Materials · Demanding
Nylon (PA)
Tough, slippery and almost impossible to wear out. Ideal for parts that rub, if you keep it dry.
Handles impactsHandles heat
What changes most if you're coming from PLA:
What it's for
- Gears, hinges, bushings and parts that rub against others.
- Parts that flex a little and spring back, over and over.
What it's not for
- If you have no way to dry it and keep it sealed: it absorbs moisture very fast.
- Very exact sizes on large parts: it shrinks and warps.
If you're coming from another material
- Nozzle temperature220 °C 260 °C40 °C hotter. Nylon (PA) needs more heat to melt properly; printed like PLA, the layers don't fuse and the part breaks easily.
- Bed temperature65 °C 100 °C35 °C hotter. A hotter bed keeps the base warm while the rest prints, so it doesn't shrink or lift at the corners.
- Part fan60–80 % 40–85 %Less air. This material prefers to cool slowly: with lots of fan the layers bond poorly or the part cracks.
- Max volumetric speed12 mm³/s 12 mm³/sSimilar: it prints at a similar speed.
- Softens at45 °C 108 °CIt handles 63 °C more before softening: good for parts that will sit in the sun or near something hot.
What it's like to print
- A hot nozzle and bed, and ideally an enclosed printer.
- Dry it right before printing: when damp it comes out weak and bubbly.
Starting values
From Bambu Studio's generic profile for the A1: they're meant for any brand, so they're cautious. They're a starting point; the calibration tests get you to your filament's own values.
| Nozzle | 260 °C (240–280) |
|---|---|
| Bed, textured plate | 100 °C |
| Bed, smooth plate (PEI) | 100 °C |
| Bed, cool plate | not recommended |
| Fan | 40–85 % |
| Max flow | 12 mm³/s |
| Softens at | 108 °C |
| Hardened nozzle | not needed |
Moisture
It's one of the most moisture-hungry: you can tell after a few hours in the open. Always keep it in a dry box or print it straight from a dryer.
Drying time and temperature come from your filament's maker: every brand and blend is different, so we don't give numbers here. Look for them on the filament's label or the brand's data sheet.
The settings that change the most
- Nozzle temperatureFilament › FilamentHot, so the layers melt well into each other.
- ShrinkageFilament › FilamentIt shrinks as it cools: compensating helps the sizes fit.
Typical problems:The corners liftParts don't fit or holes come out smallStrings or cobwebs between parts
Calibrate first:1Temperature6Tolerances
The numbers come from Bambu Studio and the A1, but the material is the same on any FDM printer: on another machine or slicer, the values are similar and everything explained here still applies.
Other materials
PLAPLA SilkPETGPCTGTPUABSASAPC (polycarbonate)PP (polypropylene)HIPSFiber-filled (CF and GF)Soluble supports (PVA and BVOH)