I’m curious to know how frequently you change your nozzle size for different prints. I went ahead and purchased a few extra nozzle sizes and I see that most vendors and Jerrill.com will happily sell additional nozzles.
Depending on your hot end design, switching nozzles can be a pain (or not). So far, with the E3D hot end I am testing, it’s not too bad.
What I am curious to know is if most people simply select the best nozzle size for their average print and stick with it or if they routinely switch between nozzle sizes.
I used to have two nozzle sizes for my Budaschnozzle and while switching them wasn’t a huge chore, I managed to break it with doing that. I was using the smaller nozzle when there was not that much to print and I wanted a bit better quality. Conversely, I’d swap in the larger nozzle when I was printing lots of parts that had no fine detail and just needed to work.
The E3Ds .4mm is what I use as my only nozzle size nowadays, but I’m starting to long for a smaller one.
I switch occasionally with my E3D as the .25 nozzle I have produces a very fine resolution but takes too long on big prints. Long term I’m aiming for a 3 x hotend configuration with different nozzle sizes (and potentially extruder gear ratios) for different purposes: perimeter/infill/supports.
Word of warning - the E3d nozzles are easy to sheer through overtightening if you use a socket wrench and are careless
@Tim_Rastall
I do not know if this is the idea way to change out the E3D Nozzle, but this is what I have gleaned from the E3D documentation:
Heat hot end, retract filament
Lower hot end temp to 160c, then unscrew nozzle
Install new nozzle with a gentle touch of a wrench but only finger tight
Increase heat of the E3D hot end to 300c* and tighten but again not too tight. Let the heat expansion and contraction do the work of sealing the gap.
Cool hot end to working temperature and run filament
*Note: I had to increase my firmware max temp to allow me to get that high
Perhaps other E3D users will chime in with their procedure for nozzle swap
I think its best to leave things when they work. I was thinking about changing nozzles too, but have made a decision to build whole new printer. And also I have E3D hotend, and its the best for ABS, for PLA im going back to good old J-head, on a different machine.
I only have experience with ABS at this time, and I’m pleased. I had thoughts of a dual extruder at some point for different materials/colors. Now, the idea of having dual extruders but with different nozzle sizes sounds appealing. (And much less complex if I choose to only enable on at a time, rather than true dual extrusion.)
You really want to avoid needing to remove/install nozzles on a hot end once it’s been used. Better to build multiple complete hot ends and swap them out at the (cold) mounting point. It’s easier for some than others, but it doesn’t create the potential for creating leaks or stripping threads like the alternative does.
That said, there is very little reason to change nozzle sizes. I could see the usefulness of having two extruders with different nozzle sizes (to print infill with a larger nozzle, for instance), but better to choose one nozzle and calibrate a really good profile for it.
@Eric_Mack Yeah, I read those instructions and then still managed to kill a nozzle - a good example of why you shouldn’t try to perform delicate procedures when you’re tired :). My reasons for wanting multi-hotend arrangement boil down to a keen interest in achieving very high detail levels with a <=0.25 nozzle for perimeters and then a much larger nozzle for infill, allowing for an infill every N layers approach that significantly improves build times. The 3rd hot end is to facilitate a seperate disolvable support material rather than a different nozzle size.
I managed to destroy my QU-BD Hot end by overtightening, so I know the pain of that. I’m inclined to agree with @Whosa_whatsis that its best to stick with a specific nozzle and then focus on mastering what you can do with that. Part of the problem, I guess, is not knowing what you don’t know. I can say that having been to DeezMaker and seen some of the detailed prints there is much to learn.
@Eric_Mack Agreed. I have learned a huge amount recently from looking at the work that Brad that designed the Tantillus has done in dialling-in settings in conjunction with using KisSlicer. Interestingly, because KisSlicer doesn’t ask for a nozzle size (it just considers volumetric flow rates) it’s very easy to swap nozzles and simply adjust the extrusion width to correctly match the nozzle. He also has an excellent calculation tool for establishing the optimum layer heights for a particular configuration - it’s somewhat skewed towards the Tantillus but the expert mode allows you to adjust pretty much every variable for a specific configuration. http://www.tantillus.org/Expert_calc.php
