The new 0.6mm nozzle
The PowerSpec Duplicator i3+ printer in the lab has been updated with a new nozzle that is 0.6mm up from the default 0.4mm one. The print profiles in PrusaSlicer on the computer have been updated and the profiles have been backed up to Google Drive if you want to import them to your personal computer.
Why a larger nozzle?
So why would you want to use a larger nozzle? The simple answer is so that you can print large things faster. A lot of mechanical parts do not need a lot of fine detail so you are not really gaining anything by printing at very fine layer heights. In fact, you are generally making your mechanical parts weaker by printing them at very fine layer heights. Very fine layer heights tend to have worse layer adhesion than thicker ones.
A 0.4mm nozzle has a bore with an area of 0.13mm, a 0.6mm nozzle has a bore with an area of 0.28mm, that is 215% bigger. What that gets you is the ability to print much thicker layers and print fewer perimeters to get the same thickness of walls since you are extruding so much more plastic with the same set of moves. Since you can reasonably print at 80% of the width you can get up to 0.48mm layer heights with this new nozzle and I would say a reasonable middle ground is 0.35mm or 0.4mm.
This print was done as a test and it took 25 minutes to print at 0.4mm layer height with 2 perimeters. This model with a similar wall thickness at 0.2mm layer heights with a 0.4mm nozzle would have taken well over an hour. Consider giving this printer a go when you have some mechanical parts that are large and you would like to get them printed quickly. The layers are more visible but the layer adhesion is also extremely high and you can get some very, very strong prints in less than half the time.
