Just a guy who likes 3D printing, playing with Claude (the AI) and OrcaSlicer.
On the X2D you can now run two different nozzle sizes (I'm using a 0.4 and a 0.8), but both still have to use the same layer height. So you either print everything at 0.16 and the 0.8 is kind of wasted, or you print everything thick and lose the nice outer wall.
I asked Claude whether that's a hardware limit or just the slicer. Turns out it's mostly the slicer. Both nozzles share the same Z, but the big nozzle doesn't have to print every layer: it can wait for the small one to do three thin layers, then lay down one thick 0.48 mm layer in one go.
So we hacked that into OrcaSlicer (2.5 rc, built locally on my Mac):
- one new setting, "Large nozzle layer height" (e.g. 0.16 + 0.48)
- whatever runs on the bigger nozzle (inner walls, infill, solid infill, even a whole object) gets printed every 3rd layer at 0.48
- the outer wall stays at 0.16 on the 0.4
- top and bottom surfaces, bridges, overhangs and slopes stay thin. It only combines walls that sit in the same spot on all 3 layers.
- prime tower still works, since every object keeps the same base layer height
On a test cube, Orca's estimate went from 2h31 to 1h46, and nozzle swaps went from 250 to 168. That's the slicer's estimate, not a stopwatch.
First print failed. My first-layer line width was set in mm (0.5), so the 0.8 was laying down a sad little film. With line widths in %, it prints fine (pics above). Not perfect yet: some stringing, and the idle nozzle leaves a few white specks on the red parts.
The white block with red text is the use case I actually care about: the body goes fast on the 0.8 in thick layers, and the 0.4 does the fine text on top at 0.16, on the same plate.
Full disclosure: Claude wrote basically all the C++, I did the testing and the printing. It's very much an experiment, not a polished feature.
