Brass or hardened nozzle: what do you actually need?
For normal PLA, PETG, ASA and many TPU filaments, a brass nozzle is often sufficient. Abrasive filaments containing carbon fibre, glass fibre, glow pigments or similar particles can wear brass rapidly. A more wear-resistant nozzle is then appropriate.
Brass
Advantages:
- good thermal conductivity
- inexpensive
- suitable for standard filament
- widely available
Hardened steel
Advantages: much more wear-resistant, suitable for abrasive materials. Possible trade-offs: different thermal behaviour, profile adjustment may be required.
- much more wear-resistant
- suitable for abrasive materials
- different thermal behaviour
- profile adjustment may be required
Abrasive materials
Examples: carbon-fibre filled, glass-fibre filled, glow-in-the-dark, some metal or wood-filled materials. Always check the filament manufacturer.
- carbon-fibre filled
- glass-fibre filled
- glow-in-the-dark
- some metal or wood-filled materials
Compatibility
Check before buying whether the nozzle fits your own hotend system — a generic MK8 nozzle does not fit every printer (e.g. Bambu, Prusa, Revo).