First Time TPU Print
Hello, I've only ever printed PLA, I need to print a small part out of TPU. Can I safely rely on just choosing TPU material/Profile, hot end and change my plate?
1. Core One Plus single extruder.
2. High Flow ObXidian™ - 0.4 mm
3. Textured or Satin Sheet? I have both
RE:
What I do is this:
- Use a separating agent e.g. glue stick, leave a strategically placed fingerprint on the purge area
- run it straight into the head, no PTFE tube, disable filament sensors, use manual stepper controls to load
- purge more than usual (a HF nozzle doesn't exactly help here, my "goto" nozzle would be standard flow brass but HF should work just fine. Just remember to purge much more material than usual when going back to regular filament - TPU is purge-resistant, kind of...)
RE:
Thinking some more about it, maybe to highlight the different worlds:
Utopia: Push the button "Machine: Load TPU". Machine (grind grind grind) done thank you sir may I have some more?
Reality: Heat the hotend, open the extruder, push the filament (somehow) past the wheel, watch the ooze turning to the correct color. The Core One is even quite convenient to work with in this respect thanks to the wide open idler window. On the Voron (with stepper driver disabled) I'd turn the motor manually.
This just as a reality check for a task that sits somewhere between "push-button simple" and "needs real thinking". It needs no thinking but actual, mechanical feedback is appreciated over pushing buttons.
RE: First Time TPU Print
It's 10x easier to print TPU on the Core One than it is to print on say a H2D. With the main plate and bogie mod I can top feed 80A without issue.
RE: First Time TPU Print
Ash11 - I recently did my first TPU print on my MK4S - perhaps this will help if you're having problems:
- Ninjatek TPU 85A
- MK4S w/ enclosure (bypassed the MMU3 and fed through the short PTFE the enclosure uses - about 200 mm)
- I backed off the idler screws on the Nextruder by 1 turn each to less the "squish" of the filament
- I used the default Ninjatek 85A TPU settings in PrusaSlicer
- BUT I set the speed during the print to 25% (!!!)
I found the super slow speed to be absolutely important, because I was constantly having issues with the filament getting wound around the Nextruder gear at faster speeds. With this slow speed I was able to print a fairly large object over several hours with no issues.
Prusa MK4 since Jan 2024, MK4S/MMU3 since Jan 2025, Printables: @MikeB_1505898
RE: First Time TPU Print
Thanks Mike