I've received the gift of a retired Geeetech A10 3D printer. It is missing some important components for 3D printing, but its three axis motion control components are superficially intact. The machine is in unknown condition with no warranties expressed or implied. Ashley Stillson, the previous owner, don't remember everything that was wrong with it, but she did not remember anything dangerous. (My specific question was: "Will I burn down the house if power it up?")

Not burning down the house was a good baseline, so I'll begin by supplying the machine with some power to see what wakes up. The first task was to replace the XT60 power connector. The XT60 isn't a type I use and hence I had nothing to plug into it. This type is an excellent connector for high current draw applications, but since I'm not planning to run a heated print bed nor a filament nozzle heater, I can start with something less capable and more generic. So instead of buying some XT60 connectors (*), I replaced it with a jack for a barrel plug (*) that I already had on hand.

The cheap jack I have on hand is listed with outer diameter of 5.5mm and inner diameter of 2.1mm. It is very close but not exactly the correct type to connect to the 12V DC power supply from my disassembled Monoprice Mini printer, which I guess is actually the very similar and popular type 5.5mm OD / 2.5mm ID. But what I have is close enough for a little hacking to permit power to flow.

Later I learned I had made an assumption I didn't even realize I was making at the time: I assumed the printer wanted 12V power. The Geeetech A10 is actually a 24V printer! This is irrelevant to the electronics, which will run on stepped-down voltage probably 5V. It is most important for the heater elements, which are absent anyway. In the middle are the stepper motor subsystem, where 12V is not ideal leaving them less capable than if they were fed 24V, but they should function well enough to let me evaluate the situation.

When power was supplied, a fan started spinning, a red LED illuminated, followed by the control panel coming to life. We are in business.

(*) Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.