Black ePC - disappointing first print

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zemlin
Posts: 467
Joined: Thu Feb 04, 2016 9:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana

Re: Black ePC - disappointing first print

Post by zemlin » Sun Jul 22, 2018 6:28 pm

Yes, the printer is enclosed, but not temperature controlled. It's been running around 50C on the inside.

Gwhite
Posts: 372
Joined: Tue Jul 11, 2017 3:38 pm

Re: Black ePC - disappointing first print

Post by Gwhite » Mon Jul 23, 2018 3:08 pm

I purchased a spool of black ePC recently, specifically for printing replacement filament drives. I haven't opened it up yet because I want to run it fresh before it soaks up any moisture, and I've been waiting for the dust to settle on this thread. It sounds like the black ePC has some serious issues.

Although that isn't necessarily an application requiring super high strength, I wonder if I'm not better off using PETG, which I've got dialed in pretty well & is on my printer now. I've seen several posts where other people are using it for filament drives successfully. Other than the temperature characteristics, does anyone know of a good repository for printed material properties? It would be nice to compare polycarb to PETG for abrasion resistance, for example. That is certainly the life span determining issue with filament drives (in my very limited experience).

Zemlin: Would you consider the ePC strength you are getting to be adequate for a filament drive? Any idea if it would hold up to abrasion better than PETG?

Thanks!

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zemlin
Posts: 467
Joined: Thu Feb 04, 2016 9:32 pm
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana

Re: Black ePC - disappointing first print

Post by zemlin » Mon Jul 23, 2018 5:34 pm

I printed filament drives for my M2 dual using clear ePC and never had any issue with them. PETG is pretty sticky in sliding contact. It might not be a good choice for the filament drives.

Gwhite
Posts: 372
Joined: Tue Jul 11, 2017 3:38 pm

Re: Black ePC - disappointing first print

Post by Gwhite » Mon Jul 23, 2018 7:12 pm

Sounds like I need to buy a spool of clear ePC... It would be nice to be able to print it in black, but not if it's going to compromise the functionality.

Quite a few others have posted that they have printed spare drives in PETG, and I don't recall anyone mentioning stiction problems, but I can see where that could be an issue.

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