How to change the extruder nozzle

If you change your nozzle to a size other than 0.4mm, you will not be able to use your Me3D printer with BuildBee software.

When to change the extruder nozzle

You may need to change your extruder nozzle from time to time, whether you're experimenting with your printing or your old nozzle is jammed up. Either way, we love to encourage people to develop their skills and make, break and fix their own things. If you’ve got the time and inclination, it may be worth trying to fix it yourself first!

What do I need?

- A pair of multi grips.

- Tweezers or needle-nose pliers.

- 7mm spanner (included in you printers maintenance kit).

- A replacement nozzle (0.2mm - 0.8mm).

- Heat-resistant gloves (recommended).

 

How to change the extruder nozzle

We recommend you wear heat resistant gloves during this process as the nozzle and heater block must be hot to ensure an effective seal between the nozzle and filament feed tube.

Step 1 - Preheat your printer

- Connect your Me2 printer to BuildBee and raise the print head off the bed using the maintenance console.
- Set your extruders temperature to 220°C using the manual controls to preheat.

Step 2 - Remove the old nozzle

- Raise extruder up off the bed and extend X axis (extruder arm) forward so you can comfortably access the nozzle. Place a box underneath the X axis to prop it up.
- Apply multigrips carefully to the sides of the yellow heat block. Grip firmly, but be careful not to crush or rip the insulation.
- With your 7mm spanner, carefully turn the extruder nozzle anti-clockwise until it comes free. Place the loose tip on a heat resistant surface to cool down.

We recommend having something underneath to catch the hot nozzle.

Step 3 - Fit the new nozzle

- With the tweezers/needle nose pliers, screw the new extruder nozzle on a few turns to get it started.
- Apply the multigrips to the yellow heat block again, and using the spanner or socket wrench, turn the nozzle clockwise until it tightens against the end of the feedtube inside the heater block.

Make sure that the nozzle has not tightened against the heater block itself, as this will result in a bad seal and possible leakage of molten plastic while printing.

- Once everything is back together, you may carefully remove the box and return the extruder head to home.

- Before turning off the heat, continue on to the next step.

Step 4 - Calibrate your Z offset

Before going back into printing, you will have to calibrate your Z offset again, as the new extruder will have a slightly different offset.

Follow the steps in the Calibrating your Z-Offset help article.

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