Last week I reviewed the Czextruder XXL, which is a high-end extruder designed for use with polymer clay. It’s an excellent piece of equipment and you’ll need to read that article for a full review that discusses all the details, usage, and sources. This is just going to be a bit of an update to discuss the HD version of the Czextruder, and to discuss some things I’ve learned from talking with others about their Czextruders.
Jiri Strunc, the owner of the Lucy Clay Tools company, which makes the Czextruder, read my review and wanted me to try the new HD version of the Czextruder. He sent it and the larger LC Tile and LC Vise for me to have a look at.
What is the HD Czextruder?
I thought the original Czextruder was well made, of course, but the HD Czextruder takes it to a whole new level. Most of the new version is the same as the previous version, but the screw rod has been changed. The HD screw rod is large, coarsely threaded, and made of a black steel. Because the rod is rounded at the end, there is no need for the plunger assembly that the previous generation Czextruder had at the end of the screw rod.
The thicker HD screw rod also requires a new cap design. This solves the problem of the locknut getting jammed into the top of the cap, a design flaw that plagued the previous models.
The HD version of the Czextruder is not only well engineered, it’s a substantial and sturdy piece of equipment. I don’t want to say it’s unbreakable, because few things truly are. But you’re not going to have to worry about breaking this! It’s very durable. I did find it to be a bit harder to crank than the previous generation Czextruder, though. So you might want to make sure you will be clamping it during use, either with a LC Vise or with a vise of your own. A lot of people use tabletop vises similar to this (Affiliate Link – learn more here).
If you want to upgrade your Czextruder to the HD version, an HD Upgrade Kit is available from Lucy Clay Tools. Just contact one of the Lucy Clay Tools Partners and they can get more information for you.
LC Tile and LC Vise
The LC Tile is a large, sturdy plate that comes with holes for attaching a LC Vise. The LC Vise securely holds the Czextruder to make extruding easier. The smaller XL version of the Czextruder only needs a one-part section for the LC Vise. But the Czextruder XXL works best with two parts. The first part replaces the cap that holds the extruding die. Just insert your chosen die disk into the ring on the LC Vise, and screw on the extruder. The second part has a rubber ring that supports the Czextruder XXL and holds it in place on the LC Tile. To use, just clamp your LC Tile to your work surface and crank by hand. You can see it here on my work bench.
Cranking the Czextruder HD when clamped in the LC Vise like this was quite easy. Anyone could easily extrude this without much effort. But you can also use a drill to extrude your clay with no effort at all. Next you can see what it looks like to use a drill with the Czextruder HD XXL, inserted into a LC Vise, and clamped to my workbench. This setup allows you to easily extrude with one hand on the drill and the other attending to the emerging clay.
More Disks!
The Lucy Clay Tools company makes 8 LC Disks (so far), each with eight dies, each with a different design. Diane Bruce of Van Island Jewels kindly sent me the other three LC Disks that I was missing. I can’t wait to have more time to play with these. I see SO many design possibilities!
Disk and Die Storage
In my previous article, reviewing the Czextruder, I asked readers about their ideas for storing the little extruder dies. Denise’s simple option was to use a pill bottle to store the extruder dies. Chrissie uses rare earth magnets to hold the dies in place. You might notice that regular magnets don’t hold them very well. That’s because the LC Disks are made of stainless steel, which is not as magnetic as regular steel. Jeanne stores her dies in little boxes that all fit into a bigger box. Ruth suggested using the plastic pages that coin collectors use, but Chrissie mentioned that the minute you pick the pages up the wrong way, the dies all fall out.
Well, I liked that coin idea. So I did a search and found this little book of pages that’s designed to hold small coins such as pennies. I found it on Amazon for about $6 (Affiliate Link – learn more here). Several different sellers seem to carry it for a similar price. It’s just cheap vinyl, but it has 10 pages, each with 12 pockets, for a total of 120 little pockets. There’s plenty of room for each die, and each pocket has a little flap that keeps things from falling out.
I was able to put all of my Makins dies and my LC Disks into the book, with plenty more room if I buy more shapes. This little book is about 4″ x 6″ (10cm x 15cm), so it will easily store with your extruder and not take up much room. I really like how all the shapes are easily visible and I don’t have to dump a whole pile of them on the table trying to find the one I want to use. I didn’t have too much trouble getting the dies back out of the little pockets, but if you have big fingers you can easily reach in there with a pair of tweezers. Also, I am pretty sure it’s clay safe. I left a wad of clay on one of the pages for a few days and there was no change.
