As mentioned uses a plunger than wears and only gives intermittent filament grip. Replicator at work has had troubles since new and has recently reached a point where the delrin plunger has worn enough that it won't extrude at all, instead stripping filament immediately.

I've been adapting one of the minimalist replacements from Thingiverse but have had trouble getting the spring tension right. The solidoodle extruder might be a jigsaw to pull apart but its performance is fantastic.

Also there have been mixed reviews, and problems with stripping.  I don't know what percentage have trouble.   One thing I don't like is the use of a screw and plunger to hold the filament against the gear rather than a spring.

http://store.qu-bd.com/product.php?id_product=11

perhaps someone with some talent for thermodynamics and chemistry could answer what that translates to as a maximum extrusion volume per second.. I could say that a 40W element would improve this to a factor of 175% the current max rate..

Someone else might be able to tell if your heater is non-standard wattage. Your current new heater is a 40W one.

The XY steppers are fine.  The high speeds are enabled by more gradual acceleration, which allows higher top speeds without running out of torque.  It depends on how long the segment is, some will be too short to hit those speeds.  Large parts with lots of fill benefit the most.

Fair enough, I was thinking about smaller parts. Have you tested the max extrusion rate on the SD?

It's even more expensive at around $90 for the kit.  However it is all metal, so there is no worry about going too hot and melting the PEEK.  I'd like to work on printing faster, and the limitation on that is the extruder's ability to keep up.  One way to get the extruder to extrude faster is to turn the heat up so the plastic melts quicker, but the Solidoodle's extruder is limited by the melting point of the PEEK.

I want to move my whole system to 24V, but I'll keep brainstorming.

Check this bad boy out:

http://store.qu-bd.com/product.php?id_product=22

$17.50, lets you swap in whatever resistors you want.

itm/290768331068

I had to make a new plate (the thing that is made from ply wood) to accommodate the 16mm PEEK tube but as my printer wasn't working I had to make it by hand, now its printing im going to design that piece and print it so it fits properly.

Once i have done it i will link to thingiverse if you like?