AmazonBasic ABS Filament in the Prusa i3 Mk3S+ Printer

Special Interest Groups 3D Printing
#1

I am making a GPS mount and cellphone mount for my Subaru Forester. Kind of fun. Designed in Fusion 360 for the 3D printable parts, sheet metal work with some brass for the majority of it. In reading some auto and trailbike type GPS mounts in Thingiverse they recommended ABS filament as PLA filament evidently sags after heat saturation like that of a closed car. I am having problems getting good, clean removal of the print from the heat bed after printing. There is a shadow of filament left that is simply hard to impossible to remove.

While the first four or five prints came off with a bit of work, alcohol, dish soap, hot water, this last one is stubborn. So stubborn that I decided to print over it.

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Suggestions (besides avoid ABS).

Comment on ABS in my Prusa i3 Mk3S+ printer, just about every single print, and some are in the 4+ hour range, warps during printing. While I wanted to print this project as one piece, over 11 hours, it is now four pieces, a 106 mm x 120 mm x 9 mm bed that warped, kind of surprised the Prusa reset after a crash as the nozzle hit the print and finished the print. One side that is about 45 mm x 34 x 120 mm x 25 mm, a second side that is about 23 mm x 120 mm x 25 mm and only one of those printed without warping.

First, major failure attached. All the supports have been removed. Due to design the photo has it upside-down from the print.

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Thanks,
Rex

#2

I printed with ABS for many years. Bed temperature is much higher and temperature consistency is really important. I found that printing in an open drafty room was a challenge and printing in the winter cold was prone to failure. That’s the reason I designed and built a printer enclosure, an example you can see at the Shop.

A fast, easy, cheap option to test is to invert a box over your printer while printing.

As for adhesion I have a few suggestions. Raise your first layer height for lighter grip (which also introduces the risk of slippage). Also, classic in the ABS world to get prints to stick is applying glue stick to the surface. Interestingly, it also introduces a film which might make it easier to dislodge the print when it’s done. Lastly, do this sparingly but to clean your bed you can apply acetone to ABS and it will dissolve.

BTW, good call to move away from PLA in the San Diego sun … prints sag.

#3

Travis,
Hopefully ABS printing my last piece for my GPS and cellphone mount for the Subaru. Just in case, I had it in the drybox last night for 8 hours at 50 degrees C. I had to reprint the piece that left the shadow after modifying it. I printed in the exact previous location. When I removed it from the hotbed that removed the shadow.
Interesting.
Thanks,
Rex

#4

Slick! That was pretty smart, congrats.