, since it seems the blades on some knife products might be different thickness than others.
• Oriented the cutter body to print at an angle, not only to eliminate need for supports, but to also get the best strength in combatting the layer adhesion issue common to all FDM printers. 
• As of June 1, 2024 - added new v1.1 option for cutter body. There is only one tiny difference: slight alteration of the PTFE socket's taper. I'm leaving the v1.0 body in the listing too.