Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene (ABS) is one of the most popular plastics. It became available in the 1940s and was instantly marketed as an alternative to Bakelite. But it wasn’t until the 1950‘s it became the plastic material worldwide. Its variability of copolymers and ease of processing has led to this plastic becoming the most popular of the engineering polymers.
ABS Filament: What are the Benefits?
As a thermoplastic polymer, it can melt and cool without altering its chemical properties. That makes it an interesting 3D printer filament. There are some companies like Zortrax, which have dedicated 3D printers for the material. Great mechanical properties.
ABS Filament: What are the Drawbacks?
As good as that sounds, there are some drawbacks when 3D printing with ABS filament. Temperature issues Common problems Sunlight. Smelly printing We have put together a list of 3 Easy steps you can follow to help you print ABS...
A) Adhesion
Good adhesion is a very important part of 3D Printing, it is no different when printing with ABS. The best way to keep your print on the bed and to stop it from curling is to firstly print on glass and to use ABS Juice. ABS juice is a mixture of ABS Pellets and acetone. Take 500ml of acetone and add 75g of ABS pellets, then shake it and let it sit for 3-4 days. Once the solution is milky then you can use that as your adhesive. Squirt a little bit of the ABS juice on your cold printer's bed and even it out lightly with a tissue and you should be good to go.
B) Basic Settings
Nozzle Temp: 240 Bed Temp: 110 Cooling part fan: Off ABS juice: Applied on cold glass Additions: Can use a brim for extra adhesion for ABS.
C) Create an Enclosure
If your printer doesn't already come enclosed, you will need to create an encloser for it. This is because when ABS is printing it needs to have a constant temperate and fluctuations may cause the print to warp or curl.