Apr 12, 2016 | By Andre
Every FDM extrusion based 3D printer has a great number of moving parts that make it work its magic. Motors, rods, end-stops, build trays, wiring and circuit boards are all important features that drive the machine, yet it's the extruder that remains the most essential.
As the component responsible for pulling your 3D printer filament through to the hot-end, the extruder is essential for melting and subsequently depositing, with great precision and accuracy, the layered plastic that ultimately makes up your 3D print.
Well it seems E3D, a popular supplier of all things 3D printing, has just announced the Titan, a lightweight and universally compatible 3D for immediate release.
The team behind this particular extruder's construction spent a lot of time figuring out what exactly they wanted in a next-generation extruder before going ahead and making it happen. As mentioned, they wanted the performance of the popular, yet clunky, Greg-Wades extruder with the size of the much smaller direct drive variety. They wanted across the board 3D printer and filament variety compatibility, high-speed performance and ease-of-use; all at the low price of £45.00.
Additionally, they aimed for a perfect gearing ratio (deemed to be 3:1) so as to produce an ideal torque, machined components (both steel and lightweight delrin plastic) to ensure reliability, a self-lubricating idler lever, adjustable tension, and ultimately a system that just works without pesky tweaking and calibration no matter your filament diameter (either 1.75mm or 3mm).
So, did they achieve what they were after? All signs point to yes. Claiming to have the best performance to weight ratio on the market as well as industry standard NEMA17 mounting should give you the ability to install the Titan onto your 3D printer (unfortunately big brand names like Makerbot are likely not compatible).
Their extruder marketing pages don’t show any examples of finished 3D prints done with the Titan which I found a little bit strange. It’s almost as though we’ll just have to trust that their extruder will deliver on its promise. But considering E3D’s reputation, there’s really no reason it wouldn’t work as advertised.
For me, as someone with a background in RepRap assembly and use, the advancements in design do make sense for the reasons they set out to do. While I am hesitant to believe most people with a working 3D printer will go out of their way to make the upgrade, the introductory 10% off discount code (‘Extrude3D’) might be incentive enough to give it a shot.
Also, if you’re in the market for a new 3D printer and are keen on everything the Titan promises, you’re in luck as E3D’s very own BigBox 3D printer will soon come standard with the Titan extruder. I should also note that even though ease-of-use and reliability are touted as important features of the Titan extruder, you’ll still need a Maker spirit to put the contraption together (as is evidenced by its detailed, yet lengthy instructions wiki).
All said, it’s certain that a qualified and experience team put a lot of time and energy in producing this new extruder. For all I know, it might become the next standard in extruder technology on the DIY circuit. Of course time, as it has a tendency of doing, will ultimately tell.
Posted in 3D Printer Accessories
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