ASA Aero on H2D – Finally a Clean Flight

[L0rdS474n]

I finally decided to dust off my ASA Aero spool — the one I could never get right on my X1 Carbon.
This time, I mixed insights from Bambu Lab’s ASA Aero Wiki with tips from users across different forums.

I landed at 270 °C, which struck the perfect balance between foaming and strength for my projects.
For anyone new to ASA Aero, here’s how I went from messy failures to clean, reliable prints.

At first, I followed the Wiki guide exactly. The print completed, but it was far from a success — bits of ASA Aero sprayed across the chamber.
So, I gathered user feedback to see why others failed or succeeded.

The first real improvement came when I tuned the Flow Ratio and set Retraction to zero.
That alone made a big difference, though still not perfect.

The real breakthrough came after I lowered all print speeds to ensure a solid first layer and switched to printing infill before walls.
With those changes, the models started coming out beautifully.

I now have a base profile that fits around 90% of what I print in ASA Aero, and only minor tuning is needed per part.
Next up: reprinting my micro Spitfire, the one my dog caught mid-flight during a thunderstorm (he left no survivors).
Single walls, vase mode, multi-walls — all run perfectly now.

I’m mainly using ASA Aero for RC planes and rocket models, where low weight and stiffness matter most.
Curious what others are doing with it — I’d guess PLA Aero fits the same kind of projects.

I’ve placed this post directly under H2D, since it’s the only printer I’ve managed to get consistently good results with ASA Aero on.
None of my other machines came close to this level of stability and surface quality.

Conclusion:

• Always calibrate Flow Ratio and speed — both depend heavily on temperature.
• Occasional stray filaments are normal; ASA Aero is a foaming material.
• Infill-first printing gives noticeably cleaner results. EDIT: This may not apply to every print, so it’s best to run a quick prototype to check the results. When I developed my print profile, I used “infill first,” and while it sometimes gives better results, it’s worth verifying before relying on it.
• For airframes, enable Even-Odd mode for correct wall alignment.

Once dialed in, ASA Aero rewards patience with lightweight, strong, and stunning prints — truly made for flight.

[Njoroge]

I’ve had excellent results with my X1C but interested in your setup, could you upload some pictures please just to see how it turned out.

[L0rdS474n]

You mean printed parts?
I can do that as soon as I get home.

I read about your success on the X1C, but I never managed to get it right on mine.
Now that I understand ASA Aero better, I might give it another try.

[Bratling]

w00t!

Would you mind posting a few pics? My dad builds and flies RC planes and is curious about these materials. I’d love to share your results with him!

[L0rdS474n]

I didn’t have any freshly printed, so I’m printing a prototype of an airfoil section. It should be ready in a few hours.

[L0rdS474n]

Here is my fresh test directly from the printer

@Njoroge

I’ve had excellent results with my X1C but interested in your setup, could you upload some pictures please just to see how it turned out.

@Bratling

w00t!

Would you mind posting a few pics? My dad builds and flies RC planes and is curious about these materials. I’d love to share your results with him!

[Njoroge]

They look great, thanks for sharing, I’ll definitely try your setup as it’s always the way to learn…

[L0rdS474n]

During this print, I used the following speeds. They might be a bit on the safe side, but for me, having a reliable and functional model is far more important than being a speed demon
Even-odd mode and a brim were also used.
This profile can also be used for vase mode if desired, but in this case, I printed with 2 walls and 6% gyroid infill.

First Layer Speed

• First layer: 35 mm/s
• First layer infill: 35 mm/s

Other Layers

• Outer wall: 30 mm/s
• Inner wall: 45 mm/s
• Small perimeters: 50 %
• Minimum perimeter threshold: 0 mm
• Sparse infill: 60 mm/s
• Solid infill: 50 mm/s
• Vertical shell speed: 80 %
• Top surface: 30 mm/s

Slow Down for Overhangs

• Slow down for overhangs: Enabled ()
  • 0 mm/s → 10 %
  • 50 mm/s → 25 %
  • 30 mm/s → 50 %
  • 10 mm/s → 75 %
  • 10 mm/s → 100 %
• Slow down in Z direction: Disabled ( )

