I just received my H2D. On my other bambu printer I have always loved the PEI Smooth Plate. I am sad it is discontinued for the H2D. I have been experimenting with the Engineering plate, but it requires glue. I feel like I am gluing the plate incorrectly/unevenly as my most recent print had some adhesion issues one small area.
The texture of the engineering plate seems to be making it difficult to apply liquid glue. The plate seems to be scrapping the pad of the liquid glue applicator. I am even starting to see some wear and tear on the glue pad after only a few uses. The glue stick doesn’t glide very smoothly. I saw some old posts about applying water and wiping the plate after applying glue to make the application more even. What has been your most successful way of applying glue to the engineering plate? Do you wash your plate and apply glue after every print?
Can I ask a fundamental question: Why are you using the Engineering Plate?
As the name suggests, it’s actually designed for a very specific type of filament that needs to be heated to a high temperature. Optimized for high-temperature filaments.
If you’re using standard filament, like PLA, PEG, TPU, etc., then Bambu Cool Plate SuperTack Pro should actually be the right plate for you, especially if you’re coming from the smooth plate.
…or simply buy an equivalent alternative to the smooth plate from a third-party manufacturer.
Do you have a filament that’s so specialized that it absolutely requires the Engineering Plate? Using the other plate means that you can avoid using glue altogether, or at least reduce the amount you need.
So, once again, the key question: What kind of filament do you actually want to print? Maybe you’re using the wrong printer plate for the job.
At least this question can already be answered:
Yes, you have to do that after every print. It’s not primarily to make the filament adhere better - even though it’s called glue - but as a separation layer so you can remove your printed object more easily without damaging the plate.
In this case, the glue is not actually a adhesive, but rather a release layer. By the way, another drawback is that you end up with residue from the adhesive on the surfaces of your 3D print. So, once again, what kind of material do you actually want to print?
This is what I’d do. I prefer the smooth plates over like the super tack. I’m very disappointed they stopped selling the smooth plates. Luckily I have a couple on hand.
I’ve used the engineering plate with PETG and ASA. I haven’t tried it with PLA yet.
I use this Nano 3D glue stuff though. I use it on the textured, smooth, and engineer plates. @maxim3D got me going on this stuff, and I haven’t been able to look back. It works so well. It’s so easy to apply. I’ve used glue sticks and stuff in the past, and there’s just no comparison as far as ease of use and mess. I use cotton gloves when handling my plates. It’ll be dozens of prints between reapplication of the glue layer when using that nano glue. That’s what’s been working for me at least.
Thank you for responding. My main goal is to get the first layer as smooth as possible as I do a lot of face down prints. PEI smooth plate was perfect for that as the bottom print surface was completely smooth and almost shiny.
I used the cool plate super tack plate before on my P1S and the texture was just ok, not super smooth. I also didn’t think the adhesion was as good as advertised. However, I noticed that there is updated version, the Super tack pro plate now. Is this plate’s texture more comparable to PEI Smooth plate? Smoother than engineering plate?
I print silk PLA, non bambu brand and I also print multi colour bambu silk sometimes. I do see the notice to only use bambu silk + for the super tack pro plate.
I keep hearing good things about this plate. However, the texture doesn’t look smooth enough for what I am looking for. Seems like the finish is still quite matte.
Yeah, it shouldn’t be 100! 20 USD is more correct, as mentioned. Which is a good deal. I think @CincinnatiDesigns is printing more than me! Mine has lasted me a little longer. I just picked up a third bottle in about a year’s time.
A 50ml bottle is good for 30 to 40 applications and an application lasts 3 or 4 prints. (A lot of the time an application isnt covering the whole bed anyways)
BIQU CryoGrip Glacier - any filament that prints below 300° nozzle temperature (PETG, PCTG, PLA, ASA etc). I use Magigoo PP for polypropylene (which is a requirement)
Holden Enterprises Garolite G10 (my ‘engineering plate’) - PA and PPA (the nylons), PC and ASA. Except for ASA I use Vision Miner NPA. Do not use NPA with ASA or the part will weld itself to the sheet.
Textured - TPU/PEBA only. Easier to pull off the plate without needing a separation layer
This should really only be used for high temp plates (110-120). Also, I would advise not using it with ASA on certain surfaces (especially G10). The parts will weld themselves to the plate and will require liberal amounts of acetone to remove them. On a PEI plate, it will rip the coating off.
I’m still salty about Bambu deciding that they didn’t want to make a smooth plate for my H2C.
I use my engineering plate quite often without any issues. I’ve never used Bambu’s liquid glue, so I have no comment on using it. I do use Bambu’s glue stick all the time though and it works well on all plates that I use. I just apply the stick in a grid pattern across the plate, wet it down with isopropyl alcohol, and then evenly spread it with a lint free cloth. This makes for a rather smooth application that doesn’t show up on my prints and adheres/release quite well.
I only really use the glue on my non engineering plates to act as a release agent. I use it for all prints (PLA, ABS/ASA, TPU, PACF, PC) regardless if it’s for adhesion or release on the engineering plate. I don’t really wash my engineering plate all that often since it will always have glue on it. In between prints, I normally just wet it down real quick with isopropyl alcohol again and wipe it evenly to spread the existing glue to remove the remnants of the last print. I only apply more glue if I notice the stickiness lessening.
Thanks for the tip about smoothing with isopropyl. I will try that! The Enginering plate scrapes the liquid glue fabric applicator pad. The glue stick is easier to apply, but I had troubles making it smooth/thin enough coating. Hopefully the isopropyl helps!
I have a spray bottle of isopropyl alcohol that I use to wet it down. If you find that there are spots that are too thick with glue or not even enough, you can easily just spray it down again and wipe it to get the results you are looking for. You can be quite liberal with the spray since it dries really fast.
