S5 magnetic build plate

[3dprntz 4]

Is the sheet flexible, in that you can bend it and the print pops off? Or is it pretty rigid?

[rachael7 74]

7 minutes ago, 3dprntz said:

Is the sheet flexible, in that you can bend it and the print pops off? Or is it pretty rigid?

At 1/8” and above, it is very rigid, barely more flexible than the glass honestly. You could use a 1.5-2.0mm sheet, with an appropriate spacer, and get the flex effect, but not on full thickness sheets. 

[rachael7 74]

I wanted to amend my comments about the flexibility a bit. Using the 1/8" thick Garolite, you actually CAN flex it a little bit. Not a lot, but enough that parts with large bases will be released. I had a part I ran yesterday into today, larger PETG part with the build plate maybe a wee bit hot. Adhesion was great, not even a hint of part warping; but I couldn't get a good enough grip on it to get it loose. So I tried flexing the Garolite, and while the flex was barely enough to see, it was enough to release the edges of the part (could hear it pop) and made it possible to remove the part. Still no visible damage to the surface, just for the record.

[kayakbabe 12]

I just wanted to add to this topic. I bought the garolite from matterhackers and had problems leveling.I did stick  it to a glass build plate. But I want to cut out the edges so the glass plate I stuck it to will fit the clips in the s5. It seems thick and had some trouble with the automatic leveling as in it wouldn't always work. 

 

Also at the same time, I bought the WhamBam flexplate system. I'm loving it. They now have one for the S5 that has cutouts so the build plate  clips will fit without being stretched open. I am going to buy just the cutout flexplate for a spare so I can swap for printing faster. That said, I have the older flexplate without the cutouts and it works great. I did put their magnet onto a spare glass build plate and cutout the edges so the clips will fit normally. I also took my flexplate over to a friend who has a laser cutter and had the corners of my flexplate cut off. Didn't want to use metal snips as I didn't want to warp it. I'm loving the PEX with a little washable school glue stick (spread it evenly around with some rubbing alcohol to make a super thin layer) and printing nylon that way. They said their magnet is higher temp proof than most and it really is. Plus the nylon just pops off super easy. Plus I can swap the surfaces for printing anything and even put a glass built plate back in. 

 

If I get around to having the garolite trimmed off so the s5 bed clips will fit I may try it again.

 

I should add I'm not printing any nylon with additives like carbon. 

Edited September 2, 2022 by kayakbabe