Bridge Speed

• Bridges: 30 mm/s

Gap Fill

• Gap fill: 40 mm/s

Support Speed

• Support: 60 mm/s
• Support interface: 40 mm/s

Travel Speed and Acceleration

• Travel: 1000 mm/s
• Default printing acceleration: 1200 mm/s²
• Travel acceleration: 4500 mm/s²
• Initial layer travel acceleration: 1000 mm/s²
• First layer acceleration: 300 mm/s²
• Outer wall acceleration: 1500 mm/s²
• Inner wall acceleration: 1500 mm/s²
• Top surface acceleration: 1000 mm/s²
• Sparse infill acceleration: 100 %

[ElektroQuark]

Hi @L0rdS474n if you are willing to share your profile file, I will be very grateful.
I will understand too if you don’t. No problem.

[L0rdS474n]

No secrets there — anyone who wants to give it a try is welcome to do so. Just note that this is my nose cone for the Sagittarius rocket (yes, I’ve got that weird hobby too ). It will be a bit too light when printed with ASA Aero, but hey — that just means it climbs a little higher before gravity reminds it who’s boss. Speaking of rockets: lighter isn’t always better — sometimes you’ll end up with a craft that loudly insists its launch should have been tested in a simulator first. An unstable rocket can be downright dangerous, so do your homework and fully test everything before attempting any real launch.
Sagittarius A-star Nose cone.3mf (1.3 MB)

Almost forgot — you’ll need to calibrate your flow if you change the nozzle temperature, and probably even just from using this setup. It’s tuned for my 0.4 HF nozzles with a 60 °C chamber, 100 °C bed, and 270 °C nozzle — which, in my experience, is the sweet spot for maximum safe foaming.

Foaming filaments are a bit like a diva — they’ll do everything they can to mess with you until you show them who’s boss

[ElektroQuark]

Thank you very much L0rdS474n. I appreciate it.

[Bullocks]

@L0rdS474n

Flow Rate

Sooo the real question - at 270C on the H2D Extruder, what was your flow rate? Thats the variable in these aero thingies

[L0rdS474n]

It really depends on a lot of factors. With this profile, the flow ratio is 0.5668 to achieve walls as close to perfect as possible.
When tuning foaming filaments, I set the desired foaming level first and then adjust the flow up or down from that point. I use the same approach for TPU Air — I fix the temperature for stable foaming and fine-tune the flow to get the cleanest possible walls.

And just so you know — you’re on my ignore list after your previous antics on the forum, so if I happen to miss your comments, now you know why

[Bullocks]

Hell of a fluff factor there, wonder how close the grams in the slicer match up to grams IRL.

Idk how to respond to that last statement though, all of it can’t be true to have known to somehow volunteer the data a muted user requested, so…? thanks?

[Bratling]

If the nose cone is too light, perhaps you can print a little Kerbal as ballast for it

[L0rdS474n]

That’s a fun game I bought when it came out
He will be the pilot next launch

[L0rdS474n]

I printed a solid test cube and compared its calculated weight in Studio with the actual weight measured on a microgram scale. The difference was less than 0.5 g on a 5 g cube, so it’s quite accurate — though with foaming filaments, the result can vary in either direction.

[L0rdS474n]

In a few days I’ll perform the exact same ritual with PLA Aero — may the printing gods have mercy on my nozzle! I’m a total rookie with this one, so I just borrowed some wisdom from my ASA Aero adventures and sprinkled in a bit of PLA logic and MVS magic.

If you have any tips, tricks, prophecies, or just random nonsense that might help (or not), please unleash them upon me!

[L0rdS474n]

This is the same model I recently printed in ASA Aero, but this time in PLA Aero. The profiles are almost identical, except that I use three wall loops for PLA Aero and four for ASA Aero.

[user_2032655592]

I’m just glad to see that someone’s H2D printer can manage to maintain 60 C Chamber and 100 C bed. Just got my printer about 2 weeks ago, I went with the H2D for PA’s and PPA’s. All I get is warped prints when the chamber and bed heaters give out mid-print. Some day tech support will get back with me.