If you are bedazzled by the new Ultimaker 2+ and Ultimaker 2 Extended+ but you don’t have the budget or feel like forking out another couple of thousand pounds to upgrade from your Ultimaker 2 or Extended 2, Ultimaker has the perfect solution for you – an extruder upgrade kit that transforms the 2 and Extended 2 into this years’ flagships.
The Extrusion Upgrade Kit, to give it its proper name, is compatible with both the Ultimaker 2 and Ultimaker Extended 2 3D printers. The kit adds three key features to the Ultimaker 2 and Extended 2, which are:
1. A new geared feeder – This innovative feeder allows you to easily switch between filaments and adjust feed pressure quickly and easily. The geared feeder also boosts print consistently considerably, because materials are far less likely to experience slippage during the print process. You get one geared feeder in the upgrade kit.
2. A swappable nozzle system – The swappable nozzle system was perhaps the best feature of the new 2+ and Extended 2+ but now it’s available for the 2 and Extended 2. In the upgrade kit you will get 0.25, 0.4, 0.6 and 0.8 mm nozzles that can be swapped out to speed up printing, print intricate details or find the perfect middle ground.
3. New fan caps – Ultimaker spent a lot of time developing a new cooling system for the Ultimaker 2+ and Extended 2+, with the brains of the cooling operation being all-new fan caps that optimise airflow. In the upgrade kit, you get a set of these new fan caps. They are fantastic bits of kit because they distribute air more evenly below the nozzle.
Ultimaker has been quick to talk up the upgrade kit, which will enable users to print faster and easier than ever before. It will also prolong the life of your 3D printer, because you are effectively adding new components. “Ultimaker listens carefully to their users and ensures that their products are adapted to users’ needs,” said the company, “by working closely with their community they have succeeded in developing an upgrade kit which enables their users to stay up to date and adds to a more enjoyable printing experience.”
“Not only do we introduce new features for our printers based on what we think is valuable, we listen to the needs and wishes of our users,” said Siert Wijnia, CTO and founder of Ultimaker. “By introducing the Extrusion upgrade kit we allow our users who already own an Ultimaker 2 to benefit from our latest technology.”
Here’s everything you get in the upgrade kit:
– Fully assembled print head
– Swappable nozzles
– Geared feeder motor
– Print head shafts
– Ultimaker calibration card
– Filament reel holder
– Axis tools
– Build plate clamps
– ‘+’ stickers
And here’s a picture of the upgrade kit box, just for good measure:
Ultimaker has also published a how-to guide for the upgrade kit, including a handy video. We’ve embedded this below. The Ultimaker 2 Extrusion Upgrade Kit is now available to order at Additive-X. Overall, we think this upgrade kit is a fantastic investment if you would benefit from faster and easier 3D printing.