RE: Ye Olde extruder clicking
Strange is that if I notice this issue, call for filament change in menu, remove filament, insert again and print continues correctly. Until another section with to much retract/extract.
This is exactly what happens when you have a cold end blockage. If you do have the original E3D v6 heatbreak, then the remaining step is making sure the heatsink gets enough airflow and is really cold. Many retracts can heat it up and that's when you get into trouble.
RE: Ye Olde extruder clicking
If the heatbreak turns out to be the problem, is there any guidance anywhere on how to replace the Pruza heatbreak with the standard E3D one? I guess it's [just] a matter of disassembling the hot-end but if there's specific guidance that might be beneficial.
E3D has a nice step-by-step guide on assembling the E3D v6 here: https://wiki.e3d-online.com/E3D-v6_Assembly
RE: Ye Olde extruder clicking
And another one Prusa-style: https://e3d-online.dozuki.com/Guide/V6+Assembly/6
RE: Ye Olde extruder clicking
Ah, yes, that's the business. With printing lots of ASA I've got the whole printer in a nice warm cupboard so it could turn out to be a blockage in the heatbreak that is the issue. Let's see though.
RE: Ye Olde extruder clicking
Ah, yes, that's the business. With printing lots of ASA I've got the whole printer in a nice warm cupboard so it could turn out to be a blockage in the heatbreak that is the issue. Let's see though. softening
Well, this should be less of a problem with ASA than it is with PLA, which softens above 50°C. You'd need a very warm cupboard (or a lot of dust in the fan and heatsink) to get ASA to soften in the cold end, ASA has a heat deflection temperature of around 80°C. But then, it's also printed a lot hotter.
RE: Ye Olde extruder clicking
So, switching to a brand new [P3D Apollo 0.4 mm] nozzle instead of the well used brass 0.4 mm nozzle, has fixed my extruder clicking issue, which is very good news. There must have been carbonised detritus build up that I just wasn't able to clean out.
The only issue I have now is that with the new nozzle, after adjusting Z height a few times, adhesion (with ASA) is a fair amount less than it was before. Same filament, same heat-bed and same file being printed so all I can think of is that the 60% improved conductivity of the Apollo nozzle is somehow having an effect? Can the nozzle temperature have a significant effect on bed adhesion?