# 3D Printing > 3D Printer Parts, Filament & Materials >  PETG Filament when resistance to cracking is necessary?

## Ward

Hello,
I find items made with PLA to be to rigid and inflexible for the things I want to make.

Is PETG a more flexible PLA material to use for items that need a small degree if flexibility and resistance to breaking due to flexing?

Or...

Would ABS be a better choice?

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## EagleSeven

> Hello,
> I find items made with PLA to be to rigid and inflexible for the things I want to make.
> 
> Is PETG a more flexible PLA material to use for items that need a small degree if flexibility and resistance to breaking due to flexing?
> 
> Or...
> 
> Would ABS be a better choice?


I'm going to have to Order some PETG and find out for Myself ??
I get Conflicting reports about how Flexible it Really is ! 
(Evidently it mainly depends on how thick or Thin the printed object Is ??)

(ABS is Definitely Not flexible but it is Durable)
It sounds like you need plastic that is More Durable than it is Flexible ??

I've found PLA to be Both Flexible and Durable tho !

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## curious aardvark

petg is a lot more flexible than pla. It's actually what 2 litre _(and presumably smaller ones too)_ soda bottles are made of. If that helps :-) 




> (Evidently it mainly depends on how thick or Thin the printed object Is ??)


yes.

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## EagleSeven

> petg is a lot more flexible than pla. It's actually what 2 litre _(and presumably smaller ones too)_ soda bottles are made of. If that helps :-) 
> 
> 
> yes.


Okay, I ordered a spool of eSUN PETG from eBay.
Will give it a TRY !  :Wink:

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## Marrrs

The PETG material I am using is flexible to the point where it just stays bent or the layers starts cracking apart. Print slowly with fans off to get better layer adhesion. This might of course make it difficult to print more detailed objects.

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## EagleSeven

> The PETG material I am using is flexible to the point where it just stays bent or the layers starts cracking apart.


Wow ! "cracking apart" , that Don't sound good !

Looks like the PETG I ordered has not even been shipped yet,
so may be a while before I can try it.  :Frown:

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## ssayer

I always print PETG at 80% of the speed that I print PLA, and almost exclusively without the extra cooling fan. My 3D printed quad is plenty strong, with just enough give, to not crack up in a moderate crash.

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## curious aardvark

> The PETG material I am using is flexible to the point where it just stays bent or the layers starts cracking apart. Print slowly with fans off to get better layer adhesion. This might of course make it difficult to print more detailed objects.


sounds like you need to print at a higher temp.

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## Marrrs

> sounds like you need to print at a higher temp.


I don't mean that the prints normally are prone to crack up, with the right design it is a durable material. But applying enough force something has to give of course. Raising the temperature leads to more oozing and strings, so you'll need to find the balance somewhere I guess.

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## EagleSeven

> I don't mean that the prints normally are prone to crack up, with the right design it is a durable material. But applying enough force something has to give of course. Raising the temperature leads to more oozing and strings, so you'll need to find the balance somewhere I guess.


Ahh, Thanks for the info  :Wink:

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## Ward

Just ordered two spools of eSUN PETG.   I found PLA to work pretty d a r n  good.  Only complaint was it was just a bit brittle.
If PETG is any better I'm going to be in print heaven.

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## EagleSeven

> Just ordered two spools of eSUN PETG.   I found PLA to work pretty d a r n  good.  Only complaint was it was just a bit brittle.
> If PETG is any better I'm going to be in print heaven.


I got the PETG filament today and I printed a camera-holder, for first try, and it did Great !  :Smile: 
 (nozzle-temp @ 200C & bed-temp @ 70C)
 I printed a camera-holder since it had a long bridge opening , about 36mm.
 I wanted to see how well it did across gaps
 and I was surprised how well it bridged the gap, with only one loose pass !  :Smile: 
 It seems very strong and flexible also.

 I was surprised at the rough feel of the PETG filament, compared to other filaments,
 almost like it has sand in it, but No problems out of nozzle !

