Interesting results with Bambu Lab TPU for AMS

I have been working on designing disc golf discs/frisbees for 3D printing. Trying different materials, from nylons and polypropylenes to TPUs. I’ve had some pretty good success, but the TPU’s have been the most reliable and easiest to print.

However, the discs made from 95a TPU’s were too soft, and the discs made from 68d TPU’s were too hard. So I designed a hybrid disc made with TPU for AMS in the center, and an outer rim of 95a on the outside. This was a very good combination.
It has pretty great durability, feel and a decent weight.

Theis was great, but I wanted to start putting designs on the top surface, so I used the 95a TPU black for the disc picture, and some TPU for AMS neon green for the middle material. TPU 95a and TPU for AMS bonded very well.

I have a few different colors of TPU for AMS, so I decided to try to print a design on the disc with two of them as the center section, and I found a flaw in the program. When I removed the disc from the build plate, I realized that two different colors of TPU for AMS don’t bond with each other very well…

I used the default printing parameters for generic TPU95 and TPU for AMS. TPU 95 on the right nozzle, TPU for AMS on the left nozzle There are just two layers of the artwork pattern which is how I normally do these kinds of prints. I feel like I can take each one of these green circles out with a weeding tool.

Is it possible I just got a bad roll of the green? Or, is TPU for AMS known to had an adherence issue? It was a brand new spool I opened yesterday, but maybe this TPU for AMS needs to be dried before use?

Just an interesting result I thought I’d share.

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To answer part of your question, yes TPU for AMS has low layer adhesion, 30% less than PLA and 9 times! less than regular TPU…

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Thank you for the reply.
I’m peeling the green circles out with my fingers. The yellow isn’t being disturbed at all. So the yellow is sticking to itself well enough and the green is sticking to itself well enough - I have a pile of perfectly formed green pieces sitting on the table in front of me. However, the green isn’t sticking to the yellow any better than mechanically despite the two materials just being different colored TPU for AMS materials. There must be some kind of additive to one of colors causing them to not bond together.

Try the beam interlocking setting. It might help lock those 2 filaments together better.

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I’ll look at that setting. Thanks!

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Could it be that the first “TPU for AMS” color cools too much by the time the 2nd color is printed, so they don’t stick together?

I’ve actually had some bonding strength issues with it when printing multiples of a part, while printing individual ones was fine (much stronger bond)… now I’m wondering if that was the main cause.

-Max