3D Printing Forum

Have many used this and like it?

My reason for asking is the BB-8 build. I am concerned about heat, be it from the internal motors to the sun shining on the plastic when outside.

I know a few builders just used higher infill to combat warping from heat with PLA. And others went with ABS, but I really don't like stinky filaments

Carbon Fiber is out since it would block radio signals

Even with high infill PLA will become softer in the sun and wrap, so I would not consider it for your BB-8.

ABS will definitely do (smell is not as bad as people say )

ColorFabb XT will do as well (Doesn't need to be CF )

To answer the question, I have printed a few spools of nGen and it prints very easily, mostly like PLA. I initially used it because they had colors not available in PLA...
But I have no experience with its resistance to temperature. It is definitely better than PLA, but I am still waiting for the sunny days to leave a piece in the car and see what happens

Do you like XT? I know some had trouble with it

I really like XT, it prints very easy and has ABS properties, but not the layer splitting during printing.
and is way more easy to sand then PLA

Good question...

It is a bit more difficult to print. You need to have the 'right' flow (slower is not better) to avoid layer adhesion problem.

I am not a big fan, I avoid it when I can, but I did some prints recently which came out very nice and strong, so I might revise my judgement after all.

I'll order a roll of nGen and see how it goes since it strikes me as "friendlier" based on your experience

Don't dare try white yet....went with Silver Metallic

In order of how easy they are to print
PLA -> nGen -> XT - > HT

nGen is supposed to be more temperature resistant than XT tough (85C vs 75C glass temperature).

I ve tested both XT and nGen, and nGen seems to have the edge a nicer finish better layer adhesion.

PETG. Does not smell, will not block radio waves, easy to print and crazy strong compared to ABS or PLA.

Good to know

So then I am going to be back to my original problem...use the (crappy) vinyl fan shroud included with the UMO or fabricate something

Another thought....this morning was slow at work so I thought I would search for some nGen reviews and see what others thought.
What's weird is some of the reviews, one from Adafruit, showed a lot of troubles with bridging and getting some really under extruded type results with white (i always have trouble with any white filament!) Another site showed issue with warping and shrinking.

But...I also found some that showed no issues at all. Wonder why it is so hit or miss? The Adafruit guys use Ultimakers and generally get amazing results.

My daughter's gazometer is mostly done in nGen and she had zero issues with warping and shrinking.

Bridging went beyond expectations! (At 1:00 and 2:30 in the video there are nice bridges)

The difficult part was stringing, I probably need to look more at the retraction settings. I think the 'coasting' in the new Cura could help here.

Amedee, what Cura settings are you using for nGen?

Once I get the upgrade shroud finished, I am looking forward to try it out next!

If it's any help I was printing at 235'C, 75'C bed temperature, and 40-50mm/s