Wall support with no modification to the AMS

My brief for this wall support was simple but not easy:

1. Allows mounting and dismounting the AMS Lite with no modification or tools
2. Solid enough to hold well four 1kg spools

This support is intended to be super easy to use with the trade off that is not as easy to install on the wall the first time. This means that it requires 6 wood screws to assemble and 4 screws in the wall to mount it.

The design

It took a long time and tests but I hope it will be appreciated. The process looked like this:

• 3D scan of the AMS “foot”
• labor intensive reverse engineering to transform the mesh into workable surfaces
• tests to verify the accuracy of the surfaces by comparing small sample prints to the real model
• sketching and 3D modeling of the design
• 3D printing of key components to verify fit and working principles → modifications to the models
• 3D printing of sample areas to verify tolerances → modifications to the models
• 3D printing the prototype → final adjustments

Some of the steps below

The instructions

There are 4 pieces to print: base, sliding rail, locking spring , closing cover. They should be printed in PETG with the exception of the sliding rail that should be made of PLA . If you make it from PETG too it will stick to the closing cover.

Of course, they might work well if made from other materials but this is what I have designed them for and tested.

The assembly should be pretty straight forward with one less than obvious but important thing: the 4 wood screws(gold in the picture) should be 3 x 16mm(not longer) and the 2 wood screws from the back(silver in the picture) should be 3.5 x 15mm(not longer). If the screws are slightly longer the could stop the sliding action or limit the spring.

So , this out of the way, the assembly goes like this:

• screw the sliding rail(white in the picture) from the back
• measure the distance to be mounted (be extremely careful to the lenght of the AMS cable and PTFE tubes)
• fix the base with the rail on the wall (the usual , level, mark, drill holes, insert dowels and screw everything)
• insert the spring plate and push it until you hear a strong click
• insert the AMS push slightly the spring and slide the cover over the rail

Enjoy and please let me know the good and the bad :)