Hallo
Is it possible to print flex PLA with the K8200 ?
Have you some flex PLA in the Velleman-Store ?
bg
Sompero
Yes it is possible.
I have even printed with grasstrimmer wire that is 2.4mm. Don’t know what type of plastic it is though. I does not smell,
warps as ABS but do not dissolve in acetone.
Grass trimmer wire is nylon. If its pure nylon, it shouldnt warp really. Id be careful using trimmer wire though, often its reinforced with something that doesnt melt, and that will guaranteed clog your nozzle. You can buy ‘pure’ Nylon specifically for printing, although its a bit overpriced IMO. I got a spool a few days ago (Taulman), but my extruder wont grip it as its very slippery. Waiting for a new hobbed bolt before I try again.
As for flex pla, I also got a spool of that in the same shipment, though I have yet to try it. I see no reason it wouldnt work though, will report back once I change my nozzle to PLA again.
Hi Sompero,
yes, but …
I successfully printed with flexible PLA some months ago, so in principle, it works (stock extruder, hotend etc.). Speed had to be reduced quite a lot, apart from that I experienced no problems. Adhesion on glass (50 °C) was even better than with normal PLA.
However, lately there have been some FlexPLA variants that seem to be more flexible than previous ones. Obviously, I can’t give any advice about those, you’d have to test. Since there have been questions on this topic every now and then, some updated info would be useful also for others, I think.
Cheers,
kuraasu
Partial cross post
I have just successfully printed an iphone case with FlexPLA. However, I do not use the stock Velleman hotend anymore, I switched to an all metal E3D hotend instead, but I dont think there will be problems with the stock hotend either. If anything I would expect the PTFE heatbreak of the stock hotend to work better for this, as its more slippery than metal. Should you have jams or problems, many people “lubricate” the flexpla filament with a dab of vegetable oil, but wasnt necessary for me.
Anyway, I printed at 240C, despite the spool odly saying “<225C” on to a glass bed that was already coated with hairspray. It stuck MUCH too good to the glass, it took me 30 minutes to cut the object lose. Next time I will try some tape to print this on.
Also I printed at much slower than normal speed because I read that everywhere. I printed at 30mm/s and that worked just fine. I suspect I can print it a whole lot faster, while manually extruding it flows out just nicely, no issues at all, and perhaps the reason you read to print this slow is bowden extruders where the rubber like filament can easily get stuck.
Anyway, result is a nice, tough rubber like product.
Hi P4man,
which supplier / which filament was that?
Cheers,
kuraasu
This is perhaps more useful, the label:
s30.postimg.org/70zkkp369/IMG_20 … 113628.jpg
Its from orbi-tech
Hy, for PLA flex printing, I think it’s better to modify the extruder filament feed, because flex turns everywhere in the extruder but not in the nozzle part LOL
There are many mods : this one
thingiverse.com/thing:488007
and I personnaly use this one
thingiverse.com/thing:744255
These mods helps flex filament to go directly in the nozzle part.
Sure you can print with original extruder, but be sure to follow this next tip : flex need very slow print speed (40 to 50mms), higher speed will jam extruder for sure
Here a good how to from Tom
youtube.com/watch?v=KBbsDQWfrwA
Have fun