Prusa i3 MK3 - Page 53

● Nozzle temperature: 215 °C
● Bed temperature: 50 - 60 °C
● Heatbed: Make sure the surface is clean, as described in 6.3.2 PEI print surface
preparation chapter
11.3  PET/PETG
PETG is a very tough material with good thermal resistance. It’s universal but suitable
especially for mechanical parts and both indoor and outdoor use. PETG has almost no
warping, so printing large objects isn’t a problem. We use PETG to print parts for our
printers!
PETG is one of our favorite materials for 3D printing. It’s almost as easy to print as PLA, but
it can offer many mechanical properties that PLA prints just cannot achieve.
The G in the acronym PETG stands for Glycol which is added during the manufacturing
process. Glycol modifies the properties of PET, so that it’s easier to print, less brittle and
clearer when printing with semi-transparent variants. PETG has low thermal expansion, so
even when printing big objects, and without an enclosure, it rarely lifts from the bed and
warps. In addition to that, PETG is ductile. It has a healthy amount of flex which can prevent
parts from breaking under stress.
Unlike PLA or ABS, PETG tends to ooze a bit and may leave strings of plastic on your
print. You can fight this with increasing retraction and playing with hotend temperature, but if
you use our filament presets in Slic3r or Prusa Control, we already did that for you and the
amount of stringing is minimal. If you witness a tiny bit of stringing anyway, you can get rid of
it by quickly blasting your finished prints with a heat gun.
PETG sticks very well to PEI, which is generally a good thing. But sometimes it could stick a
little bit too well and you could rip a piece of PEI from the bed, so you should use a
separating agent (e.g. gluestick).
If you can handle the oozing and strong adhesion, you’ll be left with a very durable print, that
is considerably temperature resistant and usable for both indoor and outdoor use.
ADVANTAGES
DISADVANTAGES
Easy to print
Possibility of stringing
Good layer adhesion
Not soluble in acetone
Very tough, low warping
Prone to scratches
Temperature resistance
Little shrinking
Durable
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