When printing parts for your 3D printer itself, material selection is critical. These components will be subjected to heat, mechanical stress, and constant vibration during operation. Choosing the wrong material can lead to warping, cracking, or complete failure of printed parts.
For 3D printer parts, you need materials that offer:
Not all 3D printer parts require the same material. Structural components need strength, while parts near the hotend require heat resistance. Match your material to the specific application.
My recommended settings:
PLA (Polylactic Acid) is the easiest material to print with, but has limited applications for printer parts due to its low heat resistance (starts softening around 60°C / 140°F).
Best suited for:
Print Settings for PLA:
Do NOT use PLA for parts touching the heated bed, or any component exposed to temperatures above 50°C. The parts will deform and fail. If you are enclosing your printer, avoid using PLA.
Are you printing a Rook MK1 or Rook 2020? dont worry, the Rook printers were designed to be fully printed out of PLA. If using a heated bed, you might want to look into this mod that lets you print the bedframe in PLA and only need some small components printed from PETG or ABS/ASA.
PETG (Polyethylene Terephthalate Glycol) Is a versatile material for 3D printer parts. It offers excellent strength, good heat resistance (up to 80°C / 176°F), and reasonable ease of printing.
Best suited for:
Print Settings for PETG:
PETG can be flexible. Dont use it for large, structural frame pieces.
ABS (Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene) offers superior heat resistance (up to 100°C / 212°F) and excellent mechanical properties, but requires an enclosed printer and proper ventilation due to fumes.
Best suited for:
Print Settings for ABS:
ABS releases potentially harmful fumes during printing. Always print in a well-ventilated area or use an enclosed printer with filtration. Never print ABS in a closed room without ventilation.
ABS is prone to warping. Use an enclosed printer, ensure bed adhesion with glue stick or ABS slurry, disable cooling fans, and avoid drafts. Consider using a brim or raft for large parts.
ASA (Acrylonitrile Styrene Acrylate) is similar to ABS but with improved UV and weather resistance, making it ideal for parts that may be exposed to sunlight or outdoor conditions. It has slightly better layer adhesion than ABS.
Best suited for:
Print Settings for ASA:
ASA prints similarly to ABS but generally warps less and has better layer adhesion. It's becoming the preferred choice over ABS for many applications, though it's typically more expensive.
Nylon (Polyamide) offers exceptional strength, flexibility, and low friction, making it ideal for moving parts. However, it's hygroscopic (absorbs moisture) and challenging to print.
Best suited for:
Print Settings for Nylon:
Nylon MUST be dried before printing. Store in a dry box with desiccant and dry at 70-80°C for 4-6 hours before use. Wet nylon will bubble, string, and produce weak prints.
Nylon doesn't stick well to glass. Use a PEI sheet, apply glue stick, or use specialized Nylon bed adhesive. Some printers use Garolite (G10) build surfaces specifically for Nylon.
Polycarbonate is one of the strongest and most heat-resistant 3D printing materials (up to 110-120°C / 230-248°F), but it's also one of the most challenging to print, requiring high temperatures and an enclosed chamber.
Best suited for:
Print Settings for Polycarbonate:
PC requires specialized equipment: all-metal hotend rated for 300°C+, high-temperature heated bed (120°C+), enclosed chamber, and ideally a hardened steel nozzle. Not suitable for entry-level printers.
Like Nylon, PC is hygroscopic. Dry at 100-120°C for 6-8 hours before printing and store in a dry environment. Use a filament dry box during printing if possible.
Regardless of material choice, certain settings are critical for producing strong, reliable 3D printer parts:
Orient parts so that the primary stress forces are parallel to the layer lines, not perpendicular. Parts are weakest in the Z-axis (between layers). For example, print brackets so that tension forces run along the layers, not across them.
Walls provide most of a part's strength. For structural printer components, use 4-6 perimeters (1.6-2.4mm total wall thickness with a 0.4mm nozzle). More perimeters = stronger parts.
Use at least 5-6 top and bottom solid layers for structural integrity and to properly support infill patterns.
For maximum strength, increasing perimeter count is more effective than increasing infill percentage. A part with 6 perimeters and 30% infill is often stronger than 3 perimeters with 60% infill, and prints faster too.
My recommended settings: