RepRapPro

RepRap water-cooled head

We've been experimenting with a water-cooled head.  Our fan-cooled heads are, we reckon, one of the best designs out there, having a very short melt zone and high-power to respond to changes in load.  But the fan is slightly bulky.

This is much lighter and more compact, and the cooling is more efficient.  It consists of a brass block that replaces our normal aluminium cooling block that attaches to the fan.  The brass has water channels drilled in it, and some soft silicone tubing connecting it to a small 12V gear pump.  The inflow and outflow temperatures are only a fraction of a degree different, meaning that multiple heads could be chained in series and all cooled by the same flow.

Here's a vid:

 

RepRap water-cooled head from Adrian Bowyer on Vimeo.