Gidday all. I’m a relatively new A1 Combo user (200hrs or so) and have just received my first order of the new TPU for AMS. I decided to load up a roll od the dark grey and print a phone case direct from the Bambu library. I left all settings intact and successfully printed the phone case as a two-up PLA Matte/TPU job onto a (for now) standard Textured PEI plate. The print was fine, and in-hand seemed quite sturdy when I took it off the plate. As soon as I tried to put my phone into it though, it literally exploded. Z-axis layer adhesion was almost non-existent as per default settings from the Maker library for the A1 that I have. Is this “normal” for TPU? I’ve never printed any before, so I’m not sure as to whether this particular TPU is different to standard TPU in this regard. TIA for any help.
So, I was more than happy to try and tear it apart, whilst I am disabled, I should have been able to do something if yours failed like that.
I couldn’t, the layers bonded perfectly even up the thinner side walls that would wrap the edges of a phone.
The filament does recommend drying it before any use, including straight from the supplier.
While I didn’t, did you?
Another question: You said you used the dark grey filament, but they do not have a dark grey; the only grey is rather light. It is far too light for the one yo have in the picture.
Did you try to print one part as PLA Matte and another as TPU for AMS hoping they would bond?
TPU is a blanket term to classify a range of stiffness levels as described on the shore scale.
Some people have said this TPU for AMS is around 65D and the more common, but, by no means true TPU is 95A. There are many as you can see from an earlier answer I gave on the subject.
Thanks so much for the reply. Yep, my mistake, it is the black of course. I ordered white, grey and black and the reason I said grey was that I’d previously just printed a two-day job in grey PETG HF. My bad. No, given that the humidity in Hobart is extremely low at the moment (statistically the driest city in Australia) I thought I’d give it a go straight out of the wrapper - like within minutes. Printing was fine - nothing to indicate any issues right the way through. First layer was perfect, as were, as far as I could tell, the rest. Ony after the job had finished and cooled did the problem arise at the intersection of the base layers and the wall rising from it around the edge. There was no PLA alongside in the TPU phone case itself, no. The PLA section printed seperately off to the side as a separate object. I’ll dry it and try again, but I’ll also apply it to another design that I actually need to print shortly and see if it’s endemic to the design of the phone case. Thanks for your help!
Tis looks like your TPU printed at too low a temperature. Or it came to you super damp!
I’ve recieved filaments from BL that when sitting in a dry box for 20 minutes spike the humidity as high as 35-40% so they tend to be a bit damp!
Also, I’d try TPU with the PETG instead as TPU and PLA are not the best bonding partners.
Thanks Orillian, I’ll crank up the temps a little and cook the filament again. The PLA and TPU parts are separate for this test job - apart from PLA being dumped as support into the TPU body. Neither are intended to bond.
Hi @Skipper , that was exactly my experience too with the TPU for AMS. Fine XY properties, brittle as hell in the Z axis with seemingly poor layer adhesion to boot.
I dried religiously for several hours at 70C giving me very dry filament. The print quality was great, no stringing, no bubbling however any objects with thinnish vertical sections (like your phone case) exhibited brittleness and were very easy to pull apart.
Standard P1S settings, I also tried upping the nozzle temperature but it made no noticeable difference.
I printed some anti-vibration feet with it and they were fine, because they’re big lumps of material. I printed a phone case had exactly your issue, I also printed several seals I’ve been working on and couldn’t get the TPU for AMS strong enough. My prints with generic TPU 95A have all been fine, albeit slower and without the AMS.
I’ve just today taken delivery of some Priline 98A so I’ll be trying that out in the AMS shortly…
OK, I’ve tried the Priline 98A TPU a few times now in the AMS. I used the “Generic TPU for AMS” profile which is in the newer versions of Bambu Studio.
It prints brilliantly quality wise, it behaves like TPU, albeit 98A so pretty hard.
I had dried it for 12 hours at 70C and moved it immediately into the AMS and fed it in. That was my first mistake; the filament was still hot and therefore soft…jammed in the AMS exit gears where the 4 PTFE tubes join and feed through the gears. I kind of knew I should have waited for it to cool down before feeding it.
Anyway after unjamming and waiting for the spool and filament it to cool down a little I have since used it a few times with no problems at all. I think it’s probably only just OK but none the less it works. Just make sure you’ve let the filament cool down if it’s fresh out of the dryer.
Just an update on the Priline 98A TPU (black) and the AMS. I have put around 40 or 50 prints through and I get a jam approx every 10 prints. Always the same point, during retraction at the end of the print and always in the same place - the gears in the 4-way splitter under the AMS where it joins the exit tube.
I can live with that for now, I can unjam the AMS in under 5 minutes but the search is still on for a TPU that works a little better in the AMS.
I also got some TPU labelled up as 74D from Amazon, supposedly a TPU with added Nylon. It’s more flexible and tougher that the Bambu TPU for AMS although I haven’t tried it in the AMS because I’m not sure if the nylon additive may make it too abrasive. Prints good though at 260C with the 0.4 nozzle.
I’m a relatively new A1 Combo user (200hrs or so) and have just received my first order of the new TPU for AMS. I decided to load up a roll od the dark grey and print a phone case direct from the Bambu library. I left all settings intact and successfully printed the phone case as a two-up PLA Matte/TPU job onto a (for now) standard Textured PEI plate. The print was fine, and in-hand seemed quite sturdy when I took it off the plate. As soon as I tried to put my phone into it though, it literally exploded. Z-axis layer adhesion was almost non-existent as per default settings from the Maker library for the A1 that I have. Is this “normal” for TPU? I’ve never printed any before, so I’m not sure as to whether this particular TPU is different to standard TPU in this regard. TIA for any help.
