3D printer nozzle clogged

[bojan]

After ~ 1km of printed filament, the PTFE insert shrunk a bit and ceased to be slippery on part that is exposed to high temperature inside hot block (~240°C)...

Replacement with new one is on its way :-)

[JA]

240°C is a big ask even for the king of high temperature slippery plastics, not even considering the the pressure and shear forces it might be under inside the head. Still 1km is a lot of printing!!! Keep it up.:thumbsup:

Best
JA

[bojan]

Yes, it is amazing how those kilometers accumulate over time.. but after 5 years it is not that much really, I am printing stuff only occasionally on weekends (I think I used 2 reels (1kg each) of ABS so far).
Here at work we are printing lot more often, on daily basis almost... and funny enough, we never had that problem despite our hot-end throat is simply a stainless steel barrel.. which some sources on the web blame for nozzle clogging and saying PTFE insert is an absolute must... so go figure.

[luka]

Bojan, PTFE is a must if you are printing with PLA. ABS is "more slippery" and works without PTFE.