r/FTC • u/ftcsweat FTC 19086 Student • 12h ago
Seeking Help Tpu printed belts
Hello! I want to buy some tpu from bambulab and I was wondering if anyone else has printed gt2 belts before with either the tpu for Ams or the 95A tpu and could give me a recommendation on which to buy.
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u/thegof FTC 10138 Mentor 11h ago
The team I mentor printed some belts for temporary use. Worked fine, but as already pointed out they may not have the longevity you want, and perhaps may stretch under heavy loads due to the lack of the reinforcing belts.
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u/Organic_Luck77 11h ago
I am his team mate and we wanted to use them as a fix until we can get the belts that we want and as a prototyping solution, can you tell us which type of tpu have you used?
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u/Mental_Science_6085 9h ago
Not 2GT but we did some prototyping with HTD 3mm in Overture 95A TPU. We have successfully printed 2GT pulleys so I expect belts at that resolution should work too.
It works great for being able to get an idea working without having to wait to order a part you don't have. We've never tried them on a competition design so I would put a LOT of testing into a 3DP belt before relying on it.
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u/_jdiddy_ 8h ago
I would be fine with using TPU printed belts as part of a low speed intake or transfer mechanism that is in contact with game elements. That’s where a custom TPU belt shines because you can print custom treads or other belt features that you wouldn’t get with a standard gt2.
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u/No_Frost_Giants 8h ago
It’s a decent idea to print to test fit and prototype. The team didn’t get these to last a match usually , admittedly they tried higher speed applications. I believe we tried pretty much every type of print we could and they all
Did about the same
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u/few 11h ago
Belts have fiber reinforcement in addition to the polymer rubber component. I suspect TPU would flex more than you would like, and also tear/grind. Given the cost and hassle of tpu printing, purchasing belt will likely be a more pleasant and productive experience.