How has any used the new ELEGOO Rapid PETG Filament? I was thinking about picking up a pack off of Amazon but wasn’t sure if anyone had tried it and had some feedback on its use and what settings to use on the A1 for good prints.
I am big consumer of PETG. I cannot speak to their version of PETG but two weeks ago I purchased their standard PLA when it went on sale 2 for 1 at $11/spool. I thought I just found the deal of a lifetime because I simply assumed I was getting a 1st class product. Elegoo has got to be the worst performing filament I have ever purchased and this experience would make me avoid anything else they make. If one can’t get something as simple as PLA to work, how can I trust something more advanced.
Where did their PLA fail? Layer adhesion for starters, stringing and most of all calibrated flow rate placed them at 11mm³ which is where I’d expect PETG to perform. Just as comparison, Bambu PLA is 23mm³ and Bambu PETG is 13mm³ to provide apples to apples.
However, if you want a recommendation. Take a look at these two vendors(HZST3D and CC3D) that I have had excellent luck at $14-$15 per spool. They go by different names but are in fact identical products that come in identical shipping boxes and identical spools with identical factory labels on the spools, just different ink on the outer box.
I deliberately purchased both at the same time to confirm my suspicions.
Click on this high resolution image to view in another browser window and zoom in on the factory labels on the spool.
Incidentally, this was the only transparent PETG that I was able to find that met the transparency challenge of Stefan at CnC kitchen on YouTube. I think I got better results than he did when it came to optical transparency.
Check out this thread from October
Take a look at the results and compare them to CnC’s kitchen results and you be the judge of optical clarity.
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First I would like to thank you for such a detailed response! This was an absolute joy to read, thank you for spreading your knowledge and experience. I had luck with their PLA + but it was a simple part I was printing so that might have to do with it. That clear is great I love Bambu but their clear is quite cloudy when printed although I did not do the processing of it like Stefan did nor the dialing in of the settings I will have to revisit his video about it so I can try again. Once again thank you for your highly detailed and educated response!!!
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I just got my first ever printer for Christmas (P1) and the thing that just kept me away from getting one in the past was printing speeds and I know the printers themselves have been fast but the bottleneck WAS filaments. The very first thing I did was searched for “high speed” PETG and came across Elegoo Rapid PETG on Amazon. I search around for more information and could not find anything they don’t even have it on their website. Long story short I’ve gone through about 2 spools of it (mostly ARC enclosure) and I think it’s great I am planning on getting more. I think I can still change more settings but doing some calibration tests I’ve gotten the flow rate at 20-22mm³
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that is amazing on PETG I would like to test it now
I purchased a two pack on sale last month for $20, been working great for me so far.
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I am going to grab 2 rolls to test but if it works I will fill my PETG rack
I do have a P1S, thought I don’t think it should be too much different from printing on an A1 unless you have a drafty and cold ambient room environment.
Its not very drafty and stays pretty warm especially with 2 bed slingers going
I did my first print with Gray Elegoo rapid PETG, I used auto calibration for the flow ratio, it was set to .95, The K value was calibrated to .030 then I did the flow tower test and it made it to 17mm so I set the max volumetric speed to 24.
The print was the main part of a large container 250mm tall in my X1C using 503g of filament. The Top and Bottom were separate prints.
With Generic PETG setting the slicer gave a time of 12 hours 27 minutes, With the calibrated Elegoo settings the time was 9 hours 46 minutes. The print took 9 hours 50 minutes. I had a single line that looked rough but only on the outside wall, the inside wall looks fine. That line had a small overhang every couple of inches on the outside wall as it was the top of a set of arches going around the container. I am very pleased with the print and I really like the Rapid PETG.
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Cab you share your filament settings for the Elegoo Rapid PETG? Thanks!
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Sure, I started with the Generic PETG Settings and I set the following:
Diameter 1.75 (No change)
Flow Ratio 0.95 per the calibration
Density 1.27 (No change)
Softening Temp, I raised to 91
Recommended nozzle Temp min: 230 max 260 per label on the spool
Nozzle: Initial Layer: 255 Other Layers: 255 (No change)
all build plates except for cool plate: Initial layer: 82 Other layers:80
Max Volumetric speed: raised to 24 (per flow rate test results)
I made no changes to the cooling tab or setting overrides tab
I did add: M900 k0.03 to the bottom of the Filament G-code to ensure the calibrated K value is used because I have not yet created a new custom filament in the custom filament section for this.
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Thx, worked perfect on my P1S on the AMS. Printing as fast as PLA now with good quality. My new go-to, especially at ~$10KG on Amazon for a 4 pack.
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Great, The Slicer says it’s faster than the PLA I use on several prints that I have tried. I am getting very little stringing right out of the package without drying. I wish they had Gray available in the 4 pack.
