26 Reply by OSPrinting

  • OSPrinting
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Re: Filabot vs. Filastruder

On the topic of running recycled plastic, we have made filament using 10% and 20% regrind ABS. We have about 200 pounds of the stuff so we just started experimenting with it. The 10% printed just fine and there were no issues. My phone case is made with this stuff and it is still going strong. I have not printed with the 20% yet.

There are a few issues with recycled filament.
1. Contaminates as mentioned before. This depends on your source or how clean the plastic is.
2. The type of ABS. This can be an issue because most Filastruders are running MG94 ABS plastic. This is a high melt flow(MFI) plastic that allows for fast print speeds. So your recycled plastic could have a higher MFI or lower. This can create issue when printing. This is why I think the % of natural to regrind has to stay small.
3. Plastic has a heat memory and degrades over time. The more heat cycles done on a plastic, the shorter the polymer chains get. In extrusion this is important because you are pulling the plastic as it comes out. Unlike injection molding where the plastic can expand into a cavity. I would expect the more regrind you use, the more fragile the filament will get. PLA degrades naturally and heat cycles will only speed up this process.

I know people want to do 100% recycled but at this point I feel anything is a step in the right direction.

Rob

27 Reply by michael.t.albers (edited by michael.t.albers 2013-08-06 21:04:36)

  • michael.t.albers
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Re: Filabot vs. Filastruder

elmoret wrote:

They can. The Filastruder wouldn't mind a bit. The problem is the introduction of dirt and dust that could clog your printer nozzle. Really, a filament extruder needs melt filtering to do recycling well. I have one in alpha testing smile

Sounds exciting.  Looking forward to seeing the results when you post them.

Side note: let me know when you do the kickstarter!  I missed the filastruder by a month and still looking to get one.

28 Reply by elmoret

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Re: Filabot vs. Filastruder

michael.t.albers wrote:

Side note: let me know when you do the kickstarter!  I missed the filastruder by a month and still looking to get one.

No more Kickstarters - just straight orders from here on out. Are you on the wait list? If not, shoot an email to [email protected].

Filastruder - the robust, inexpensive filament extruder
E3Dv6 All Metal Hotend - the premier 3D printing hotend

29 Reply by DePartedPrinter

  • DePartedPrinter
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  • Registered: 2012-08-14
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Re: Filabot vs. Filastruder

OSPrinting wrote:

On the topic of running recycled plastic, we have made filament using 10% and 20% regrind ABS. We have about 200 pounds of the stuff so we just started experimenting with it. The 10% printed just fine and there were no issues. My phone case is made with this stuff and it is still going strong. I have not printed with the 20% yet.

There are a few issues with recycled filament.
1. Contaminates as mentioned before. This depends on your source or how clean the plastic is.
2. The type of ABS. This can be an issue because most Filastruders are running MG94 ABS plastic. This is a high melt flow(MFI) plastic that allows for fast print speeds. So your recycled plastic could have a higher MFI or lower. This can create issue when printing. This is why I think the % of natural to regrind has to stay small.
3. Plastic has a heat memory and degrades over time. The more heat cycles done on a plastic, the shorter the polymer chains get. In extrusion this is important because you are pulling the plastic as it comes out. Unlike injection molding where the plastic can expand into a cavity. I would expect the more regrind you use, the more fragile the filament will get. PLA degrades naturally and heat cycles will only speed up this process.

I know people want to do 100% recycled but at this point I feel anything is a step in the right direction.

Rob

Did you guys order the recycled plastic or make it yourselves?

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