RtV6

The modular quick-change hotend got one thing right. Nozzle swaps in seconds, no tools, no burnt fingers. But it locks you into its own nozzles. Standard V6 nozzles are everywhere, cost a fraction, and come in types the modular system doesn't offer. That gap felt worth closing.

RtV6 is an adapter that makes any standard M6 nozzle quick-change. Copper body, titanium alloy tube inside. Why copper? It moves heat and it's cheap to machine. The titanium tube does the opposite job and keeps the heat where it belongs.

An early sample went to Stefan of CNC Kitchen. He showed it in a video and was fair about it: his unit leaked, and the install was fiddly. He didn't recommend it. He was right. That sample sealed in the wrong place, at the hex instead of the bottom. So the retail version got reworked. Two machined parts, a redesigned seal, a silicone sock, and tight tolerances.

Then came the unglamorous half. An Indiegogo campaign, packaging with warranty cards and a QR back to the docs, and worldwide shipping. All run from one desk and by one person (me).

The campaign funded at 130 percent. 17 backers, 39,168 MXN on a 30,000 goal. Small numbers, real customers, adapters on printers around the world.

A community grew around it on Discord. Installs, mounts, feedback. The Prusa mount came from a backer, and so did the product photos on this page.

And the design got bought. The commercial license went to Mellow 3D, and they sell their own version now.

To be honest, the adapter asks a bit from you. Print hotter, let the nozzle soak a minute, sort out your own part cooling. And that first version earned the criticism it got. But cheap nozzles on a quick-change system was the goal, and it does that.