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I am new to 3d printing and have printed with pla and petg with great results. I am using a Bambu p1p with the Bambu slicer. I see in this thread a lot of talk about different settings. I have recently purchased the Eleogoo rapid petg. Not great prints. Using the default settings in bambu slicer. My question is, what settings are you all using to get better prints, what slicer is best and how do you change these settings. I can’t seem to find some of the numbers mentioned here. Thanks.
Nearly all my PETG print problems disappeared in one master stroke after switching the wall generator from “classic” to “arachne”. I can’t imagine why it isn’t the default. IMHO, it should be. I use it for everything now.
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Wow! That alone would be good reason to try it. I’ve never had a PETG calibrate to that high a maximum flow rate before. Yet the post just below yours appears to confirm it. If it prints as fast as PLA, then my main reason for switching to PLA in the first place is obsolete.
Is it the black elegoo high speed PETG that you are using? If so, I’m going to test it right away, as I just so happened to purchase one on March 1. Yeah, the price is pretty hard to beat, though it fluctuates almost daily. You really have to watch the price to get it at the $10/kg price. Too bad it comes in cardboard spools, but maybe that’s how they shave off the cost.
Getting anything at less than $10/kg seems just about impossible. If there’s a way, I haven’t found it.
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Yes, it does actually print faster than PLA for me, I have Elegoo Rapid PLA and it will not print as fast as the Elegoo Rapid PETG. I recently completed a project that used 4 kg of of White Rapid PETG, I chose it for the low cost and fast print speed. I have not tried the Black. When I posted my settings I had only tried the Gray, I think the Gray prints the best but the white worked out good. Yes the price on Amazon keeps changing I did pick up the 4 pack of white for about $43. I think that was a great deal. The PETG does not come in matte but I printed the white rapid PETG on the Engineering plate as I wanted the flat surface to contrast with other parts that had texture from the textured build plate. The prints came out with a nice finish that did not look shiny, I am happy with the finish it produced.
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I used PETG a lot because it is very versatile, strong and easy - don’t judge me on the last bit LOL
Started 3D printing with the first Prusa kit that came out with threaded rods.
On the P1S PEGT generally works just fine and out of the box for most brands.
And I just accepted this.
Until I got a spool that kept misbehaving badly.
For starters it required a LOWER temp than the PETG I used before.
Fixed the flow rate multiplicator with a quick vase mode print to calibrate the flow ratio to match the width settings.
Then I did the same for the K-factor and last but not least a model to find the max volumetric flow rate.
After having adjusted those three the roll printed flawless till the bitter end.
Tuning the lot is quite easy with translucent or transparent PETG, with a solid color it can be tricky.
I like to do to some temp and stringing tests after the tuning and if it requires a temp change of more than one degree I do the flow rate and K-factor again.
For those shiny filaments I prefer to again use vase mode for a test to find the baseline in degrees for a good shine.
Then I adjust the various print speeds so I get clean shine results there as well.
Is all this worth it if SPEED is what you are after and not just a great surface finish ?
IMHO it all depends on the filament, some are just great, some are just horrible and you can get the later ones from reputable companies on occasion…
For some rolls most of the speed settings are too high, even after careful tuning.
I have a few rolls of unbranded, cheap PETG I got off Ebay about 2 years ago.
That stuff just flies through the machine and I can print it in the ‘speedy’ way by default.
But I only use it for large or structural parts as it is a total pain for fine structures prone to staying too soft for too long - they curl up like mad.
Whatever speed issues one might have with a certain filament can often be compensated for by using proper settings to save time and filament.
Like the mentioned wall generator or using the lightning infill if the strength (requirements) of the part allows for it.
Free tip to get super smooth PETG results with not really that much hard labour:
Set a reasonable layer height for the size and print time in mind.
Do the usual cleanup but instead of doing an endless session of trying to sand this stuff use UV curing resin!
Yes, you still give it a really decent scrub with 180 or 200 grit to remove the worst blobs and imperfections…
But using clear UV resin allows you to create any color.
Using opaque or white as the base provides solid colors.
The key is to use a little plastic cup for the resin and to add some baby powder or corn starch to it.
Turns it into more like a thick paint or even light paste if you use more powder.
It loves to flow gently and creates a smooth surface with ease.
Do a test on a failed or not needed part first!
If the cured resin pops up or can be peeled off you need to use a flame on the print before applying the coating.
The heat from the flame allows the carbon that is produced to migrate into the PETG - it destroys the non stick properties.
A sanded part that turns slightly shiny with this is well done - don’t let it all melt!
A hot flame and moving fast is my preference but I suggest to start with something like a small part and lighter.
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Exactly which UV curing resin are you using?
I’ve heard of woodworkers using it for really glossy and clear rock n roll guitar top coats, such as solarez, but yours is the first I’ve heard about using it for 3D prints. Apparently your sand and flame technique solves the biggest problem, which is that usually nothing wants to stick to PETG.
Are you curing it in the sun, or under a painted nail lamp, or a black light, or…?