1 Topic by FelixP

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Topic: Is Nylon 6/6 the strongest printable plastic?

So I've wanted to know for a while, out of the commercial plastics available that can be printed with, which plastic is the strongest?

So far, what I know, is that Nylon > PC, and PC > ABS. From what I've read, Nylon 6/6 > Nylon 6.

Nylon 12 is more chemically resilient than Nylon 6/6, but I haven't read anything to say that it's stronger.
Nylon 11 is weaker than Nylon 6/6 as well.

Are there any stronger plastics (that aren't ridiculously expensive) that can be safely printed with?

2 Reply by elmoret

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Re: Is Nylon 6/6 the strongest printable plastic?

Define "stronger".

Tensile?
Impact?
Flexural?

I assume you know the difference between strength and stiffness.

There's also many flavors of Nylon 6/6.

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3 Reply by FelixP (edited by FelixP 2015-03-06 02:09:05)

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Re: Is Nylon 6/6 the strongest printable plastic?

I do know the difference between stiffness and strength.

Tensile strength is the primary measurement in this case.

I know there are additives that can affect the layer adhesion and other properties, but for simplicity's sake I'm talking generally across the board of different plastics.

Also compared to ABS, (which is a 3 plastic blend, and can lead to a bajillion different flavors) Nylon 6/6 is one base compound, so there's less of a spectrum of tensile strength.

I know from Taulman Nylon that they do not include UV deterrent because it decreases the layer adhesion. The only other chemical (ignoring glass fiber because gf filled fiber in a 3d printer is a no-no) that is often added to Nylon 6/6 is a fire retardant. I couldn't say if it would make the tensile strength worse, but it is very unlikely it would make the tensile strength greater than straight Nylon 6/6.

4 Reply by elmoret

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Re: Is Nylon 6/6 the strongest printable plastic?

There's still a fair range when it comes to strength of Nylon 6/6, for tensile, impact and flexural. Keep in mind when I asked, you hadn't clarified that you were interested in any one strength over others. There additives available for all three, which leads me to my next point:

You're mistaken about filled polymers being a no-no in 3D printing. Carbon fiber filled PLA is becoming very popular, for instance. No problems printing it, aside from nozzle wear which can be alleviated by using Stainless nozzles.

Moving on to your point: Taulman's Nylon 618 is Nylon 6/6. It has a rated tensile stress of 4575psi when printed. For comparison, Tritan has a rated tensile stress of 6600psi when printed. Roughly 40% better, and that's just off the top of my head. Heck, even Nylon 6/9 (Taulman 645) is higher strength than Nylon 618, at 5188psi tensile. Did you evaluate Taulman's offerings before this post?

As an aside, and please don't take this the wrong way: It may not be your intention but it sometimes seems as though you believe something works a certain way when it actually does not. It might solicit more discussion if things were posed as questions instead of statements, unless you know the statements to be true 100%. For example, unfilled Nylon 6 and Polycarbonate actually have the roughly the same tensile strength: (again, there are many variants of both polymers)

http://www.matweb.com/reference/tensilestrength.aspx

Lets take a step back: What is your application?

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5 Reply by FelixP (edited by FelixP 2015-03-06 05:33:02)

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Re: Is Nylon 6/6 the strongest printable plastic?

elmoret wrote:

As an aside, and please don't take this the wrong way: It may not be your intention but it sometimes seems as though you believe something works a certain way when it actually does not.

That is completely possible, and probably true. I have 0% education or professional experience in material science, 3d printing, chemistry, or engineering.

As for the application:
I want to make complex tools, like sublime's lathe. Things that use steel bars and plates for most of the strength, and printed parts for transferring energy through gears, and connecting parts that create the shape of the tool.

I did not make this explicitly clear, so I will now: I didn't bring up any taulman products, because I am interested in raw plastics that could be made into filament with a filastruder. I've certainly looked at what they can do, but I've been put off by the high prices for the materials.

I have enough amateur experience to say that if I want to make something and test it, parts will either need to be reprinted, redesigned, or replaced. Even on the cheaper side, using Taulman 618 at $22 /lb is painful to look at in comparison to a 10 lb bag of Nylon 6/6 from Ebay for $4 / lb.

6 Reply by 3dtech (edited by 3dtech 2017-03-16 12:21:05)

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Re: Is Nylon 6/6 the strongest printable plastic?

Nylon has a very low friction coefficient.

This means Nylon is ideal for moving parts. If you need a bushing for a lower RPM shaft where a bearing would be too small or unnecessary, Nylon would be the perfect material. Or those white gears in RC car gearboxes? They’re Nylon, and they don’t need lubrication because of the low friction coefficient. 3d printing delhi ncr
It also has incredible tensile strength.

Have you ever tried to break a cable tie, using your hands? It likely didn’t work out too well. They’re usually made from Nylon – for good reason. Nylon rope is also very common, being exceptionally strong.

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