Favorite Filament Supplier

General discussion of 3D printers

Re: Favorite Filament Supplier

Postby madmike8 » Fri Apr 25, 2014 11:56 pm

Thanks for the info. Just put in an order at push plastics.
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Re: Favorite Filament Supplier

Postby orcinus » Sat Apr 26, 2014 12:17 pm

Out of curiosity...

Why do people prefer ABS over PLA?

I've had an order of magnitude more headaches with ABS than PLA.
Support removal is harder, surface detail is lower due to higher viscosity, warping is an every-day occurrence, overhangs suck, layer to layer adhesion is worse...

Aside from the obvious (temperature resistance - and that only applies to highly specific parts, like dashboard holders etc.), about the only advantage is flexibility. And even that's dubious - i've printed nearly everything on my printer (extruder parts, various clips, ducts etc.) out of PLA and have yet to see a part break.

Is there something i'm missing?
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Re: Favorite Filament Supplier

Postby fma » Sat Apr 26, 2014 12:32 pm

I do prefer ABS for very small things, which do no break as easily as PLA...

Also, flexibility is very usefull for clips or so.

I also like the ability to use acetone to glue it (or PVC glue). It is also easy to put screws...

I think both materials do have pros and cons, and should be use wisely depending of result needed...
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Re: Favorite Filament Supplier

Postby orcinus » Sat Apr 26, 2014 5:35 pm

Flexibility and ease of post-processing (drilling, sanding, smoothing) are solid pros.
Gluing... You can glue either with epoxy fairly easily. And with less chance of a spill or drip ruining your print.

Regarding breaking... PLA is technically harder and stronger than ABS.
It's just that, unlike ABS, it has a rather catastrophic failure mode :lol:

You're right, both have their pros and cons, but for non-structural components and objects that don't need excessive post-work, i honestly don't see the advantage of ABS over PLA. Might just be me, though, i've heard of horror stories with PLA and hotend reliability, issues with sticking and whatnot, but never experienced any (while, at the same time, i've had lots of issues with ABS - seemingly more than other people).
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Re: Favorite Filament Supplier

Postby orcinus » Sat Apr 26, 2014 5:35 pm

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