Infinite bed 3D printers have long been an object of desire in our community, but it has taken a long time for the promise of relatively affordable models that meet expectations to materialize. They’re still a bit expensive compared to their fixed bed cousins. So if you are craving a Creality CR30 but only have the money for an Ender 3, [Michael Sgroi] can have the project for you. He developed the EnderLoop, a series of parts that can be used to convert from a standard Ender 3 to a fully functional tape printer.
It takes the Ender 3 portal and tilts it to one side on a pair of 3D printed supports. It replaces the standard Y-Azis with a belt on rollers that are driven by a larger motor via a toothed belt drive. He has a variety of suggestions for sourcing a belt and in his case one from PowerBelt3D. In addition to the already linked GitHub repository, you can also find it on Thingiverse.
It is clear that hacking a reliable printer this way is not for the faint of heart, and that a cautious hacker might prefer to wait a while for a cheaper standard model. However, we can see that the reliability of the Ender 3 will mean that its parts are still of decent quality in the new configuration and that the base printer can be reassembled in the event a belt-based setup fails. Infinite bed printers will inevitably have a huge presence in our community, and it is designs like this that will lead the way as they become reliable machines.
