Changing your printer Nozzle

Sometimes you need to change your nozzle. I do this most frequently when I change filament materials or when I need more details. I made a jewelry box for my wife last year and I used a wood PLA filament. Most hobby printers (including mine) use a default 0.4mm nozzle tip. The wood clogged my tip, so I switched it out to a larger tip. Other times, I want to print figurines for my kids with a lot of details so I want to switch to a smaller tip.

Here is what I do:

• Heat up the extruder. I’ve found that the hot end material contracts around the nozzle tip. Heating it up expands the hot end and makes the nozzle easier to remove.
• Remove the old tip
• Insert the new tip
• Adjust the nozzle size and line width in Cura (or other preferred slicer)
• Calibrate e-steps to compensate for new flow rate
• PID tune to adjust heating properties
• Level bed