For those looking to upgrade their Ultimaker 2, E3D have just released their kit along with a full how-to guide

[ElzabE3D 14]

People have been modding their Ultimakers to make use of the E3D ecosystem for years, so we've released a kit that contains everything that the technical tinkerer or engineering aficionado could need to boost their Ultimaker 2.

It's still quite an advanced project though, so we've teamed up with Tom Sanladerer to help guide you through 8)

 

As ever, the documentation is up on our wiki, along with a comparison table for those wondering what the point of this mod even is.

Edited December 2, 2016 by Guest

[neotko 1,417]

Tom makes nice paid promo videos. But it doesn't explain or show why this is an upgrade or if the only advantage is pla problems to print at higher temps. Also most of the high temp materials release toxic stuff. So...

[ultiarjan 1,223]

I think the E3Dv6 is a pain. Changing nozzles is much less practical compared to an olsson block. The V6 3mm bowden is terrible with PLA. In short I think for most people it's a real downgrade compared to an 2+olsson block.

If you still have an old Ultimaker2 feeder you should upgrade the feeder, but you don't need this kit for that. Both the Ultimaker and the Titan can be bought separately. I never used the E3D feeder.

If anyone want's the E3DV6 3mm bowden, you can have it, I still have one I don't use.....

[LePaul 354]

Like others pointed out, nice promo video but no results!

Look, we upgraded the nozzle....then show no prints or for that matter, show it in action! How's the feeder better? Let's see the print resolution! How's it deal with other filaments beside PLA? nGen? CPE? Nylon? He just did a Fil-A-Ween testing all kinds of filaments, let's see that mod use some

I like Tom's videos but sometimes I think he is rushing to just post videos without any real merit. If he's looking to pad his YouTube ranking, maybe that helps. If he wants to look credible in the 3D printing community...well...he has some work to do.

[neotko 1,417]

Well I think is just a payed video from E3D. The video was released the same the the press note showed on many 3dprint sites. So basically a nice promo cideo manual. Youtubers also deserve to earn money with their job and despite the lack of real info about how use/useless the addon is (for me is far from an upgrade) I think is a very nice installation manual video. But yeah, nothing more.

[ElzabE3D 14]

I realise that the video I posted doesn't really go into details re: benefits of upgrading, but all3dp have released an (impartial!) review that goes into a lot of detail about the pros and cons of the E3D upgrade, available here.

In short, the benefits are:

 

• Better extrusion
  
• Swappable nozzles
  
• Heating to high temperatures (though I get that that isn't your bag)
  
• Print pretty much any filament
  

 

Though if you're interested in just a raw spec comparison we've got one here.

[neotko 1,417]

I realise that the video I posted doesn't really go into details re: benefits of upgrading, but all3dp have released an (impartial!) review that goes into a lot of detail about the pros and cons of the E3D upgrade, available here.

In short, the benefits are:

 

• Better extrusion

• Swappable nozzles

• Heating to high temperatures (though I get that that isn't your bag)

• Print pretty much any filament

 

Though if you're interested in just a raw spec comparison we've got one here.

 

So.. E3D says theirs Nozzles doesn't work on an Olsson?? That's a fun argument (and 100% wrong).

Also easy to change nozzle?? Really?? Please get a clock and time one vs the other and don't forget to add that while changing E3D nozzle you can unalign the heat barrel.

The only real point is the 380C

Sorry but is just wrong info.

[neotko 1,417]

Btw I agree that the E3D Titan is better than the UM2 (non plus) feeder. But also a better and most reliable version (IMO) is a Titan Extruder + UM2+ hotend 190€ + Titan Extruder 60.50 GBP). But ofc... Kits.. That's where the newb user money is right?

[ultiarjan 1,223]

LOL

If that all3dp review is impartial it's at minimum inclomplete/uninformed.

I stick to the standpoint that an olsonblock is soooooo much easier to use for 99% of the users. Like neo said the ONLY bennefit I can think of for the V6 is the higher temp.

And the 'spec comparison' is just misinformation.... like neo points out every nozzle will also fit the olsonblock.

So for me it comes down to;

Easy-less cheap : UM upgrade kit

Cheap-less easy : loose Olson block + UM+feeder (or Titan feeder) + other parts you may need, like new axis...

[LePaul 354]

I'll believe that information the same day that E3D kid with the crazy hair actually combs it.

[ultiarjan 1,223]

lol

[meduza 191]

@ElzabE3D: Can you explain why in the "comparison" on your wiki you try to make it sound like the E3D V6 can use many more nozzle sizes, and also more nozzle materials than the 2+, when in reality any nozzle you can fit to a standard V6 also will fit the Olsson Block?

Also, you list the UM2 and the UM2+ as both having a "UM+ Standard Extruder" wich is a pretty weird thing since they have different feeders and i have not heard about the "UM+" extruder before...

Also you try to make it sound like the UM2+ cannot use any other materials than the UM filaments... In reality the only thing you can do with the V6 wich cannot be done with the 2+ is stuff that requires temperatures higher than 260C.

I get that you are doing the "marketing bullshit" thingy, but seriously, quite a few of the UM customers are also customers of yours... if you claim to have a "raw specifications" comparision, make it so and don't be lying to them!

Edited December 9, 2016 by Guest

[LePaul 354]

Well are we really surprised from someone with 3 posts?

Apparently that person's task was the spam the forum and not return.

[ElzabE3D 14]

Well are we really surprised from someone with 3 posts?  

Apparently that person's task was the spam the forum and not return.

