Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?  

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

If you are careful and gentle there is no need for a torque wrench, 

If you have the manual dexterity of a gorrilla on weed... then it might help! 

there are a number of designs for print your own nozzle torque wrenches

https://www.yeggi.com/q/nozzle+torque+wrench/

you might just print one

or search ebay for 

Metal Cross Socket Wrench - 7mm, 5.5mm, 5mm, 4mm. Wheel Wrench for RC Car
the arms are so short that most people would be unable to overtorque the nozzle using one of these

regards Joan

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

I just use "thumb and finger" and am conscious of over-tightening. Never broke a heatbreak in 2 years. I did have a heater block strip, but I'm regularly swapping nozzles at 285C so consider that normal wear and tear. Copper replacement is about a year old now. 

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

Posted by: @jsw

One of the recently-cited items showed the installation (and removal) of I3 nozzles using a torque wrench at 2-3 Nm.  Other items (and videos) show removal/replacement using a standard small 'breaker bar' socket handle, or even an open-end or box wrench.

I do 'get it', as there are many tales of woe from haphazard nozzle removal/replacement.

How important is using a torque wrench? Do those of you who change nozzles often use them? For those who don't use them, how confident are you of a good nozzle installation each time?

Thanks

I build my own torque wrench and block holder:

As a mechanic, i generally use a torque wrench. For the E3D equipment this is set to 3 NM. Of course there are many other ways to fix the nozzle. You have to find the right one for you. In addition, i also use some ceramic paste for the threads, but need not be.

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

Thanks to all, and to Joan in particular.

I downloaded the knurled housing and the older insert from the link above.  I'm assuming that PETG is a good filament to print this with.  It looks like this will "ballpark" the correct torque, as the recommended 1-2 N-m is (at 2:1) very much a "ballpark" recommendation.  😉  It looks like this will take a very standard 7mm deep-well socket.

I haven't had to change a nozzle yet, but I'm feeling more confident about doing so when I need to.  I did order a few to try out as I continue to climb the learning curve with this thing.

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

My 2 cents contribute on this subject.

I found very useful this tool, even if it's not cheap:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/4000410738757.html?spm=a2g0s.9042311.0.0.27424c4d3Cg9g0

It costs about 15€ on Aliexpress, with 7/8/9 mm hex sockets and is preset to fixed value of 2.5 Nm.

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

@karl-herbert

Hi,

I find your nozzle torque beautiful, do you share the plans to make one?

Thx in advance

David

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

@tiques77

Here's a link to @karl-herbert's design on Prusa Prints

https://www.prusaprinters.org/prints/27599-nozzlechange-tool

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

@tiques77

The torque holder is a special design for which I had extra parts made. It is and remains a prototype because it is far too expensive. Was just an experiment.
Since you can buy much cheaper at Aliexpress. Although without torque insert, but it is not absolutely necessary.
The insert of the heater block holder is printed from PEEK, which is not printable with the standard MK3. I have modified my MK3 accordingly. For a while I printed this insert for other people. But since the demand was almost zero, I stopped doing it.

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

Joan has published an interesting link: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4332963

This would be easy to replicate and much cheaper.

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

I recently did my first nozzle change to try a 0.25 one and then changed back to the 0.4 shortly afterwards.

Just used a socket and 1/4" ratchet, I don't feel I'd have benefited from having a torque wrench.  My spanner to hold the heat block was quite large and a bit cumbersome so will find an old one and slim the jaws down plus cut it to be shorter.

I found it difficult to get the thread started and with too long faffing about the tools started getting hot.  What I then did was cooled the nozzle down so I could get a turn or two with the nozzle in my hand before heating back up and continuing with tools.

I think that I either under or over tightened the bond tech gear door though and caused under extrusion problems which after a cold pull and then paying more attention to it fixed that problem.

Its all a learning curve but I wouldn't hesitate to change the nozzle again, I'm even getting quite quick with the live Z setting whereas I could spend half the afternoon fiddling about with it when I first got my printer.

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

I guess I was the one who started this thread a while back.

Since then I've switched to a tungsten-carbide nozzle, which, of course, requires nozzle removal and replacement.

I used the printed hopefully-in-the-ballpark torque wrench, and tightened it until it clicked.  No issues.

I probably could have done it by using the small breaker bar with one finger of pressure about 3/4 of the way out.  😉 😉

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

I use this  https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4575846 it seems to work fine and doesn't run the risk of "levering" if holding the arm of a torque wrench. I don't know the correct term, force applied at an angle to the center line of the nozzle (may not in train?)

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

Posted by: @towlerg

I use this  https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4575846 it seems to work fine and doesn't run the risk of "levering" if holding the arm of a torque wrench. I don't know the correct term, force applied at an angle to the center line of the nozzle (may not in train?)

That looks like the one I printed.

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

@jsw

I have used both that model or the one from Slice Engineering.  I have started using and prefer: https://z-catch.com

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

@lize

... I'm even getting quite quick with the live Z setting whereas I could spend half the afternoon fiddling about with it when I first got my printer.

I agree, it's surprising how much you learn and how fast; newbies take heart.

I bought a new steel sheet and decided to change the nozzle at the same time (after experimenting with luminous filament) so after preheating, changing nozzles and recalibrating the first layer twice, once for each working sheet, I started a print. Then I noticed the time; it took half an hour.  The first time I did it took half a day.

Cheerio,

RE: Torque wrench - How important for routine nozzle replacement?

@cwbullet

Thanks for the tip for the tool from Z-Catch.
This is the tool to use, have tried to replace the nozzle of my MK3S+ with the help of a adjustable wrench, and ended up with buying a new heat-core.
Still a long way to learn.