Reproducing tiny plastic gears for vintage 'gear'

[Jeff_Birt]

Indeed, the range of affordable 'engineering grade' resins is rather limited. Years ago, FDM printers where in a similar spot with the available plastics suitable for printing which also had desirable mechanical properties when printed. Filament has come a long was and likewise resins are improving too.

As I mentioned in my original post the pinion gears for the stepper motors I had machined out of brass. They are a simple spur gear and making them from brass was an economical option for a reasonable quantity (a thousand gears).

The Y-axis anti-backlash gears being quite complex machining replacements is not practical and commissioning a mold is far too expensive. Thus, 3D printing is a viable option. A gearset that lasts a few years with hobby use is a better option than a non-working printer.