Looking for insight if you have successfully printed with Taulman’s PCTPE (specifically on the Mini).
So far, I cannot get it to NOT warp at the edges, the print just won’t stick to the bed.
I know warping is harder to control with nylons.
I’m using the Cura profile for PCTPE from Aleph’s site. I’m prepping the bed with a UHU glue stic.
I’ve applied the glue both thin, and thick. I’ve tried adding a brim (that seemed to make it worse), and lowering the bed temp to 50ºC (made a mess) since Taulman recommends 45°C (Aleph’s Mini Cura profile for PCTPE sets it at 100ºC).
I feel like I’m stabbing in the dark.
How could I improve my results?
Is the glue stick recommended on top of the PET? Ive had awesome results with untouched PET on my Mini. I will clean the PET with rubbing alcohol but that is all…
Nylon filaments can definitely stick to the bed very well. Bed adhesion can be increased or decreased by changing the 1st layer properties (I just adjust the 1st layer nozzle height on my TAZ. )
PCTPE must be kept very dry: always in a small container with desiccant. The filament should feed to the printer without exposing the spool to “wet” air. You’ll want to dry the filament if it stays outside of the dry box for more than an hour or so. Wet nylon misbehaves in several ways. Surface quality is reduced due to irregular extrusion as extruder pressure is affected by buildup and periodic release of steam. This problem is more noticeable on thin structures and overhangs. Wet filament also seems to have trouble with layer bonding and shrinking/warping.
You might also check that the correct length of filament is being extruded. The filament clamp should be tight for PCTPE, since the filament is hard, slippery and viscous.
I was getting pretty frustrated.
I had also spoken with the good people at Aleph Objects who advised me to lightly sand the PEI surface with some 2000 grit sandpaper, together with a 10% rubbing alcohol / 90% water solution, also that I might try raising the bed temperature all the way to 110ºC.
I did all of those things, with no real improvement.
Originally, that didn’t work for me.
But then I went ahead and just tried a coarser sandpaper (500-1000 grit). I printed without the glue, and it came out perfect.
I designed some trigger-switches for my live signal-processing rig (a drumset run through real-time effects) to turn on/off effects etc. These switches will clip straight onto the drum-hoops and need to be both flexible and strong. I’ll post pics when I’m done with them.
