¶ 1. Before you start printing:
¶ Item 1: Select the appropriate hardness of TPU
The hardness of common TPU is more, and the order from large to small is: 77D > 70D > 55D > 95A > 85A > 83A > 80A > 75A > 70A. TPU with a hardness of 95A or higher can be printed with Kobra S1, and the higher the hardness, the lower the risk of printing failure, but do not use ACE Pro feed, which is easy to bend in the ACE Pro channel, resulting in material failure; TPU with a hardness of 85A or less cannot be printed with Kobra S1 and are prone to being flattened by the extrusion wheel, resulting in plugs.
¶ Item 2: drying filaments
Before printing the TPU, please use ACE Pro to dry the filaments to prevent the model from leaking and drawing due to moisture on the TPU.
¶ 2. Printing steps:
¶ Step 1: Adjust slice parameters
(1) Please open the "Anycubic Slicer Next" official slicing software, and then import the model slicing. When printing models with Kobra S1, a 0.4mm nozzle and Generic TPU presets are recommended. In addition, TPU is prone to material failure or plug problems when the printing speed is high, please try to use a lower printing speed.
(2) Because TPU is prone to wire drawing, more empty driving should be avoided when the model is placed. It is recommended to put only one model or a few models in a disk and choose the way of printing one piece by one piece, try to avoid placing multiple models in a disk and choose the way of printing layer by layer.
¶ Step 2: Switch to single color printing
(1) After the filaments are returned to ACE Pro, pull out the ACE Pro signal cable, then press the buckle of the buffer mechanism, and pull out four teflon tubes respectively.
(2) Unplug the ACE Pro signal cable, and then remove the multi-color return material detection module according to the following documents.
Kobra S1-ACE Pro Return detection module replacement guide
¶ Step 3: Print the TPU
(1) Place the TPU on the material rack, and then insert the consumables from the teflon tube suspended on the printer backplane into the extruder until it is no longer inserted.
Note: Make sure to straighten the end of the filaments before inserting them into the feed port.
(2) Then click "Holder" - "Extrude" from the display. Wait for the nozzle to heat to a preset temperature, the filaments are extruded from the nozzle, and finally the slice file is printed.
¶ 3. After printing:
¶ Item 1: Remove the model
Generally, the adhesive force of TPU on the printing board is strong, and the model with a large bottom area is difficult to remove. Do not remove it violently to avoid damaging the model or the printing board. At this time, it is recommended that you pull up a gap at the corner of the model, spray alcohol into the gap, and then gradually force the model and the printing board to separate.
¶ Item 2: Processing model drawing
Drying the TPU before printing can only reduce wire drawing on the print, but not completely avoid it. Especially for the model with more jumps, if you want to remove the wire drawing on the model, you need to use the hot air of the electric hair dryer to blow the model, and you can also use the flame of the printer to quickly burn the wire drawing part, paying attention to avoid damage to the model.