Why is the Czextruder Better than Makins?
In my previous article, I gushed on and on about how much better I liked the Czextruder than my old green Makins extruder. To me, it was just obvious why it was better. But my readers called me on it and wanted me to be more specific. WHY do I like it better?
The Makins extruder is light years beyond the syringe or plunger style that I used years ago (and that made me hate extruding). But the Makins extruder is weak and tends to break in the joint between the screw rod and the brass pusher plate. It’s also remarkably difficult to turn. You can put it into a bench-top vise or clamp to help with this. But the motion required to crank the Makins extruder is a twisting motion of your wrist, like turning off a faucet, that is difficult if you have any arm, wrist, or hand weakness. The Czextruder uses a very different motion when cranking. It’s more of a whole-arm motion that’s far easier on the body.
I also appreciate that the Czextruder comes with all the “toys” that make it easier, such as a cleaning brush, lubricant, and the drill adapter. Add the optional LC Vise, and you have a true work-horse of a machine.
Comments on Problems with the Czextruder
In the comments of the previous article, there was a link to a conversation where people had expressed their frustration with endcaps that seemed to be frozen on the Czextruder and impossible to be removed. The issues seem to be mainly with the very first generation of the Czextruder and have been addressed by the company with design changes (such as seen in the Czextruder HD) or by including recommendations and warnings for proper usage. Make sure you’re using lubricant on all threaded areas so that they don’t seize up. And don’t over-tighten the caps or extrude too far. If you do run into a problem with your extruder, contact one of the Lucy Clay Tools Partners for advice. They know the tips and tricks to get you back in business.
I don’t know how well either version of the Czextruder will hold up over time. Every product does have a certain percentage of unhappy customers and this one is no exception. But from what I can see here on my end, I’m pleased with mine and find it to be substantially better than other options that I’ve tried. If anything changes, I’ll let you know.
Final Thoughts on the Czextruder HD
I still heartily recommend the Lucy Clay Tools Czextruder if you’re going to do more than occasional extruding. I still say that you’ll be happier with the XXL than the smaller XL version. And I fully recognize that this is an expensive and top-of-the-line tool. If you just make a few figurines or pendants every now and then, this kind of a tool is just plain overkill. But if you appreciate quality tools, have the extra money to invest in your hobby, and are looking for a tool that will open many design opportunities for you, then the Czextruder HD XXL, especially the All in One kit, is something you won’t regret purchasing. It’s the cream of the crop. Many thanks to Diane Bruce of Van Island Jewels and Jiri Strunc of Lucy Clay Tools for supplying the tools to me and giving me the chance to tell you about them.
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22 thoughts on “Updated Czextruder HD Review”
I’m very excited waiting for my new CZextruder to arrive and have purchased 2 die sets to start I have a set of 20 discs from my old machine sorry dont know the brand but hoping I can use them in my new machine ,can anybody please tell me the ourside size of the disc for this great machine,thanks in advance
JEenny Capra
Nearly all the extruders on the market right now have the same size disks and are interchangeable. Czextruder, Makins, and the cheapie knock-off green or gold ones are all the same size, which is 5/8″.
Fyi — there are also disks from Cynthia Tinapple of Polymer Clay Daily. You can get them here http://www.kazuriwest.com/craft-tools
Yes, and she recently released a second disk with a whole new selection of dies. I did link to it in my original Czextruder review. Thanks!
Is the czextruder hd easier to crank then the makin’s?
I have the walnut hollow extruder much like the makins, I’m told. Even with warm clay and my husband’s help I struggled to extrude and grew to hate the use. I did get the Lucy and put cold clay in, a small amount and turned the handle with little effort. I haven’t even attached the drill yet because it is so easy to use.
Thank you Ginger for the update 🙂
Since your last review on the LC Extruder I have since bought the little white plunger which comes with two spare O-rings 🙂 and it fits into my Walnut perfectly in fact it works better as it has a better fit then what’s on the crank handle 🙂
I took off the O-ring that is on the walnut and using the LC lubricant between them it works perfectly 🙂 I also bout the LC discs that has the heart on it just to see for my self and boy oh boy I just love it 🙂
I am now saving up for the rest of the disc collection to use with my Walnut and one day when I can afford it I will be updating to the LC Extruder HD but will only be buying the smaller one as I don’t do that much extruding all at once I find the small Walnut a nice size for extruding so after checking out the different LC extruders I have decided the small one will fit the bill for me 🙂 but I will be getting the clamp system for it too so I can use my drill that Dad bought me for Christmas 🙂
I bought the little LC plunger disc as I got tired of my clay being twisted inside the tube :-/ and this does not spin around inside the tube 🙂 and so now my clay is prefect from start to finish 🙂 the only colour change I now get is the one I set up with in the tube 🙂 but I do need to place a little bit of the grease between the extruding disc and the plunger rod to stop any friction.
