A 2.4mm FFF 3D printer nozzle? It turns out it’s much more than that.
I saw a product announcement from Slice Engineering about a new 2.4mm hot end nozzle for FFF 3D printers. The company is well known for producing increasingly powerful 3D printer components, specifically printheads and accessories.
Nozzle diameters are pretty standardized across the FFF 3D print world:
- 0.4mm is the default nozzle size on most devices
- 0.2mm is used by many for detailed prints
- 0.25mm is used by a very few manufacturers, notably on LulzBot devices
- 0.6, 0.8 and 1.0 mm nozzles are the typical sizes for large format 3D printers
What’s this 2.4mm diameter nozzle all about? I’ve never heard of that diameter. Is there some advantage to this particular size for the GammaMaster Nozzle? I had to investigate.
Slice Engineering’s GammaMaster Nozzle normally comes in all the usual diameters: 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.8, 1.0, 1.2, 1.4 and 1.8 mm. The 2.4mm option seems to be new.
Slice Engineering explains the unusual diameter:
“The 2.4 mm GammaMaster Nozzle, designed specifically for printing prosthetics and large-format applications, lets you lay down serious filament with ease.”
That diameter is pretty large, as it delivers 36X the material as compared to a standard 0.4mm nozzle. However, it seems that the company has done some research and determined that this particular diameter is optimal for those specific applications. Mystery solved.
But there’s more. The GammaMaster nozzles have quite a few interesting properties.
They’re made of a proprietary alloy that offers both the strength of hardened steel to handle abrasive filaments, while also retaining the thermal characteristics of brass. Brass is typically used for nozzles because it transfers heat rapidly, but it’s too soft to handle abrasive materials. Steel does handle abrasives, but takes far longer to heat up. In some cases, 3D printer operators have to raise the extrusion temperature a bit to compensate.
That’s not the case on the GammaMaster nozzles, as the metal conducts heat properly. They’re so confident of the abrasive resistance that they offer a limited lifetime warranty against abrasive wear.
Slice Engineering said these nozzles also are able to handle the complete range of typical 3D print materials, including the challenging TPU filaments.
There’s also a non-stick coating applied to the nozzle surface, which prevents globs of plastic from sticking. This is extremely useful, as those globs will eventually blacken and then drop into an ongoing print job, messing up the result.
Slice Engineering said the coating is good to a whopping 380°C, which means you should be able to print almost any 3D print material. The nozzle itself is rated for 500°C, which would include all of the high-temperature materials.
Finally, the GammaMaster nozzle is provided in a wide range of formats. There are several different formats, which are basically the thread geometry and length of the nozzle. These depend on the manufacturer of the 3D printer and toolhead.
Slice Engineering provides these nozzles in four formats: RepRap, AP3X, Vase, and FIN. Readers may recall the FIN open standard we described last month. It’s a new format that optimizes the design for cost, size, and efficiency, and it’s something more 3D printer manufacturers should consider adopting.
The 2.4mm GammaMaster nozzle is available for US$25 from Slice Engineering.
