At first glance, the Olsson Ruby might seem like most other nozzles in terms of shape, but its material structure is unique. While most nozzles are made of one material (e.g. all brass) or are plated with different materials, the Olsson Ruby has a brass base with a ruby (aluminum oxide) tip attached to the bottom. This combination allows for a number of distinct qualities and features.

Minimal Abrasion

The Olsson Ruby was designed to minimize nozzle degradation due to printing abrasive materials. Certain filaments, such as carbon fiber or glass-infused filaments, tend to abrade nozzles faster than other materials like PLA or ABS. Therefore, certain nozzle types, especially the standard brass nozzle, aren’t recommended for printing abrasive materials.

The ruby tip on the Olsson Ruby, however, is extremely abrasion-resistant and durable, allowing you to print virtually any 3D printing material you want, as long as the nozzle can heat up to the necessary temperatures. Because of the abrasion resistance, the nozzle lasts longer and can handle a wider range of filament from PLA to even boron carbide (ceramic-like filament).

Thermal Conductivity

Given its material composition, the Olsson Ruby retains the thermal conductivity of standard brass nozzles. Thermally-conductive materials are preferred for nozzles, as the flow of heat from the heater block to the nozzle is essential for FDM 3D printing. For this reason, brass and steel nozzles are super popular, as they are inexpensive and have great thermal conductivity.

The challenge in designing a ruby nozzle is preserving the conductivity of brass or steel but without their limitations. The solution: to make only the tip of the nozzle ruby and, for the sake of conductivity, use brass for the rest of the component. The Olsson Ruby’s brass base screws into the heater block, which conducts heat towards its ruby tip.

Strength

Due to its material properties, the Olsson Ruby’s tip is extremely durable and can withstand a lot of physical stress. The connection between the gemstone tip and brass base is tightly sealed, ensuring that the components don’t separate under any physical pressure.

3DVerkstan also attributes the strength of the Olsson Ruby to their material sourcing and manufacturing conditions. They source materials from high-quality manufacturers worldwide, and the nozzles are manufactured in Sweden using precise machinery.

Now that you know the basics and features of ruby nozzles, let’s compare them to other types of nozzles!

Brass is the PLA of 3D printer nozzles: It’s the most popular material. This is primarily because brass is a great thermal conductor and super cheap. You can find brass nozzles for under 50 cents apiece. Although they’re popular, they vary in quality based on the manufacturer and have to be replaced occasionally, especially the lower quality ones.

If used for too long or to print more abrasive materials, brass nozzles can dimensionally deform significantly, as seen in the image above. Deformations like this can cause both partial and full nozzle clogs and might even affect bed leveling. In contrast, ruby nozzles shouldn’t ever deform. And though they’re more expensive, their longevity could outweigh the cost, as you’ll probably only ever need one ruby nozzle.

Steel nozzles are generally considered better and more durable than brass nozzles, but they, too, have their issues. This type of nozzle costs a bit more than brass nozzles, ranging from a few dollars to around $25 per nozzle. They’re made of either stainless or hardened steel. While steel isn’t a terrible conductor, it’s less conductive than brass. Even steel nozzles, however, are noticeably weaker than ruby nozzles. They’re also less conductive than the Olsson Ruby because of Olsson Ruby’s brass base.

Comparison Test

In order to demonstrate the differences between the Olsson Ruby and other types of nozzles, 3DVerkstan ran a comparison test. In the test, they used each type of nozzle to print an abrasive material and recorded how long the nozzle could last without any noticeable deformations. The results are revealing:

• Brass: The brass nozzle could print 0.3 kg of carbon fiber filament before significant and noticeable abrasion and wear. As seen in the image above, the brass nozzle lost 0.5 mm in height due to deformations.
• Stainless steel: After printing 1 kg of carbon fiber filament, the stainless steel nozzle had noticeable abrasion and deformations. The steel nozzle also had a 0.5-mm reduction in height due to the abrasion.
• Olsson Ruby: The Olsson Ruby printed 8 kg of carbon fiber filament without any visible signs of wear and tear. To take it one step further, 3DVerkstan put the tested ruby nozzle under a microscope and still didn’t find any alterations to the nozzle.

Overall, ruby nozzles are superior to brass and steel nozzles when it comes to durability and the range of printable materials. With regard to conductivity, the Olsson Ruby succeeds in thermal conductivity given its brass base, making it just as conductive as brass nozzles and more so than steel ones.

Below are the specs of the standard Olsson Ruby:

• Material: Aluminum oxide (ruby) tip, brass base
• Maximum temperature: 300 °C
• Filament options: PLA, ABS, nylon, flexible (TPU), composites (carbon fiber, glass-fill, boron carbide, among others)
• Available nozzle diameters: 0.4 mm, 0.6 mm, 0.8 mm
• Available filament sizes: 1.75 mm, 3 mm
• Thread: M6 thread; compatible with MK8 hot ends
• Thread shaft: 5.5 mm

You can purchase the Olsson Ruby at one of these online retailers:

Olsson Ruby Nozzles

Commissions Earned Check price at

 

and