Thank you so much for the reviews they have both helped me a lot special with the slow upgrading options of the spare parts that you can buy from the LC collection 🙂
What a great set of solutions. Thank you for sharing. I knew that the Walnut Hollow Extruder tended to twist the clay, and using the plug from the Czextruder is a fantastic solution. I have to appreciate innovation!
I have that exact same coin album for dies! ripped the little tabs off though, they slowed me down when I was at the peak of my extrusion fever! I find it pretty easy to store it upright in my bookshelf.
I have had the Lucy extruder for a couple of weeks now and I love it!! Even without the vice or gloves or anything, extruding by hand is so easy. I have most of the dies as well. I have a question though, should I lubricate the little plunger for each extrusion? I have no trouble extruding clay, but when I try to push the plunger out using a dowel or the cleaning brush, it takes quite a bit of force and I end up smashing my fingers (painfully!) against the extruder! Is there a better way to push out the plunger? Or should I lubricate every time?
Hi Krithika, If you take the end cap off of the extruder when you are finished extruding the clay, you can actually extrude the plunger out enough so that you can grab it with your fingers and then you don’t have to use the dowel to push the plunger out. I actually have never used the lubricant on the plunger myself. I just make sure I scrape most of the clay off the plunger when I am finished extruding for the day. Having a little of clay on the plunger and the o rings makes it move smoothly (at least for me it does).
Diane
I have always cleaned the clay off my O-ring(s) and lubricated the rubber before I put away my extruder. I’ve always done this for my Makins and will continue to do so for my Czextruder. It’s always seemed to work well for me to keep the rubber soft and supple. Clay seems to dry out on the darned things, making sort of like a mortar. I like to be pro-active and take it off before it gets nasty.
What lubricant do you use Ginger? I’m sure it makes a difference. That other stuff sounded to complicated and I wouldn’t know what ordinary product to compare it to.
I use the lubricant that’s included in the Czextruder package. I used to use Vaseline with my Makins, knowing full well that petroleum based lubricants can degrade rubber. Optimally, you can use a silicone lubricant that’s used for faucet O-rings. Ask for something like it at your local hardware store.
You’re funny…I might end up ripping the tabs off too at some point. We’ll see how it goes when I’m frantically busy with it. You don’t have to lubricate the plunger plug thingy every time, but I do take it apart and clean it off and lube it up before I put the extruder away for longer storage. I’ve always done the same for my Makins as well. Like Diane has already mentioned, you don’t need to push the plunger out, just extrude it out. I use the dowel when putting the plug IN and moving it to the right place so there’s not air between it and my clay.
Ahh, I haven’t tried extruding it out. I saw all the dire warnings about not cranking the handle all the way so I stop with about quarter of inch to spare. I’ll try pushing it just a touch more so I can pull the plug out. Thank you Diane and Ginger!
You can make it go to where about 1/4″ of the plug is sticking out, enough to grab hold of.
I learned early in college art classes to buy the best tools (you can afford), take care of them properly, and you will get the best results and you generally won’t ever need to buy a replacement. It’s a matter of choice, but I have the Lucy Tools and love them for their was of use, quality construction and consistent results. Thanks for the review Ginger!
I have always believed the same thing. It certainly makes a difference in your art!
Thanks for the review. I still use the Makins that sometimes gets stuck. What kind of lubricant does this extruder use?
It says that it’s Berulub FR 16, which is a very light, synthetic grease. Google sent me here when I looked that up. http://www.bechem.co.za/berulub-fr-16
I have the green one (Makins I think) and have done fine with it, but I thank you for taking the time and effort to teach us options. I do want to ask a questions. Where can I order more variations of the disc dies other than what comes with the Makins?
I know that Makins has several disk sets available, you can find them at Poly Clay Play here: http://www.polyclayplay.com/Cart/products/Makin%27s-Extruder-Disc-Packages.html. But did you realize that you can also use the LC Disk sets with your Makins? They are the same size and do fit just fine. So you can take advantage of the tremendous range of shapes available now, and then upgrade to the nicer extruder when you’re ready.
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