BambuLab PA6-CF vs PA6-GF, strongest nylon filaments I tested so far

[@nufnuf816]

Great review! We print from PA at work - various holders that need to survive the 125 C heat chamber test of our products. It is an amazing material. Two remarks from my experience: PA6 and PA12 (and i think also PA11 exists) are both nylons, but mechanical properties are noticeably different. And second remark is actually an advice - if You dont want to spend money for special PA print sheet for You printer - either use a lot of stick glue, or print a layer of 0.2mm PETG and then print the PA part on this. It really works!

[@DaveEtchells]

Great tip about using PETG as a well-controlled adhesion and release layer, thanks!

[@a2dskins]

Nano adhesive on Garolite works really well for me.

[@notyouraveragegoldenpotato]

I print a handful of different nylons, I just use regular White school glue (pva glue) blended with 50% water. Heat my bed and then paint or wipe a layer on with a sponge. Wait a minute to dry- repeat. I do this a couple times from a bare plate- or just 1 quick wipe in between new prints. It works phenominal. Don't be afraid to get too much.

[@paulmyfinger]

So can PETG be used as an interface layer for PA6 GF?

[@indeck]

I really like your test videos. Wish more people knew about your channel. Keep up the great work. Thanks.

[@romainmuller-rs5yi]

That's really interesting, with this PA6-CF filament, the biggest disadvantage of nylon is gone ! Once I have a printer capable of printing nylon, I will give this one a try. Amazing video as Always Igor!

[@Ruzgfpegk]

Looks like every time I want to find real useful info on a filament, I always end up back to your channel with everything I need…

[@DonnyDonnMendoza]

Great video; both of these filaments are amazing!

[@alycapo3391]

Commenting to push the videos out there!

[@hotfix7387]

Your video makes me want to run out and buy the PA6-CF, but I realistically don't have any practical use for it currently. I know I will be looking for models to print with that filament from now on though.😁 Thank you for your awesome videos and your dedication to the facts and testing as an engineer.

[@MyTechFun]

For me it's biggest advantage is the temperature resistancy.

[@drkzilla]

The temperature ability is really impressive🎉

[@biggboysouth]

Thank you for these tests.

[@toasty4000000]

Woah, your testing is very thorough! Thanks for sharing!

[@EmptyPocketProductions]

Koszonjuk arany barat! Great information. Thanks for your hard work and efforts!

[@azamwaugh]

Great video!

[@riba2233]

wow these look awesome, thanks! can't wait for ppa and pps :)

[@crashingsux]

I really enjoyed this video. I've been liking the whole series but seeing you start to get into some higher temp filaments is exciting. If you're taking suggestions I would love to see a few more tested in the future. 1. 3dxTech EZPC-CF. I love this filament and it's my goto high temp filament, but it is expensive. 2. West3d Ambrosia PET-CF, (not PETG-CF). Supposedly a much more affordable competitor to EZPC-CF but it needs annealing. 3. TreePD PC-PBT-GF. I keep seeing europeans who swear by this stuff but it currently isn't available in the us so I can't test it myself. I have heard properties are better than EZPC-CF. If you do test any of these seriously consider drying them first. They all need a few hours at 90C to dry and I don't think many people using filaments of this grade and expense are just printing them like pla without drying them first.

[@ScottStoneUnforgivenII]

Thank you very much! 👍

[@gppl77]

This is very interesting indeed! Especially the annealing part. It's well known that annealing improves creep of nylon prints, but suggested anneal settings vary wildly - in this video you use 100C for 1.5hr, someone on reddit recommends 80C for 8hr, Stefan from CNC Kitchen mentions 160C for 2hr (I've used this personally, there's practically no deformation in the prints), and there's also Polymaker PA6-CF20 filament for which Polymaker officially strongly recommends 100C for 10hr (same as for their PA12-CF10) - at the very bottom on the product page. The common understanding is that semi-crystalline structure of the material rearranges somehow during annealing that results in the stronger prints. The open question (at least I haven't found an answer supported by experiments/research) how long does it take for material to rearrange itself fully. Also there are number of related question - the transformation might be slow and 2hr might not be enough to reach max benefit, but how long it enough? Would higher temp speedup the transformation or not so much - e.g. would 160C for 5hr be enough to reach max strength? With your extensive testing setup it would be possible to get proper answers and it'll be really useful for the community. I have at hand a PA12-CF15 filament, so I can contribute test prints (e.g. sets of prints as is, annealed at 100C for 10hr, at 160C for 5hr and 2hr, 80C for 8hr - to see the variations), if you'd like to proceed with experiments:)

[@MyTechFun]

Good suggestion to test this. But the problem is that it variates a lot, depend of the object. When they tell 8h for example, they must predict that even a big object with infill will be heated to this temp (head sculp). My test objects are thin and solid inside. If 1.5h is not enough, I don't even want to do the annealing. So much energy is needed for it.

[@wesdiezy]

Great work. Hope you can figure out how to print PPACF and review it as well.

[@802Garage]

Wow that temperature resistance is great! Awesome shear strength too. Very disappointing layer adhesion on the GF version is a bummer. Will have to design parts accordingly.

