MakerGear Forum

Hi all,

Been a while since I checked in here, but needed your guys input on filament selection. I've been printing very well on PLA and PETG, haven't touched ABS since I didn't have a need for it. Since I'm doing mostly Radio Controlled stuff and misc mechanical items, sometimes, I need something a little stiffer than PETG with same strength. I've seen the ePC but its still only in that natural color? Or is ABS really the only viable option? Suggestions welcomed.

Makergear just had something about 3DXTECH Carbonfiber PETG on their instagram account.... night be worth looking into.

In the R/C world, many times you need toughness more than stiffness. That is why ABS is popular for RC. It is better to bend and flex rather than bend and break. In chasing stiffness you actually achieve "brittle-ness"

An improvement in the design of the part can go a lot farther than a change in filament.

It depends A LOT on your specific application. What are you working on?

Things like fenderwells and roll cages seems a little soft. Sure, it doesn't break, but it just doesn't feel right. Other items are like l brackets and arms. I printed a piece for my fishing rod wrapper, which is basically an "L" bracket out of PETG, and it had way more flex than I'd care for and had to double the thickness. Printing that out of ABS would have been a nightmare due to warping. I haven't come across anything that is very much like ABS or PETG without going into the exotics like metal and fiber filaments. I was doing okay using PETG as a replacement for ABS for ease of print and comparable strength with design alterations for PETG's flex, but just sometimes it seems no way around ABS.

I would think for R/C your #1 concern is weight. The specific gravities are: ABS=1.05, PLA=1.25, PETG=1.38. I suspect CF or GF raises those numbers a little, but shouldn't the main comparison be strength-weight ratio?