I have a H2S which I’m very happy with. I don’t run my printer 24/7 and haven’t racked up a massive amount of hours yet, so I’m curious about the community’s experience regarding nozzle wear.
I am printing with fiber-filled filaments (CF/GF) more often than not. I’m wondering if it makes sense to invest in a Tungsten Carbide nozzle specifically for these abrasive materials. On one hand, I could buy three standard hardened steel nozzles for the price of one tungsten. On the other hand, I haven’t actually experienced any issues with the stock hardened nozzles yet.
For those of you running a lot of abrasive material:
How many kilograms of fiber-filled filament have you run through a standard hardened steel nozzle before seeing a degradation in print quality?
Do you find the thermal properties and longevity of Tungsten Carbide worth the 3x price jump?
I haven’t run a ton, maybe 20 spools through one nozzle and always use the same AMS HT to feed from not because I am afraid to use the AMS 2, just thats what I use for swapping in a filament I dont keep online all the time. I can’t discern any quality differences that would make me want to change the nozzle at this time and I will be honest I am bad about not doing cold pulls after using fiber filaments. Maybe two times I’ve done it during routine cleaning/maintenance. The nozzles have about 1000 hours on them, maybe 200 on some other sizes/types.
I do own a few carbide .6 nozzles and I’ve used them once for a very large print, I don’t feel it was a good value at this point in time. All other nozzles have been .2, .6, .8 hardened.
Your mileage may vary and I’m certainly not burning the printer up, but 1200 hours in 3 months is where I am.
Edit to add, Im using ABS GF and CF filaments mainly which is higher temp chamber but certainly not the highest temp filaments. I probably would use the WC first if trying out the really fancy stuff.
personally i use a bit of cf/gf but what i can take from it is a few things one you should not use you ams2 you can but it will were down your ams way faster so unless you need it i would steer clear just will make your life easier if you still want to use your ams keep some tubing handy so you do not need to wait for shipping and to the point now the nozzle if you plan to use lots of cf/gf filament i would prob get a tungsten nozzle but i do feel you could use the other nozzle still if you do not want to pay the price just remember to do lots of cold pulls to clean it and that you may need to replace the nozzle ever now and then. in my mind i would say just order it as it does cost more but it may last longer and just be better for peace of mind now i cant say how much you need to rto degrade print quality i would say that its prob different for everyone depending on lots of things i have ran a few cf/gf rolls and i cant say my nozzle has been hurt
rapup if i was you best case i would order the nozzle and keep one normal nozzle handy so no need to order if it wares down and if you use your ams/HT i would have more tubing on me so you do not need to order if it goes bad i hope this info way useful for you if you have any questions pls ask away
I don’t know what a “massive” amount of hours is for you. For me @1500 hours is just getting started.
It’s easy to tell when the nozzle is going. You’ll see decreased quality across the whole print. You can also compare with a new nozzle and see usually the tip is ground down a little and the bore will be bigger. The best way to get an idea of how the nozzle wears is to look at your PTFE tubes when worn. The inner diameter is expanded in about the same way.
Now it takes a bit. One roll isn’t going to harm the Tungsten or Hardened nozzles. Given what I’m thinking your usage is the Tungsten may be a better choice since you are primarily running CF. Would be awhile most likely before you need another.
I’m with @Bullocks on this. In all my years, across four printers I lost exactly one (in numbers: 1) nozzles to wear. I lost count of those lost to warping, curling, poop chute clogs or just plain old dumbness
Addendum: Except the ObXidian. That, I remember. Poop chute clog. RIP dear ObXidian
I’ve put about 2000 hrs on a 0.4mm Tungsten Carbide nozzle using PPA-CF primarily and PETG. Two of the TC nozzles broke and started to leak. One at the nozzle end and the other at the top of the hotend. Customer service was good and have sent a replacement nozzle each time. I’ve just found the regular old stock hardened nozzle worked fine and is cheaper.