Sorry about that LePaul, I'm just a new hire and trying to get used to the community and get excited about printing and so on. We use Ultimakers really regularly in-house and I'll hopefully get to keep playing with them and posting prints and experiences (not just 'marketing bullshit' )

[ElzabE3D 14]

@ElzabE3D: Can you explain why in the "comparison" on your wiki you try to make it sound like the E3D V6 can use many more nozzle sizes, and also more nozzle materials than the 2+, when in reality any nozzle you can fit to a standard V6 also will fit the Olsson Block?

Also, you list the UM2 and the UM2+ as both having a "UM+ Standard Extruder" wich is a pretty weird thing since they have different feeders and i have not heard about the "UM+" extruder before...

Also you try to make it sound like the UM2+ cannot use any other materials than the UM filaments... In reality the only thing you can do with the V6 wich cannot be done with the 2+ is stuff that requires temperatures higher than 260C.

I get that you are doing the "marketing bullshit" thingy, but seriously, quite a few of the UM customers are also customers of yours... if you claim to have a "raw specifications" comparision, make it so and don't be lying to them!

Sorry about the marketing bullshit

So the reason we haven't got a comparison to an Olsson block on the table is because honestly I don't have the specs for it. I've just chatted to Sanjay and we'll try and get them and add them to the wiki hopefully on Monday, but I did want to link to the wiki since a number of people were asking what the point of the E3D upgrade even was. But you guys are all experienced makers and smart people and you know what can be done with UM2s.

And you're absolutely right. UM2s can print a wide range of filaments including PLA, ABS, CPE, CPE+, PC, Nylon and TPU95A. It's just that the Titan extruder in the kit adds a LOT of pushing power which adds more than just the heating capabilities of the V6.

Nonetheless I genuinely am sorry for any slick brandiness that might have come off in my OP. Wasn't my intention and I hope it hasn't pissed too many folks off, I really didn't expect this much of a response!

[meduza 191]

@ElzabE3D: OK, lets give you guys some facts then:

Basically, the Olsson block was designed as a drop-in upgrade kit to be able to use E3D nozzles on our UM2's, since the E3D-style nozzles were the most common and had the most options (sizes, materials, etc) available.

Therefore, any nozzle that will fit a standard (non-volcano) V6 made for 2.85mm filaments will also fit the Olsson Block, regardless of nozzle size or material.

The UM2/2+ hotend is a PTFE/TFM lined hotend that can take any 2.85mm filament, and it can print pretty much any filament with a print temperature of 260 degrees or lower.

There is some people claiming to not be able to use higher-temperature filaments well in the UM2, this is because the original UM2 hotend use a PTFE liner which is spring loaded, this setup does wear quite fast if printing at temperatures over 250C This is fixed in the UM2+ with a new material, TFM, and a rigid aluminium spacer which gives the hotend very long lifetime before needing to replace the spacer even at higher temperatures.

About the feeder, the original UM2 feeder is a bit underpowered and has some problems with thermal transfer from the motor to the drivegear making PLA soft. This is also one of the things that was fixed in the 2+. The UM2+ feeder is a geared feeder that is much stronger, i believe it is pretty much on par with the Titan even if i have not done a head-to-head shootout.

What do i think your upgrade feature compared to the Ultimaker Extrusion Upgrade Kit:

Hotend:

Possibility to print filaments in the 260+ range (tough with a much less smooth nozzle change than the Olsson block)

Feeder:

The Titan is probably the better feeder for flexibles, the UM2+ feeder does not have as tight internals where flexibles can bend and jam. The Titan is also the better option if you want to convert your UM2 to a 1.75mm printer, since the original feeders cannot push 1.75mm filaments well.

That is pretty much it.

Sorry if i expressed myself in a harsh way, i was just expecting less marketing bs from you guys at E3D

Edited December 10, 2016 by Guest

[ElzabE3D 14]

This is actually a really interesting discussion re: the Olsson block, and it's created a lot of chat in the office this morning. I've gone back to engineering and have a clearer picture of things now.

Olsson blocks, as you know, were basically made to adapt the UM2 for E3D's nozzles, and they achieve this by having the same thread-type as we use (M6). This means that in theory they should perfectly fit our nozzles, which is great and cool and means that we get to make nozzles for the Ultimaker community.

But in practice the threaded section of the nozzles are longer than the Olsson block threaded hole, which can have some unfortunate consequences with regards to cooling of the nozzle from the print cooling fans - which can result in higher back-pressure and temperature oddities.

The Olsson block is indeed an easier nozzle change due to the fixed block design. The main reason for changing out the hot end would be a drastic improvement in performance with the less common materials that do want higher temperatures. There's also some potential gains in longevity with the lack of TFM/PTFE in the system, particularly with abrasive materials. However that's postulation from engineering and not something we've tested.

On the feeder side, as far as we can tell the UM2+ feeder runs a 2:1 gear reduction, slightly less than the Titan 3:1 - not much in it, but worth noting. The filament path is indeed much more constrained which should make the difficult job of pushing flexibles up a bowden tube that little bit easier.

The largest factor in Titan vs UM2(+) feeders however is the drive gear. UM have used a standard diamond knurl as the drive surface in their feeders - this works, but in the UM2+ feeder it ends up being the limiting factor. Gearing is good, but if you don't have the grip to back it up it doesn't count for much. In Titan we're using a custom machined tooth profile that we spent a lot of time tweaking. It offers a decent grip improvement and also sheds filament debris more effectively than a knurl which can get all full of gunk.

TLDR;

This kit lets you hit higher temperatures, for the more adventurous materials and gets you a significantly upgraded feeder. It's not for everyone (not a kit-based noob-money grab!), but if you want to push the limits then it might be an attractive option.

Edited December 12, 2016 by Guest