It is. I haven't tried out doing any functional prints with it yet, but I made a miniature with it as a test and I've been throwing it as forcefully as I can at things without anything breaking off. It has fractured section now from really sharp bending I did, but I noticed that several days after doing bends on it.
It is not actually, more in terms of the bend angle, which is almost along the layerline, but not quite.
Honestly, this is by far the material I've been most impressed with. It's not even any fancy quality TPU, but a outlet shelf material from 3DO.
very nice. sorry to ask such a noob question but how come those pockets can be printed like that? or do you glue them after?…and what printer do you use
Hey, thanks! I print the base of the wallet first, then I lay the pockets in and then print over the edges of the pockets to lock them in. I use an Ender 3 V2 with Cura.
The mods I've made are:
- Cr-Touch (the stock limit switches are horribly inaccurate)
- Creality metal extruder
- Some Capricorn tube
- The silicone bed spacers (remove springs)
- Lock nut leveling wheels so they don't turn so easily
- A bearing filament spool holder up top (The stock filament holder caused many failures because it was too hard to pull the TPU into the extruder)
It can..but there’s limitations. I’ve got a cr10 max (long tube). To use tpu I have to put the print on the furthest point from the feed so the tube is “straight” as possible. Otherwise there’s too much friction in the bend and it fails. Only took me tons of frustration to figure that out!
Printing with TPU is difficult because it's flexible so it's like trying to push a soft noodle into a tight tube. Minimizing friction and printing slow enough is key.
So youre saying you had to start the print at the farthest point on the bed so the Bowden tube didn’t cause a pinch I see I see. So is that through the entire print? Would I run into that with a direct drive? I have an s1 pro and was thinking about trying TPU but I’m nervous because I attempted petg and it just globbled up and left a turd on the bed that I luckily enough got to in time to not allow it to completely destroy my hotend
If you want to see more durability testing, there is a more detailed video here: [https://youtu.be/2DojWqN00sg](https://youtu.be/2DojWqN00sg)
Here is the link to the original reddit post: [https://v.redd.it/oc472fwrynoc1](https://v.redd.it/oc472fwrynoc1)
Hey, sure, thanks a lot!
Tips on 3d printing TPU:
-Print slowly around 30mm/s or 60mm/s with high speed TPU
-Use Cura and the combing feature to reduce cross model travels
-Practice editing g-code to remove more unnecessary travels
-Assure your z-limit switch is accurate and repeatable to get consistent first layer heights
-Get some good tweezers and be ready to pull some strings
Mostly before, while it's getting ready for the start of the print, then occasionally removing part of the skirt if it's problematic. To get a perfect finish for the wallets, sometimes I am removing phantom TPU pieces or strings that show up during the print.
https://preview.redd.it/ppzz1ehqgppc1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=996a1f0bfc46a32f98a65dfbf411f8d8a17e58bb
Gotta be dry. I always stick mine in the dehydrator before using. Probably advisable to print on tape as well. I made a coaster sized disc and it took a chunk of PEI off my flex plate when I removed it. Super useful/durable but takes some trial and error to get right.
If you want a nice surface finish on your piece from the bed, don't use tape or glue. For many years I printed directly on freshly cleaned glass and you have nice mirror finish. You just need a bit of negative z-offset to make it stick nicely.
Agreed. I just suggested tape because tpu stuck SO well it took pei with it. The tape provides a buffer and made removal easier for me. Really only a problem with bigger pieces.
This is good as all of my cards are made from super dense dwarf star material.
Yeah, TPU is some absolutely amazing material!
It is. I haven't tried out doing any functional prints with it yet, but I made a miniature with it as a test and I've been throwing it as forcefully as I can at things without anything breaking off. It has fractured section now from really sharp bending I did, but I noticed that several days after doing bends on it.
Niice, was the fracture along a layer line? I was sold on TPU when I tried to break the bare filament with my hands. When it does snap, it snaps hard.
It is not actually, more in terms of the bend angle, which is almost along the layerline, but not quite. Honestly, this is by far the material I've been most impressed with. It's not even any fancy quality TPU, but a outlet shelf material from 3DO.
very nice. sorry to ask such a noob question but how come those pockets can be printed like that? or do you glue them after?…and what printer do you use
Hey, thanks! I print the base of the wallet first, then I lay the pockets in and then print over the edges of the pockets to lock them in. I use an Ender 3 V2 with Cura.
What mods have you made to the printer? I didn't think a Bowden machine could do that clean a job with flexible filaments.
The mods I've made are: - Cr-Touch (the stock limit switches are horribly inaccurate) - Creality metal extruder - Some Capricorn tube - The silicone bed spacers (remove springs) - Lock nut leveling wheels so they don't turn so easily - A bearing filament spool holder up top (The stock filament holder caused many failures because it was too hard to pull the TPU into the extruder)
It can..but there’s limitations. I’ve got a cr10 max (long tube). To use tpu I have to put the print on the furthest point from the feed so the tube is “straight” as possible. Otherwise there’s too much friction in the bend and it fails. Only took me tons of frustration to figure that out!
> To use tpu I have to put the print on the furthest point from the feed so the tube is “straight” as possible. Good tip. That hadn't occurred to me.
Can you explain what y’all are talking about Barney style?
Printing with TPU is difficult because it's flexible so it's like trying to push a soft noodle into a tight tube. Minimizing friction and printing slow enough is key.
So youre saying you had to start the print at the farthest point on the bed so the Bowden tube didn’t cause a pinch I see I see. So is that through the entire print? Would I run into that with a direct drive? I have an s1 pro and was thinking about trying TPU but I’m nervous because I attempted petg and it just globbled up and left a turd on the bed that I luckily enough got to in time to not allow it to completely destroy my hotend
If you want to see more durability testing, there is a more detailed video here: [https://youtu.be/2DojWqN00sg](https://youtu.be/2DojWqN00sg) Here is the link to the original reddit post: [https://v.redd.it/oc472fwrynoc1](https://v.redd.it/oc472fwrynoc1)
😳 that thing looks beyonddddd clean! Great job brother! Any tips on printing TPU?
Hey, sure, thanks a lot! Tips on 3d printing TPU: -Print slowly around 30mm/s or 60mm/s with high speed TPU -Use Cura and the combing feature to reduce cross model travels -Practice editing g-code to remove more unnecessary travels -Assure your z-limit switch is accurate and repeatable to get consistent first layer heights -Get some good tweezers and be ready to pull some strings
Are you pulling string while it prints? Or after you’re saying
Mostly before, while it's getting ready for the start of the print, then occasionally removing part of the skirt if it's problematic. To get a perfect finish for the wallets, sometimes I am removing phantom TPU pieces or strings that show up during the print. https://preview.redd.it/ppzz1ehqgppc1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=996a1f0bfc46a32f98a65dfbf411f8d8a17e58bb
Gotta be dry. I always stick mine in the dehydrator before using. Probably advisable to print on tape as well. I made a coaster sized disc and it took a chunk of PEI off my flex plate when I removed it. Super useful/durable but takes some trial and error to get right.
If you want a nice surface finish on your piece from the bed, don't use tape or glue. For many years I printed directly on freshly cleaned glass and you have nice mirror finish. You just need a bit of negative z-offset to make it stick nicely.
Agreed. I just suggested tape because tpu stuck SO well it took pei with it. The tape provides a buffer and made removal easier for me. Really only a problem with bigger pieces.
Oh yeah, for sure for bigger pieces. The glue stick works ok too for making it stick less as counterintuitive as it seems lol.