How to Print with Colorfabb VARIOSHORE TPU

 

ColorFabb has taken flexible TPU and made it even more special by using the same foaming technology they debuted with LW-PLA. We love how well this material prints custom tires for our RC aircraft which rival the weight of off-the-shelf foam or rubber tires. VarioShore TPU allows users to vary the density of the material by adjusting the nozzle temperature and material flow rate. At temperatures between 200 and 250C the materials will start to expand to roughly 1.4-1.6 times its original volume. This means the material can be printed at low flow rates (60-70%) to compensate for this expansion, which in return gives very light weight printed parts which are highly flexible and soft to the touch.

Download the Technical Data Sheet (TDS)

Download the Safety Data Sheet (SDS)

 
 

How Does ColorFabb VarioShore TPU Work?

VarioShore TPU is a flexible TPU material mixed with a foaming additive that activates at elevated temperatures. It will print much like standard shore 92A TPU at lower temperatures (190C - 200C) but once you print above 210C the foaming technology activates. This foaming effect becomes more aggressive as you continue to elevate the temperature. The key to success when printing with VarioShore TPU is balancing between print temperature, speed, and flow rate. Once you’re printer and slicer settings are dialed in, you should achieve parts that match the wall thickness of the designed part, but are 60 - 70% the weight of the same part printed in traditional TPU.

 
 

How to Optimize your Printer and Slicer Settings for varioShore TPU

The hardness of the base material that makes up varioShore TPU is Shore 92A, which will work well with most direct drive or Bowden style printers. While varioShore TPU doesn’t expand as much as LW-PLA, it still provides a significant weight savings over standard TPU. We consistently print varioShore TPU parts that weight about 65% the weight of a traditional TPU part, but the parts come out with a higher degree of flexibility and a softer touch. You can download one of our slicer profiles as a starting point, or follow the following recommended slicer settings and tweak from there:

Flow Percentage/Extrusion Multiplier: 65%

Layer Height: 0.2mm

Extruder Temperature: 240C

Bed Temperature: 40C

Speed: 25 mm/s

Outline/Perimeter Shells: 2

Top Solid Layers: 4

Bottom Solid Layers: 2

Infill Percentage: 10%

Cooling Fan: 30%

 
 

Do you like the scale tires pictured on this page?

The Gcode for the outer tire is optimized for varioShore TPU and the central hub is printed separately out of standard PLA. The STL files are for a 3” diameter tire, but the files can be scaled up or down in your slicer to meet the size you need.