Has anyone tried out ColorFabb nGen filament?

[Labern 774]

If you require some items to be more heat resistant then get nGen. PLA is still the most easy to print but nGen does have a very nice finish.

[jeroenm 5]

Just received my first roll of nGen black today, and tried the test object of altiarjan. right before the second bridge the print came loose with bed temp of 80 degree. No glue or kapton. What is your best method for getting good adhesion with nGen ?

[Labern 774]

Needs glue and I normally set the bed to 85 or 90Deg

[jeroenm 5]

Ah tried also with kapton tape which also work good. There is quiet some shrinkage with nGen compared to PLA

[jeroenm 5]

Tried again with Ultiarjans test code for nGen, the result is far from the results of arjan.

Especially the bridging part, adhesion with kapton was great. There ar also some hairs on the top part.

I use UM2 with original nozzle with the following add-ons:

Laberns fan shroud

UltiArjan Ultimaker2 rail system (U2RS)

UltiArjan Compact Low Friction Spool Holder

UltiArjan feeder for "Ultimaker 2 Rail System"

Edited February 25, 2016 by Guest

[Richardh1 0]

Hi

does any one have a simplify3d Config file they could export / send me

Just got some Ngen looking for a few nice set up tips

Richard

[Dim3nsioneer 557]

In order to compare the results of @jeroenm with a print on an UM2 with standard fan shroud and Olsson Block:

Edited February 25, 2016 by Guest

[jeroenm 5]

In order to compare the results of @jeroenm with a print on an UM2 with standard fan shroud and Olsson Block:

 

That is much better. I think mine is under extruding.

[ultiarjan 1,223]

 

@jeroenm think you should start by cleaning your nozzle... do atomic pulls...

[jeroenm 5]

@jeroenm think you should start by cleaning your nozzle... do atomic pulls...

 

Already did that multiple times before changing to nGen, I think my nozzle is "broken" I want to upgrade to oslen block but want to wait for the upgrade kit UM2+. Will try to clean it again.

Edited February 25, 2016 by Guest

[ultiarjan 1,223]

When you start a print do you get a nice flow while priming? Is it building a nice even tower in the front left corner?

[jeroenm 5]

When you start a print do you get a nice flow while priming? Is it building a nice even tower in the front left corner?

 

Yes, the first parts sticks to the nozzle but i alway pull it down with a tweezer. Than it makes a smalle round tower.

[Labern 774]

It looks 2 hot

[ultiarjan 1,223]

I think your nozzle is not clean enough when the first part curles up and you need to help it with a tweezer.... I would do a few more atomics. ...

[LePaul 321]

I love the bridging, I have been doing some round parts for a frame structure and I didn't get the "hairy" effect PLA has given me. However, from what I see on the datasheet, this stuff isn't nearly as strong as Colorfabb's PLA/PHA material (if I read it right?)

[IRobertI 520]

However, from what I see on the datasheet, this stuff isn't nearly as strong as Colorfabb's PLA/PHA material (if I read it right?)

I did a very basic test on strength where I printed out "popsicle sticks" at different temperatures and the difference in strength when I snapped them in half was huge. A difference of just 5C made a big difference in how it acted. It went from spongey underextrusion, to pretty strong, to strong, to strong but explodes when it breaks etc. So, long story short, experiment with temperatures.

But yeah, I also seem to remember seeing in the sheets that it was weaker than PLA. It's too bad that PLA has such a bad rap out there when it comes to strength.

[Labern 774]

PLA is pretty great. It's strong and easy to print with really good layer adhesion even at low temps. It's only problem is the low glass transition temp.

I agree that strength test should include different print temps. Layer height and line width would also be good to see how much it effects strength.

[LePaul 321]

For this current project (BB-8), strength is needed so upping the infill is one way to get there.

It's been fun to try out nGen and I found printing it without fans gave a good result. But less strength isn't what I need, although something that is strong and can endure sunlight temps would be nice.

There's a lot of "prints as easy as PLA but stronger" marketing out there. I guess I need to experiment some more!

[jeroenm 5]

I now have got olsonblock with new nozzle, here are the results of overhang test with nGen. It seems that the top part (215 degree) gives the best result. I used 30% fan.

Edited August 4, 2016 by Guest

[yellowshark 153]

Hi, I did my first nGen prints today and I must say that so far I have been very pleased

• Easy to work with

• Mostly good results from my standard PLA setting’s apart from changing the temps.

• Flat surface finish is looking attractive

• Dimensional accuracy poor

• Strange artefacts appearing

Easy to work with

Unlike one of the posts above  I found that the filament fed through the Bowden tube very easily, better than PLA. It felt slippery and very smooth, not the slightest hint of resistance.

