Filament for motorcycle parts
Hi all,
I'm new here, so please excuse me if I posted this in the wrong section. I'm about to buy my first Prusa printer and I'm not sure what filament suits my needs. I'm an experienced 3D modeller, but I have only little experience with printing.
As a hobby, I customise old motorcycles and I intend to use 3D printed parts for that going forward. I'm fairly confident in the printing part, but the amount of different filaments available is very overwhelming, so I'm hoping some of you can give me some recommendations.
Basically, there are two kind parts I would like to print:
1. Decorational pieces, such as windscreens (not transparent), rear covers, side covers. Basically things that are made on plastic on standard bikes as well. These pieces would get professionally spray painted, so it is required to be able to handle paint (I think this is not an issue as most modern paints are water based) and must be able to achieve a very smooth surface before coating (additional steps like sanding is ok). These parts don't carry load, so stability is not that big of a deal, but need to be able to handle the usual vibrations of a motorcycle. These parts are not really near the hot engine, but are exposed to the sun when riding. So they can get pretty warm, in which case I assume PLA is maybe not the right material for it?
2. functional, small pieces, such as routings for cables, holding mounts for buttons, battery cases, etc. The surface quality of these parts does not matter, as they are mostly out of sight. No additional coating would be applied nor would they be exposed to sun light. But they would need a bit of stability and be able to handle vibrations for a extended period. I could imagine ABS would be good for that?
From what I can gather, ABS would be a good material, but there are so many others out there with similar qualities, that I just don't know what is best to use. I've seen some ABS prints which had a worse surface quality out of the printer than PLA, is this in general the case? Would PET be the best of both worlds?
Thank you for a little advice, and I'm very much looking forward to receive my printer.
Mischa
PS: I have attached some pictures of pieces I intend to print.
Re: Filament for motorcycle parts
I'd generally go with ABS/ASA for these. Keep an eye on glass transition temp for anything mounted near engines/mufflers.
PETG may be quite challenging to paint.
PLA will almost definitely be too brittle.
Polycarbonate for things that need to be really strong.
Don't worry too much about surface finish. That's usually a matter of print settings.
Re: Filament for motorcycle parts
Thank you for your feedback Martin, that gives me a good starting point. I haven't thought of PC, that seems like a good option.
Why would PETG not be good to paint?
Doing some research, I came across some special PLA filaments that are advertised as stronger and more heat resistant than even ABS, such as from Ingeo or Spectrum, if these brands are known. Like the best of both worlds. Are they the real deal or is it just big marketing talk?