Things you should know about PETG

The do-it-all 3D printing filament: PETG! Learn what the differences are between Copolyester and PET and how to best print the materials.

Product links are affiliate links - I may earn a commission on qualifying purchases (at no extra cost to you)

[spacemanspiff]

I gave you an upvote in the first 5 seconds of the video for launching right into it. No life story, no 5 minute long explanation of the title, no ridiculous intro. Thanks!

[jwcpunk]

I started with PETG almost immediately after my starter role ran out.

I use PLA for some non-functional parts, cheap test prints, the occasional pointless object/desk thing, but petg has been my go to for nearly everything.
It's worth the hassle to dial it in - it's a really excellent filament.

[LazerLord]

The first time I printed with PETG on a large-ish print, it took a nice big chunk out of my glass build plate. yay. I learned the hard way. I went with painters tape and it worked a bit better.

[KrustyKlown]

After a lot of PETG printing, much of what Thomas said is is good info .. Everyone has their preferred approach, here is mine: .. to reduce stringing

> NO Z lift (using Z lift creates a string of material)
> Tweek flow rate within 1%, reduce flow rate so that nozzle does NOT drag through the layer being printed
> Be aware that optimum nozzle temp varies considerably between PETG brands (I run eSUn at 240C and Hatchbox at 250C)
> careful trying to use large retractions, as material may freeze off and jam nozzle due to high print temp, I limit retraction to 1mm
> Print SLOWLY ~30mm/s to get reasonable cosmetic appearance, , infill faster 40mm/s, and travel VERY fast >80mm/s to break & reduce stringing
> print on PEI surface, NO tape or spray required! ... adhesion will be VERY strong, may require a razor blade carefully slide under to release parts .. but very few parts will come loose during printing

Timelapse example of PETG printing a finely detailed thin wall set of camera cases for a 360 video camera I designed... camera external faces are fully filled smooth surfaces printed against the PEI top sheet .. but you will note the inevitable stringing at the end of the print job, which must be cleaned away ... that said, these parts were great, are flexible, tough, and handle the high operating temperature of the camera boards (a job ABS or PLA can NOT do):

Also another example of a durable PETG designed drone, a very large 7 pound flying monster with nearly 4hp of power .. many flights and NEVER broke a single PETG printed part:

Overall, IMO, PETG is the single best material for mechanically functional parts, the trade off is accepting a cosmetic appearance less than that of ABS or PLA. PETG is more flexible, tough, and temp resistant than PLA .. and stiffer & stronger than ABS, and does not shrink/warp like ABS (I hate ABS, basically worthless IMO).

[schogaia]

I see what you did at 3:13 - you changed the value to OVER 9000!!!

[JamesRivera]

Off topic but your photography is some of the best I've seen on YouTube. On topic, I think your 3D printing video content is some of the best on YouTube. Keep up the good work, thanks!

[wingsounds]

PETG has been one of my favorite printing filaments for some time now. As noted in the video and other places, it is usually considerably more durable than PLA, tolerates higher temperatures and is almost as easy to print as PLA.

[HeyaTwigletts]

You are a god send, i was having real issues with my PETG, would highly recommend this video to anyone having a issue printing with PETG, I own a P1S and the benchy test come out flawless

[mrmuttley]

THanks for all your videos that helped this 3D printing noobie.

[ChinaAl]

I just started switching to PETG for my printing. Love the stuff. Had some transparent samples and they came out beautiful. I have an Ender 5 modified to direct drive with an Apollo mk8 coated aluminum nozzle that requires a hotter temp. My PETG Hot-end @ 250ºc and bed @ 70ºc. For PLA it was 225/63. I just printed a basket and absolutely no stringing. So cool. Make Shaper PETG Purple and Amazon Basics Grey both PETG. Speeds 35mm/s Thanks Tom

[stephenoliveau]

i go with "terra fellate"...

just used your link to buy $100 in parts and filament on amazon. i hope you get your cut.

you're my favorite 3d printing youtuber. the extra work you put into your videos really pays off.

[ChrisMuncy]

Tom, I'm really loving these new filament videos. Thank you sir.

[stofstik]

Nice I've been waiting for this one! 0:49 is pure gold

[KRGraphicsCG]

I've been printing with PETG for the past week now and I REALLY love how strong the prints are, especially when printed solid. Now the one challenge I've faced is printing on BuildTak, and after tearing a chunk out of it, I ended up using Aqua Net hair spray to ensure it holds onto my cold plate. I use PLA for test parts and PETG for my final parts...

[thbgrgProductions]

Some additional info helpful for beginners:
- Clean nozzle is especially important for PETG.
- Fan speeds are based on a Prusa. It needs to be tuned depending on the cooling setup you have. (On a Wanhao stock cooler, it's not very powerful and will have trouble bridging.)

[ejohnfel]

First, really this series is knocking out of the park, video quality and content are super high quality, thanks for that. Second, I tend to vapor smooth my ABS parts often, not always, but not rarely either. Almost always when I do, the parts are external. Internal parts I don't care about so much.

[ravenx]

thank you so much for making this video. I took your advice to modify settings- and after making PETG spaghetti for serveral prints before your video... Now my prints are pristine after watching your video!

[proximityzero]

Great video! I've ditched ABS in favor of PETG for most of my printing. The stringing and bed adhesion are trickier, but overall, the parts come out strong, and warping seems much better as compared to ABS.

[MrNightware]

About PETG adhesion on glass.
Use only heated glass surface and after printing when it cools down, it comes off itself without any need of external help.

[ChrisKurtz]

Gorilla Glue White (polyurethane) works great for gluing PETG for me, and I've found with a good primer (Rustoleum Filler Primer) it takes paint very well! Also thanks for the note about over setting retraction, I think mine is set way too high, causing globs exactly as you described!