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I have a roll of Prima PETG, I like the strength but I am having a few issues - the outside perimeter of the first layer often breaks away as a loose string (so it's not bonding with the second layer or perimeter next to it), small areas tend to go gloopy and also bridging is very poor.

Have you suffered from these issues with PETG and if so how have you gotten around them?

Tormod Haugene
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JBFUK
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  • Hi! Your question is not a good fit for this site. This site is not intended as a "discussion board" where you can exchange experiences and opinions, but as a place to build an archive of (technical,answerable) questions and answers. Answers to your question will almost entirely be opinion-based (whether one filament is worth the additional cost over another is extremely subjective). – Tom van der Zanden Oct 14 '16 at 09:24
  • Tom is right. Here are a couple thoughts to consider. 1) There are MANY polyester based filaments that have been optimized by various companies for 3d printing. To me, they seem more similar than distinct, but there are real differences. 2) Since polyester/PETG type filaments share many characteristics, maybe you could modify your question to ask about how to improve/solve something specific that you've experienced...your answers will likely have broad value to the community and apply to most polyester based filaments you may choose to purchase. :-) – Chris Thompson Oct 14 '16 at 17:17
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    Updated, but, you will find most responses to many questions on this site are largely opinion based. Hope this format is more acceptable :) – JBFUK Oct 15 '16 at 11:21
  • Hi, JBFUK! As pointed out by Tom and Chris, your question still encourages a "discussion board" with very subjective answers. You could try make your question better by boiling it down to it's bare essence. Perhaps by specifying the *problem* ("the first layer breaks loose (see image example)"), *what you have tried* ("I used three types of glue stick, but neither worked"), and lastly, ask for advice. This way, it is much easier for other users to understand your issue, and give you precise, *useful* advice! I have put your question *on hold* until you can make your edits. Good luck! :-) – Tormod Haugene Oct 18 '16 at 10:51
  • Have you found & fixed the problem? If any of the answers helped you to get an answer to your question or come to your own conclusions then please do vote & accept an answer (using the tick button next to it). This helps us reduce the [unanswered questions list](https://3dprinting.stackexchange.com/unanswered) & stops the question from being bumped once in a while. If you found another answer (than those already posted), please add that answer (& accept after 48 hours) to share your experience with the community. If you have not been able to address the problem please update your question. – Greenonline May 05 '19 at 20:14

1 Answers1

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Those are fairly common issues and you should be able to tweak your way into good prints.

  • First layer perimeter bonding: Slow down first layer to around 15mm/s with fan off to address that bonding issue.
  • Gloopy blobs: To address the gloopy blobs, slow down to about 40mm/s or even less, and be sure to use wiping...also, maybe increase your retraction length.
  • Bridging: Use full fan for better bridging...note that bridging PETG is just harder than many other filaments, but it can be done. The reference below includes some more notes on bridging PETG successfully.

Ideal settings will vary based on your printer, your environment, and the characteristics of your specific filament. PETG can take some tweaking so don't be alarmed by the gloopy blobs, excessive stringing, and poor bridging, just plan to spend some time tweaking settings until you find a good balance.

Here is a fairly good reference for further tweaking with PETG.

If you'd like more help analyzing your print settings here, consider posting your current settings, your printer model, your ambient temperature, and pictures.

I hope this helps! :-)

Chris Thompson
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