hello, my name is poppy, and i'm a trainerwith makerbot learning. at makerbot, we have two main kinds of 3d printingfilament: abs and pla. our makerbot replicator 2x experimental3d printer is optimized for abs, whereas our makerbot replicator 5th generationprinters are all optimized for pla. let's take a deeper look at the differencesbetween the two and why you'd want to pick
3d printing abs or pla, one over the other. pla works for a wide variety of 3dprinting applications because of its ease of use. pla is not as sensitive totemperature changes, which means our makerbot replicators do not need a heatedbuild plate or a full enclosure.
parts printed with pla have great surfacequality and decent strength, but are not suitable for parts that will undergo alot of wear and tear, or be exposed to the elements for a long period of time. abs is a little bit more tricky to printwith because it's more sensitive to temperature changes in the environment.that's why the makerbot replicator 2x experimental 3d printer includes a fullenclosure and a heated build plate. abs need to cool slowly, otherwise if it cools too rapidly your abs print can crack along layer lines. also, abs prints are much moresusceptible to curling and warping during the printing process. in general,
abs can withstand more heat, pressure, and stress, better than pla, making it a much more suitable plastic for wear andtear applications. while neither pla or abs are flexibleplastics, abs will distort and bend before breaking, whereas pla is morebrittle and will break under stress. in a straight strength test though, placan handle more weight before breaking. if you were to print the same part in abs and pla, you're going to notice a few cosmetic differences. even if both filaments can be printed at a hundred micronlayer height, pla is a little bit more forgiving with complex features. forexample, you can 3d print a vertical overhang up to 68 degrees with pla,versus the 45 degrees you can print with
abs. mid-air connections or bridges will alsoprint more reliably with pla, especially at longer distances between anchor points.whether you're 3d printing in pla or abs, we recommend that you use a raft, and makesure your build plate is leveled. post-production for both materials isstraight forward. you first need to remove the raft and thesupport material. to note, because our makerbot replicator 2x offers dualextruders, you can print with dissolvable rafts and supports for easier post-production. dissolvable material is removed with a chemicalcalled them limonene. abs prints can also be chemically smoothed to hide layer lines. for a more refined look, acrylic paint
can be applied to both pla and abs prints. unwanted abs or pla prints should be discarded in the trash, or sent to anumber 7 recycling program. pla can break down in landfill. abs will not.
with both pla and abs prints, makesure you unload and bag the filament if it's gonna be a while before 3d printingagain. these filaments could absorb water from the air and swell in humidenvironments. on behalf of makerbot learning, thanks for watching.