[@hanslain9729]

Good stuff

[@vlac1558]

Regarding the layer adhesion values. A lot is depending on the temperature, layer width, chamber temperature. See CNC kitchen video about heated chambers. I made no direct testing, but the PACF parts I have tested printed at 65C chamber temp fail quite nice, fracture does not really follow layer lines. Egyébként szép munka, köszönjük!:)

[@nucleochemist]

Been very happy with PA6-GF for moderate temperature laboratory applications. But polycarbonate is much easier and faster to print for some uses. I had bad experiences with PA6-CF which is far more brittle than GF version, and it was breaking in the PTFE tube going to print head. GF can be used in AMS but CF can't, so thats another plus.

[@helixxharpell]

I'm looking at PC-GF for some special shims that will remain under compression indefinitely. Just curious if you would know how it's compression properties are? My shims will be: .046" .062" & .120". Surface area = to 2.5"x5" rectangle with 1/2" slot around 3" long.

[@nucleochemist]

@@helixxharpell Ive been using PC without GF/CF at work as moving parts under changing strain/stress and so far have not seen any deformation. I'm doing it at elevated temp too, around 80-90 degC. Be sure to anneal the printed parts after printing: bambu suggests 85 - 100 degC for 6-12 h for their PC product. If PC does not work I'd next try nylon/PA.

[@JamesEggleston]

Good videos thank you. Carbon fibre is conductive, so if you wanted to make some sort of electrical junction box GF might be a choice where CF would not be.

[@mtrezaie]

I’m looking forward to when you can objectively test safety of these material for diy purposes, although I agree with your assessment at the end of the video.

[@torxfighter]

Have you tried contacting CR3D for filaments to test?. I'm curious about their PC-ABS. They also have PP filament with 20% glassfiber which sounds interesting

[@sebarsS9]

Wow, what fascinating materials! Can we conclude that these are among the toughest (or THE toughest?) filaments while maintaining printing conditions that many consumers can handle?

[@naminiyo1]

Stiffest, not toughest :)

[@warmesuppe]

Unfortunately PA tends to creep badly under load. Which is a big bummer for me

[@donr62]

@@warmesuppeand when wet the part dimensions end up all over the place.

[@outlier4ever]

good job, ty.

[@j.b.3171]

Nice Job! Would be interesting to boil the materials in water for the same time and see if it also affects the strength without loosing moisture. Maybe one at full power and one at middle heated cooking plate.

[@JohanDegraeveAanscharius]

I see you print quite fast? I print at 60 mm/s max. For drying: I dry at 0.1 bara (90% vacuum) and 50°C since water evaporates at 45° at thet pressure. The problem we have is bounded water, which is inside the filament. The pressure pushes the water out under the form of gas and then the pressure in the container rises, engaging the vacuum pump. the filament slides through a tpu guide, so the vacuum stays constant, and the RH is < 1%. The annealing is less needed.

[@oldman1944]

Be careful with gloves on a rotating tool - if the glove gets caught it can cause major injury. You can get gloves with breakaway finger sections for this. Thanks again for your great work.

[@SianaGearz]

From what i heard, in manufacturing, batches of PA parts are bagged with an appropriate amount of water and allowed to absorb for 24-48h in this very moist atmosphere, so they reach 4% moisture absorption rapidly. Then over the years in use some moisture can be lost depending on circumstances, but overall as you might guess it's fairly good at holding onto moisture. I wonder how much moisture they gain when you condition PA naturally. The moisture changes the dimensions of the items, making them larger, but it also serves as a plasticiser which gives PA its high amount of endurance. I don't know how fibre filled materials behave in difference to pure ones.

[@hayden199516]

Great video as always! Will you be testing the Polymaker PET-CF17? It appears that once the Nylon part is “wet” after printing that the PET becomes stronger, just less heat resistant. I’d be interested in hearing your opinion.

[@jcugnoni]

Great video. Sure fibers can be an issue for health, and 3d printing also releases micro plastics... So just don't print in a living space, vent the room, and when sanding or drilling or even breaking supports use a mask and gloves. As you say, it is the same as MDF or other materials containing fine particles. When embedded in resin it is not such an issue. And if you print CF parts that need to be touched extensively, a small coat of epoxy or thick acrylic coat will do the job.

[@filippobarbacane1446]

Dear, What is your advice for these two materials for automotive use? especially in the field of motorcycle parts, instrument brackets for example, headlight brackets and various brackets, subject to sun, water and vibration? Thanks

[@MyTechFun]

PPA-CF or just go with ASA. PET-CF is also a material to take in account.

[@rcrdps8144]

Yes, CNC metal shavings are the worst!!!! :D Bout the only time I wear gloves too. I print GF when I want something other than black. But CF Nylon is my current daily driver. Currently PA-HT, but now I realize my error in only looking at the HDT. Granted, some of my applications definitely benefit from the HDT.

[@GAMERGEBITER]

Can you test PAHT-CF?

[@Khoomn]

Great video. One question is why not print at its highest temp for the best results?