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## Ward

> I got the PETG filament today and I printed a camera-holder, for first try, and it did Great ! 
>  (nozzle-temp @ 200C & bed-temp @ 70C)
>  I printed a camera-holder since it had a long bridge opening , about 36mm.
>  I wanted to see how well it did across gaps
>  and I was surprised how will it bridged the gap, with only one loose pass ! 
>  It seems very strong and flexible also.
> 
>  I was surprised at the rough feel of the PETG filament, compared to other filaments,
>  almost like it has sand in it, but No problems out of nozzle !


Thanks for this update.  Very helpful.

What printer was this on?

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## ssayer

My PETG prints smooth, but then I use a nozzle temp of 245C (and fwiw, a bed temp of 80C).

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## Ward

My printer should be somewhere in Texas about now......4 more days before it gets here....rainy soggy day....sure wish I had it today   :Mad:

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## EagleSeven

> Thanks for this update.  Very helpful.
> 
> What printer was this on?


Our printer is a CTC-Bizer, as pictured in my avatar pic

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## EagleSeven

I printed 2 more objects with the PETG @ 200C with no problems.
 ( that's actual temp, measured with calibrated digital thermometer)

The only minor problem I found was the Rough surface tends to make filament bind-up easier on the spool,
so have to watch it to make sure it does not.

I think I still like PLA filament the Best, for Most objects !

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## ssayer

For sure PLA is the easiest to print with. You'd never get an argument from me over that. It's always a matter of the, "what do you want to do with it?" thing, and almost all of the stuff that I print needs to take a little abuse. That's why I go with PETG most of the time.

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## LAFilament.com

Picking up some PETG tonight, really looking forward to playing around with it!

It'll be up on the site tonight for those interested.

Mo
www.LAFilament.com

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## jimc

petg tends to not bridge well but i can see why at 200deg you are not having problems with that. its usually printed at 240-250. 200 deg is going to give you less than great layer adhesion. i have printed somewhere in the neighborhood of 50-60kg of esun petg. some is smooth and some has texture. never in all the spools have i had an issue with either type. all comes off the spool just fine. the texture is there to theoretically reduce friction in feed tubes by lowering the contact. i dont think it really matters much with hard plastics. ninjaflex and other flexibles usually need a slightly textured surface to feed properly. i got a report from esun that petg is now outselling abs.

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## Ward

Yes, I would really like to hear your results if you do.

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## EagleSeven

> petg tends to not bridge well but i can see why at 200deg you are not having problems with that. its usually printed at 240-250. 200 deg is going to give you less than great layer adhesion. i have printed somewhere in the neighborhood of 50-60kg of esun petg. some is smooth and some has texture. never in all the spools have i had an issue with either type. all comes off the spool just fine. the texture is there to theoretically reduce friction in feed tubes by lowering the contact. i dont think it really matters much with hard plastics. ninjaflex and other flexibles usually need a slightly textured surface to feed properly. i got a report from esun that petg is now outselling abs.


Yes, I can see how the Rough surface of filament could Help it going thru extruder,
more friction at feed-gear should really help, also.

Seems to be Great layer-adhesion at 200C,
 I do have it going a little slower when doing outer-walls, with a small size nozzle (.3mm).  :Smile: 

Filament hung-up twice on this spool, so far, when it got trapped at outer edge of spool.

 I like PETG Much Better than ABS !
I like Any filament Better than ABS !  :Wink:  LOL

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## jimc

you prob know this already but when removing filament from your printer NEVER let the end of the filament go. if filament gets tangled, 99.9%  of the time its from the user letting the end of the filament go when removing the spool from the printer. i hear ya on the abs.

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## stronghero3d

PETG is much flexible , I print at 230 deg in nozzle, and 100 deg in heat bed.
No cracking at all

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## Sebastian Finke

I really should try PETG sometime.

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## Sebastian Finke

Perhaps this one...

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## ssayer

> Perhaps this one...


Here is what that one looks like. I just now printed the wheels, so you can see a few cat whiskers that need to be cleaned up on the wheels:

20151126_080326.jpg

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