some handy tools for cleaning the hot end

[thecadman99]

I have the small drills too, but I actually have more luck using a small guitar string (.10).
They are not easily broken, and if used fairly gently, shouldn't deform the hole in the hotend.
I buy singles at the music shop, then clip the strings into pieces of about 5 inches. I keep a magnet on my M2, and keep a few of the string pieces stuck on the magnet for easy grabbing, along with the small allen wrench that comes with the M2 (there is one that is perfect for pushing filament through the hotend).

[insta]

I agree, I trust music wire a heck of a lot more than carbide bits.

Don't underestimate the cleaning properties of a good Nylon cold-pull either.

[pyronaught]

McMaster has a lot of stuff and fast shipping, but you pay more for it. I tend to use them as a last resort. More and more Amazon carries damn near everything these days, or at least drop shipping it from other vendors. I picked up a 10 pack of those .35mm Japanese made bits on Amazon for $15 vs $7 for just one of them on McMaster, and they come in a neat little pop-up storage case.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M28 ... UTF8&psc=1

[jdacal]

McMaster has a lot of stuff and fast shipping, but you pay more for it. I tend to use them as a last resort. More and more Amazon carries damn near everything these days, or at least drop shipping it from other vendors. I picked up a 10 pack of those .35mm Japanese made bits on Amazon for $15 vs $7 for just one of them on McMaster, and they come in a neat little pop-up storage case.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00M28 ... UTF8&psc=1

I got those too! They are great.

[Tim]

What works well for me is the needle that came with my 0.3mm lead mechanical pencil, for cleaning out the barrel. It's a tad bit small for the 0.35mm nozzle opening, but whenever the filament is starting to curl as it comes out of the nozzle, I poke that up into the nozzle, and it solves the problem.