[@naminiyo1]

higher temps do not translate to better results, it's a bit more complex than that

[@Khoomn]

@@naminiyo1 I would say atleast for layer adhesion, it is better and would give better results in general. not in all tests but in most.

[@RaRa-xg7le]

When you place 4 split screens are you showing 1 annealed and 1 unannealed test subject for each material? Or are both test subjects showing two annealed for each material?

[@RaRa-xg7le]

I see from the summary chart the answer to my question....I asked before thinking :)

[@TwieThilo]

Can you please try the bed adhesion of the PPA-CF at only 100°C for all the P1S owners?

[@MyTechFun]

P1S bed max is 100°C? Oh, I didn't know about that.

[@TwieThilo]

@@MyTechFun Yes, sadly its limited (on a stock device). Bambulab suggests 100-120° bed temp. with glue for their PPA-CF. I guess there are many P1S owners curious if the bed adhesion would actually be sufficient at 100°C. Especially since the filament is a bit expensive to just try it yourself.

[@rcrdps8144]

@@TwieThilo My experience is that if you're really concerned about warping, take a trick from the resin printers, and print it at a 45 degree angle on supports. On my old SV01( Ender clone), supports and lots of retracts were risky. But on these BambuLabs printers, you can go crazy on supports.

[@The_Chillguy7]

cool!

[@hunt0583]

Could you test out PHA filament next? There is a company based out of California called Beyond plastic that is making filament. I just bought one of their rigid and one of their flexible filament types. I know that there is more companies making PHA.

[@alexsiegel5529]

Nylon PA-6 seems to be the best material to jump to a professional quality. the CF just adds. It can resist all kinds of chemicals. Is there anything the PLA is better for? maybe PLA is more food safe

[@warmesuppe]

PAHT Cf would be interesting

[@Krypton3684]

Interesting, these filaments are very different than normal PA6-CF. The low creeping is nice, but the low impact strength (not as written in the data sheet) in comparision e.g. to Polymaker PA6-CF is really disappointing.

[@crashingsux]

Bambu seems to have a habit of selling "engineering filaments" with properties quite a bit lower than you expect based on the name as they seem to blend them for easy printing on their printers, which I understand, but it means that a Bambu PA6-CF might be quite a bit different than a 3dxTech PA6-CF

[@MumrikDK]

Well, there goes the claim that the additions mainly help with printability.

[@ZoroSeerus]

Al-G-Rhythm

[@orthotron]

I think part of the reason you don't get many views is because of your thumbnails and title. For example, two benchies are not going to attract many viewers. For this video, in the thumbnail you could show a closeup of your scale during shear test and write next to it "MAXED OUT". And for the title you could have "BambuLab PA6 CF and GF | STRONGEST filaments tested so far?" Anything to make the viewer curious. I know you try to keep your titles informative but the reality is you need to have some clickbait

[@riba2233]

Well said 👍

[@genin69]

just so expensive for these filaments

[@yuvaltal6417]

Very good as always, but one thing bothers me is that you printed the CF 10c hotter than the GF which also explains the over extrusion and the poor layer adhesion of the GF. (Also the flow rate was higher giving the material less time to heat)

[@MyTechFun]

With new filaments, I always want to try things, which will most of users do. Minimal drying (if any), probably no annealing (but here I did for my curiosity) and printing with default settings in bambu studio.

[@fscherz]

I like your tests a lot but miss only that you add the standard filament without GF or CF in the test. It would be interesting how the standard PA6 (or PETG, PLA. ASA, ....) compares to the GF and CF variants as well because it would help to choose the right filament.

[@riba2233]

Bambu doesn't make standard PA, and he did include it in polymaker PA video.

[@harkrits.nagpal6505]

Awesome! I had bought 0.5kg PA6 CF with my A1, was feeling some regret as I heard PETG-CF was better. None of that now!

[@riba2233]

How is petg-cf better? You mean pet-cf?

[@harkrits.nagpal6505]

@@riba2233 Dunno, Got the impression from Latest Every Filament Review from Zack Freedman

[@harkrits.nagpal6505]

It didn't go into much details, but Zack Freedman had Reviewed the Bambu Carbon Filaments( in a non technical manner ofc) in the video where he reviews spam products. I guess not on Technical superiority.

[@machinaexmente2729]

Maaan how many years have you been doing this? You still say "share stress" and "nail-on". Kurwa, C'mon.

[@MyTechFun]

Oh, OK. I just checked with Google Translate, let's see if I can pronounce it correctly in my next video (Siraya PET-CF)

[@RaRa-xg7le]

PA6-cf is stronger is my guess

[@KToMmi]

Wtf? The whole point of these video is to provide objective data. There's no room for guesses here.

[@EM-yu2lp]

HPP4-25%GF is better than PA6-GF/CF

[@riba2233]

not even close

[@yeeto1]

You should compare pa6-gf/cf to PET-cf

[@MyTechFun]

Soon. Today PPA-CF. In few days PET-CF

[@yeeto1]

@@MyTechFun very cool. look forward to see your findings