Good morning everyone. I built the Burly about 6 years ago, and I have to say it was wonderful to work with wood with this wonderful machine, but… now I’m seeing structural problems and vibrations that I can’t control. I think after 6 years the parts need to be reprinted, but reading several posts, I’m wondering if it’s time to abandon the project and focus on the new Primo. From what I’ve read, the new Primo is more stable and has substantial structural improvements. I own a Kress 1050, and I had to customize the Z-axis, both structurally and with a NEMA 23 motor. Could I use the entire Z-axis for the Primo, or do you recommend reassembling everything? Thanks.
I’d recommend building the LR4. In my opinion it’s the better machine, the Primo kits are also discontinued because of this.
There is also a tool mount for the LR4 for the Kress/AMB. 
There are several discussions about it here in the forum as well.
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An LR4 doesn’t come with some.sugnificant upgrades, but also requires buying more hardware and steel tube. The LR4 uses larger diameter steel, and requires linear rails. It almost certainly involves a new table, but if you have the room, the larger work area opens new possibilities. You can re-use the skate bearings and some of the bolts from your Burly, but there will need to be some hardware purchases. You will also need to either change out the electronics or at least the firmware.
A Primo I believe is more similar to your Burly build, and will require a lot less I hardware upgrades. Printing your own parts, it will come in cheaper to upgrade, and can run on your existing electronics and firmware, meaning your work flow remains unchanged. Also if you built your machine with more than 4” of Z axis, the Primo supports that. It will fit on the same table with similar work area.
Of the two, I believe that the LR4 is a more capable machine, supporting a larger work area, but there are advantages to the Primo as well.
I personally would not rebuild a Burly.
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If this is the case, then I would upgrade to the Primo. If you don’t need more than 4” of Z, I would build the LR4. I have both now. I need more than 4” of Z for my laser with a rotary axis so I kept the Primo.
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Thank you all for your kind replies. @Philipp, thank you for your idea, which I’ve seriously considered, but I actually work with 10cm-high pieces, so I’ll definitely stick with Primo. @dan and @britt, I think I’ll take your valuable advice and retire my Burly. Thanks everyone.
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Just make sure you print dimensionally accurate parts with the correct wall thickness and infill % / type. When mounting, follow the core tightening procedure. I built a primo then reprinted and rebuilt it and finally ended up with a lowrider. Nearly every piece of the first primo cracked likely from heavy high speed use combined with large temperature swings (built at room temp and stored in garage at sub zero) leading to over tightening of the core and trucks. The second set was in great shape when it was upgraded. If i put my laser rotary on the lr4, I would drop the table surface, so it would still be able to do what the primo can do. In the time i used the primo, it was very effective and cranked out a lot of product for me even when it was broken. I think whatever route you go, you can find success. I prefer the lowrider.
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Thanks for your kind advice. A very small question that unfortunately I can’t find in the documentation (I read it but don’t remember where). Does the Primo need to be printed with support or not? I didn’t think so, given the fantastic development work.
Ryan normally designs parts that print without supports. I built a Primo, but can’t remember if there was a need for supports. The Thingiverse pages and Primo docs both say no supports. There are THREE sets of parts, depending on what size tubing you will use. Be sure to measure your tubes and print the correct version.
Thanks. Yes, I’ll be careful! The first time I made a mess. 
No supports needed
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