The first layer stuck to the bed well; a pleasant surprise unlike my experience with nylon some time ago which just refused to stick to the bed.

Results & settings

Here is my first print, a simple cube with a good 1st layer surface.

I chose my settings after reading the above posts and the Colorfabb website

Bed: 75

Extruder: 230

Fan: 50%

Flow: 99% (leftover from PLA)

Layer height .300 layer 1 then .200

Glass bed and hairspray.

It was printed in a fully enclosed printer.

[media=20017][/media]

Using the same settings I then printed Le Fabshop’s Origami lampshade at 50% scale. It was going very nicely for 1.5 hours or so but then detached from the bed. I was not there so do not know why. But the base is very thin and it was stupid not to use a brim; which I will do and retry.

.

[media=19994][/media]

Again the finish looks good. Although in the next pic you can see printing artefacts. That is a very tight bend there, no doubt causing it. It also has similar artefacts on the inside, see 2nd pic. Not sure why right now, needs some thought and investigation, maybe retraction?

Also on this print the layer adhesion is poor. If I compress it into an oval I can hear the layers cracking. All I would say at this stage is that the walls are thin and I reduced the model by 50%.

I then printed this fan shroud below. For this I changed the temp to 235 to try and improve layer adhesion, it is an entirely different geometry, but nonetheless. I also changed fan from 50 to 40. Not really sure why, I think I wondered if the fan was cooling it too quickly affecting layer adhesion.

[media=19997][/media]

Again for a 1st time a I am pleased with the result and the shroud will be fitted later today. There is some stringing, which the normal fix is to reduce the print temp but that is not really ideal here. I have used my PLA retraction settings which I think are default Cura settings so I think I will play around with them and see if  can fix it. I just do not get stringing with PLA.

Note the brim this time 8)

And again I have these strange artefacts that appeared on the lamp cover.

[media=20000][/media]

Anyone have any idea as to what might be causing this?

[LePaul 321]

A couple of us have had a conversation about printing with nGen. You can read along and see that we all had good results with the fan off. The stringing is a bit tough to get rid of. I can't tell what kind of printer you have. You could also do a support ticket to Colorfabb. They have been really helpful at giving suggestions on setting changes to get the best result.

[neotko 1,417]

Yea I don't like ngen too, got a sample from colorfab, did some tests, and give up.

But the thing I hate of that filament it's that you can't use sandpaper to sand it, a metal file almost works, and the only way to properly clean the errors it's using an exacto (it cuts it like butter). Ofc I did use the fancap I print with it and so far it's working, but I didn't like the prints I got. Anyway I only tested a small sample, I suppose it's a matter of going deep with the settings and playing around... Dunno, I don't want that material, I prefer PLA-Tec that his only downside it's that needs hairspray to stay on the bed & it's actually eco-friendly + fda approved + can be clean on the dishwasher + you can sand it really fast + it doesn't need primer to paint fast with a light sanding all around.

Edited September 7, 2016 by Guest

[yellowshark 153]

Lol, I love nGen, not the opposite! I needed a higher melt temp. for a part and this kicks ABS into touch in my opinion, so easy to use and the finish is great. I have just done a piece with curved overhangs without support and the overhangs have come out exceptionally well - I will do again with PLA and post results if they are different.

Hmn, well I have just smoothed an edge on an overhang surface and yes it was tougher than PLA but I still did it. I was using a jeweller's file which is a lot more expensive than "ordinary" files, perhaps that is why it was not a problem.

I am now reprinting the fan shroud with changes to retraction settings and travel speed in an attempt to get rid of those strange artefacts. I will fit one of them and use the other as a sample to demonstrate how good the surface can be on a 3D print.

I did another test today with the printer fully open and I could not tell the difference between the two prints, so clearly the cabinet not an issue like it is with ABS.

[yellowshark 153]

A couple of us have had a conversation about printing with nGen.  You can read along and see that we all had good results with the fan off.  The stringing is a bit tough to get rid of.  I can't tell what kind of printer you have.   You could also do a support ticket to Colorfabb.  They have been really helpful at giving suggestions on setting changes to get the best result.

 

Thanks for that, some interesting and mixed(!) comments. I will try with the fans off later tonight and see what happens! And yes if m retraction changes and fans off do not get rid of my artefacts I will drop a line to Colorfabb

[Labern 774]

I love nGen and never had any stringing issues. I use normal settings but temp about 10deg hotter then pla and no fans.

Love the print finish, looks so much nicer then pla and prints really well with small nozzles.