Alunar Prusa i3 hot end replacement options

Question

I had a print fail a while back and the filament covered the hot end. I attempted to replace the nozzle to fix the no filament issue but it looks like the unit has a cheap Chinese heater block that I have seen mentioned or It's a really old model which is nothing like the current ones with heat sinks. I am hoping to find a replacement heater that will work in place of this hot end. I suspect from looking at the design and the things I have read that I will likely need a different heater block. It might just connect the heat tube with the nozzle if both are bottomed out which was mentioned as not a good thing. The heat tube/break seems to be the reason I can't properly get the filament out as it is letting it melt too far up since it has the nut against the heater block and no radiator.

This has a picture of the print head mount. I suspect I have to change that out in order to handle the new styles of print heads.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

It should be a heat break but does not look like it was implemented that way the first picture shows the unit. It screws into/through the bottom of the carrier has a fan on it but no proper heatsink.

Answer 1

The Alunar M508 is very similar to the old Anet A8 3D printer (I'm positive that it is a copy). Note that both are acrylic frame printers based on the Prusa i3 concept.

The images of the Alunar M508 appear to show the MK8 hotend. As you mentioned, these are old hotend designs that have been caught up by new designs.

In order to use a different, higher quality hotend, you need to look out for community designs for your printer model. Thingiverse is a good source, e.g. Alunar m508 Upgrades is a good place to start. You could look out for an e3D V6 if you want a Bowden (remote extruder) or a BondTech type (direct extruder). You need to print out a holder (plate) to accommodate the bearings, securing/fixing the belt and holding to fans and the heat sink.