Has anyone tried N-Vent filament and what was your opinion of it? Also I see Lulzbot is carrying a new filament, Inova 1800. Isn’t that pretty much the same thing as N-Vent since it’s made up of Eastman’s Amphora 1800 3D polymer, which is in N-Vent and Colorfabb XT? Has anyone tried the new Inova 1800?
I am going to try some Inova this weekend. I have hopes of getting a good base of a S3D profile for it, but it has not worked out getting it from the guy yet. 
Inova-1800.txt (13.4 KB)
Since Inova uses the same polymer as N-Vent, I think the settings should be very close to the same. I found this info about N-Vent on the Taulman website:
n-vent - all colors
Print temp = 250C - 255C
Nozzle = any size
Print speed = ABS speeds
Retraction = .25mm/.1mm nozzle or for a .5mm nozzle = 2.5mm
Print bed = Hot = Glass heated to 70-80C
Hot = Glass heated to 45C with coat of PVA
Hot = PEI Sheet heated to 70C
NOTE: It is best “NOT” to let the bed cool to ambient, but only down to 35C in end of g-code.
I ordered some N-Vent to try. Maybe we can exchange notes on the two filaments and see how they compare. 
You can find our profiles for Inova here, and may help with some sort of a base to start with other programs.
You can also keep an eye on all of our developmental profiles by checking into our code page, or you can get them from our development site.
As a note, any of the profiles from our development site may not be finalized or as tested as the profiles loaded into Cura. Once we have them finalized we will post them directly to the profiles pages on LulzBot.com.
Awesome, thanks Brent.I! 
No problem! As Inova is one of our newer filaments, it hasn’t quite made into Cura yet. In our next update we will be getting these tossed into the Quick Print mode for easier access.
Anyone have any details on what the Inova 1800 filliament is all about? Is it stronger than ABS? less warp potential? I did a search for details about it but I didn’t turn up much.
Inova 1800 appears to be similar to Taulman’s n-vent. They both use Eastman’s Amphora 1800 3D polymer in their filament which is supposed to be a step up from ABS & PLA with less warping and better adhesion between layers. It is supposed to be good for making functional prototypes with more strength and better heat resistance. Colorfabb has released their new filament nGen that has Eastman’s Amphora 3300 polymer and from the sample prints I’ve seen it may even be better than n-vent or 1800. It would be nice to see a side by side comparison of the three filaments.
[quote=“kmanley57”]First attempt at a S3D profile for Inova-1800.
So kmanley57, after working with Inova 1800, how do you like it. Anything you don’t like about it?
Nothing not to like about so far, but I have tried nothing but simple prints getting a profile set up in S3D so far. But it has been real easy to work with and have had no delamination issues yet. Still got to try smoothing and such, but work is keeping my away from print this week, That a doing taxes!!!
Inova-1800 is made locally to us and LulzBot here in Colorado by Chroma Strand Labs, which has strong plastic injection molding and extrusion experience.
Inova-1800 is indeed the same Amphora 1800 base at Colorfabb XT. Inova’s advantage is to start with natural (clear) Amphora, then use their own dye at a controlled 3% composition. Consistent dye % across colors and batches makes for consistent prints. That’s also why you only see colors like Lulzbot green from Chroma Strand.
Amphora 1800 filament are very low warp, HIGHLY dimensionaly accurate (there’s a story…), very low fume and particulate, great bed adhesion, strong, and I’ve not seen a layer delamination yet. We blogged with a bunch a pictures a while back http://i-t-w.com/blog/2016/1/12/chromastrand-labs-inova-high-performance-3mm-3d-print-filament-now-available
Regarding how NGEN (Amphora 3300, Chroma Strand will also have Amphora 3300 filament out soon) compares to Amphora 1800, We just picked up our first rolls, and will be printing the same models for comparison. Ngen currently doesn’t have profiles built into Cura, you have to download them.
Less factual, I’ve heard it put like this- Think of Amphora 1800 like an ABS replacement, and Amphora 3300 like a PLA replacement.
Thanks for the info, i-t-w.com, that’s pretty much what I figured. I have been experimenting with different filaments and really like the way nGen prints but some prints with thin walls are a little brittle. I tried some nVent but never got to the same level of print quality as the nGen, of course that was probably my settings, but I could never quite get there. I have done well with PETG and like it for certain things. I just received a roll of XT and am going to try that this week. I’m looking for strength and beauty… (who isn’t?) and dimensional accuracy, so Inova 1800 may be just up my alley, and I like the idea of supporting my local businesses. That’s one reason I bought my Lulzbot Mini in the first place. I also bought my replacement bed from IT-Works recently following a tragic print removal mishap and the new bed is excellent. Given my great experiences purchasing from my Loveland neighbors, I will have to try some Inova 1800.
Thanks! Message us, we usually have samples to share.
Are you coming to the open house tonight? https://www.lulzbot.com/learn/events/lulzbot-open-house-2016
Unfortunately I couldn’t make it tonight because of a prior commitment. Hopefully I can make the next one. 
Bump. I’m actually interested to hear about peoples experiences with and the differences (if any) between NGEN and NVENT filaments. I’m interested in low-fume and low cost filaments that are superior to PLA and comparable or better than ABS/HIPS.
I’ve printed both N-Gen and N-Vent successfully. Here’s my experiences:
*edit - printed with both of these today and thought of even more stuff that might be helpful
n-gen (light green)
- Lulzbot “high detail” profile for this stuff is pretty spot on.
Can’t comment on the other profiles but really, if you spend extra money on this stuff, why would you push out mediocre prints? What I’d really like to see from Lulzbot is profiles by color. - Good dimensional consistency
- Shiny, nice glossy look and feel
- Some surface blemishes but not much. Overall, very reliable printing output.
- Not much of any stringing
- Here’s the dealbreaker - the stuff is super-brittle. Bottom line for me is that if I’m cranking out prints to the tune of ~$4/pop, they had better not break that easily. I’m really hoping these dudes are working their asses off to improve strength of this stuff, because otherwise it’s great material.
- You can turn down the nozzle (and bed) temp just a few degrees (I used 227c nozzle, 83c bed) to get some REALLY accurate stuff. This is probably my most accurate material at this setting. Does overhangs incredibly well. Downside - this makes prints even MORE brittle. Stupid brittle, almost.
n-vent (yellow)
- Lulzbot “high detail” profile didn’t work for me - several failed prints before I took matters into my own hands.
- Prints would not stick to the bed with these settings - I came back to a mess of what looked like nacho cheese everywhere
- Essentially the print head is too hot, bed too cold
- Forget bridging/overhangs on these settings, it’s a complete sh*show
- I’ve had success with near-nGen settings with easier prints - ~225 nozzle temp, 80 bed temp. No need for glue if you get the bed up around 80, but it does make prints really hard to get off the bed.
- Soooo persnickity - forget tricky prints until you completely lock down the settings unless you enjoy failure. The stuff is either lumpy when too cold, or runny when too warm and getting that sweet spot is more of a challenge than I enjoy
- Surface quality is nice like N-Gen when you do get it right, but it has more errors like gaps, blemishes, warping, etc
- A heavier material which creates nice high-quality feel, quite the opposite of HIPS