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(WORKING)Material Comparisons

ItWe canlive bein dauntinga fantastic world to have literally hundreds of colors andavailable in dozens of different materials tofor choose3d from. printing

TPU "Thermoplastic PolyUrethane", TPE "ThermoPlastic Elastomer", Flexible-PLA, etc.

  • Softest material
    • Has more in common with rubber than plastic
  • Best impact resistance
  • Adequate temperature resistance
    • Innate flexibility allows use well above the glass transition temperature
  • Moisture
    • TPU and TPE filaments MUST be dry!
    • Moist filament has horrible print quality
    • Weaknesses are created in each layer by Steam bubbles
  • Opinions
    • Medium to poor aesthetic print quality
    • Printing a flexible material offers a new door of possibilities for home 3D printers
  • Uses
    • Anything that needs to be flexible or survive regular & significant impacts
    • If the low temp and flexibility aren't problems, this can be used in place of many other plastics
  • My Opinions
    • Medium to poor aesthetic print quality
    • Printing flexible materials can offer many new possibilities for home 3D printers


PETG, PETG+, PETG-Pro, etc.

  • Prints on most printers capable of PLA
  • Adequate temperature resistance


ABS "Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene"

  • Requires higher temperature "All Metal" hot end
  • Negative issues
    • Warping
    • Possible layer delamination
    • Noxious off-gassing
  • Prefers enclosure/print chamber to be kept around half it's glass transition point (~50c)
  • Any plastic containing Styrene stinks when printing
  • My Opinion:Opinions
    • Mostly seal a 3d printer into an enclosure to keep both Heat and Stink inside while printing
      • Thin nylon photography tents might be OK if the room is already REALLY warm but they loose heat quickly
      • Thin plastic sheeting works better than nylon but suffers from poor insulation qualities if ambient temp is chillycool
      • Large cardboard box worked great but I didn't like unfolding the flaps to touch printer each time
      • IKEA LACK table with foam-core craft board walls/door made for excellent insulation


    ASA "Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate"

    • Requires higher temperature "All Metal" hot end
    • Negative issues
      • Warping
      • Possible layer delamination
      • Noxious off-gassing
    • Prefers enclosure/print chamber to be kept around half it's glass transition point (~50c)
    • Any plastic containing Styrene stinks when printing


    PC

    • Requires higher temperature "All Metal" hot end


    PP

    • Requires higher temperature "All Metal" hot end


    PA, Nylon, etc.

    • Requires higher temperature "All Metal" hot end


    PE

    • Requires higher temperature "All Metal" hot end


    PLA "PolyLactic Acid", PLA+, PLA-Pro, etc.

    • Stiffest material
      • Generally bends less easily than other materials
    • Hardest material
      • Resists deformation by a pointy thing better than most (at least to start with...)
    • Very poor temperature resistance
      • Prints left in a hot car will likely deform
    • Very poor impact resistance
      • PLA Hammer + Nail = Plastic Shrapnel
    • Very poor creep resistance
      • PLA shelf bracket + (insert time) = Shelf on floor
      • I use PLA for a ton of things, but when it MUST hold weight, I use PC or PA depending on impact requirement
    • "+" and "Pro" modifiers vary wildly between manufacturers
      • Make no assumptions about the modifiers; test EVERY new material
    • Deterioration
      • Increased stringing with more moisture typically, but usually very mild compared to PETG, TPU, etc.
      • Embrittlement with extended moisture or UltraViolet light exposure
        • These traits seem to follow the base material rather than the additives or colorants
        • Some transparent, translucent, or silk filaments seemed to be comparatively less affected 
    • Opinions
      • Best for aesthetic print quality
      • Seems to creep under significant stresses
      • Favorite material for prototyping $$$ (prototypes become finished products when they work the first time)
    • Uses
      • Anything that will live inside a home, but will not have large physical stress placed upon it
    • Known Exceptions (to the normal rules)
    • My Opinions
      • Best for aesthetic print quality
      • Seems to "creep" under any significant stresses
      • Favorite material for prototyping $$$ (prototypes become finished products when they work the first time)




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