I would like to try printing with TPU on my X1, with or without AMS. Anyone have any suggestions?
Dry it well and enjoy 
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Is TPU really that nasty? is there something else that is as flexible as TPU?
yeah. the rubber is also really flexible. you should try it…for reference .
I just started printing TPU on my X1C and I love it. I print it straight out of the drier to be sure it is dry and it works great.
The first time I tried without properly drying it, it was a mess, so stringy and ugly. But, properly dried it seems as good any other filament; and super tough!
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Keep in mind there are two TPU materials being promoted by BL.
- TPU for AMS
- TPU 95A HF
When TPU is spoken about without additional qualifiers, it is often describing 95A, this is the softness of the material.
There are many types of TPU on the softness to hardness scale.
The new kid on the block is the TPU for AMS, this is a harder material developed to be compatible with your AMS (assuming you have one). The value attributed to this one is 65D, these values are called shore numbers.
You printer can print either, in fact every BL printer can print both.
Many people will only print using 95A TPU, the TPU for AMS is new, people are still getting used to it. It has been around a while, but, nit in such an easy to use way for the BL printers.
As the name suggests, TPU for AMS will work with your AMS, more importantly, it will work easily at multiple colour printers, even on a single layer. It prints as fast as PLA.
The TPU 95A HF should be used with your external spool as it is not compatible with the AMS without changes that will likely invalidate your warranty at best and damage things at worst.
It is technically possible to print different TPU 95A on different layers, but, you will de doing this manually at it takes some skill to not ruin a print.
I have and do print using both types, I did today in fact. Each have their uses and benefits over each other. I would recommend trying both and exploring what you can achieve with each.
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I have more or less dialed in my Bambu Lab TPU 95A (non HF, the first “gen” Bambu Lab TPU) for the X1C.
- Dry it properly
- Calibrate your material properly (Temp, flow rate, pa, retraction settings, etc.)
- Tweak your part quality settings depending on the part itself
My filament settings for TPU 95A:
Temp: 240C
Flow rate: 1.04
PA: 0.45
Max. vol. speed: default
Retraction length: 3mm
Retraction speed: 45mm/s
I used the voron calibration cube and the XYZ calibration cube to test:
→ Print quality (disable slow down for overhangs was a tremendous boost to the surface quality)
→ Dimensional accuracy
→ Overhangs, Bridging and stringing
I am now using a filament dryer and I print directly from it. TPU 95A cannot be printed with the AMS.
Wrong, there are 3 types of BL TPU .
The first “gen” TPU 95A non HF
Erm, did you miss this part?
BL is only promoting two types as I clearly said.
There are far more than that.
TPU comes in a wide range of Shore hardness ratings, as low as 60A and as high as 77D, so don’t expect consistent results from one TPU to another.
NinjaFlex, an extremely popular TPU type often mentioned within this forum, is 85A. There are many different TPU materials available with different shore values. I can easily purchase 64D, 72D, 83A, 85A & 98A to name just a few and receive them tomorrow from Amazon.
I think you are confusing print speed and shore types.
95A and 95A HF have identical shore values, meaning they are the same. One can print faster due to a change in the chemical mix, not the internal structure.
You only named two as 95A & 95A HF are the same thing, plus TPU for AMS.
The shore chart shows you the flex amount based on existing products for reference.
The full article, albeit a little dated is worth a read.
TPU is fine but definitely not with your AMS. Most of us are tinkerers and I’m sure I’m not the only one that wondered about using it with an AMS. Very bad idea.