3D Printing Info

Filament comparison

PA11 vs TPU soft

Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.

PA11 (Nylon 11) guideSoft TPU (below 85A) guide

2 selected · all documented properties

Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore PA11 comparisonsMore TPU soft comparisons
PA11 vs TPU soft — documented properties and sources
PropertyPA11 (Nylon 11)PASoft TPU (below 85A)FLEX
Market snapshot
Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots$194.98/kg median; $194.98–$194.98/kg across 1 dated product listings$114.04/kg median; $109.80–$122.27/kg across 4 dated product listings
Identity & Market
Base polymer / chemistryPolyamide 11, polymerised from castor-oil-derived aminoundecanoic acid — a bio-based nylon[1][2]Very soft thermoplastic elastomers below 85 Shore A. Fiberlogy's FiberFlex 30D measures 81 Shore A, the softest grade with a published datasheet found here[3]
Densityg/cm³1.02 (ISO 1183)[1]1.07 (Fiberlogy FiberFlex 30D, ISO 1183)[3]
Typical priceUSD/kgNot documented1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 115[4][5][6]
Price range across brandsUSD/kgNot documented110–122 at 1 kg-equivalent; Recreus 70A 110 and 60A 116 at 500 g, NinjaTek Edge 83A 112, NinjaTek Chinchilla 75A 122; the Recreus 3 kg spools fall to 70–73[4][6][5]
Market availability1–5Niche, a handful of specialist brands[2]Niche, a handful of specialist brands[3][7][4]
Spool sizes & diameters1.75 mm; 1 kg spools[2]1.75, 2.85 and 3 mm; 0.5, 0.85, 1, 2 and 3 kg spools[3][4][8][5]
Typical applicationsTough, chemically resistant functional parts; Prusa targets it at impact-loaded and vibration-loaded components[2]Highly compliant seals, soft grips and prosthetic liners[3]
Diameter tolerance± mm±0.02 (Prusament)[1]Not documented
Printing Parameters
Nozzle temperature°C275 ± 10 (Prusament)[1]Not documented
Bed temperature°C100 ± 10 (Prusament)[1]50–70 (Fiberlogy FiberFlex 30D)[3]
Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5Enclosure required (passive) — Prusament specifies a 55 ± 5 °C chamber[1]Open frame is fine[3]
Recommended chamber temperature°C55 ± 5 (Prusament)[1]Not documented
Bed surface & adhesion aidPA nylon sheet (Prusament)[1]PEI sheet or painter's tape; Polymaker warns TPU can over-stick and advises a glue stick as a release agent[9][10]
Overall printing difficulty1–5Advanced — enclosure, hardware upgrades, tuning[1][11]Expert / industrial hardware only — below 85 Shore A the filament buckles in almost any feed path that is not a short, constrained direct drive[8][10]
Extruder requirementPrusa printed its test specimens with a high-flow CHT nozzle[1]Direct drive only, with a constrained filament path; Bowden is not viable at this hardness[8][7]
Hardware Wear & Reliability
Nozzle hardness required1–4Brass fine indefinitely for unfilled grades[11]Brass fine indefinitely[12]
Abrasiveness1–5Non-abrasive when unfilled[11]Non-abrasive[12]
Nozzle clog risk1–5High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles[13]High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles; below 85 Shore A the filament buckles and compresses, and Simplify3D warns that raised feed rates most likely end in a jam[9][10][13]
Heat-creep / jam sensitivity1–5Not documentedVery high — softens in the cold zone readily[10]
Hotend requirementNot documentedNo special hot-end required, but a direct-drive extruder is (Simplify3D)[9]
Moisture Behaviour
Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5High (0.8–2 %) — Prusa measures 0.46 % after 7 days at 22 % RH, but PA11 sits between PA12 and PA6 in the family[1][13]Moderate[13]
Equilibrium moisture content at ~50 % RH%0.26 after 24 h and 0.46 after 7 days (Prusa Polymers method)[1]Not documented
Symptoms when wetPopping and cracking during extrusion, then hard-to-diagnose defects[14]Bubbling and popping at the nozzle, stringing and a rough surface[13]
Effect of moisture on strengthPrusa publishes no dry-versus-conditioned columns; the CoPA reference shows the PA-family response — stiffness and strength fall sharply, impact and elongation rise[14][15]Polymaker groups TPU with the highly hygroscopic materials; no dry-versus-conditioned figures are published[13]
Storage requirementSealed below 20 % RH with desiccant[13]Sealed with desiccant; often kept in a dryer during the print[13]
Mechanical Properties
Tensile strength (XY)MPa38.3 ± 0.8 printed horizontal and 39.5 ± 0.5 printed vertical at yield, ISO 527-1[1]Not documented
Young's modulusMPa1200 printed, both orientations, ISO 527-1[1]Not documented
Elongation at break%5.6 ± 0.1 at yield, printed, ISO 527-1[1]870 at break (Fiberlogy FiberFlex 30D, ISO 527) — the highest elongation in the dataset[3]
Flexural modulusMPa1100 printed horizontal and 1000 printed vertical, ISO 178[1]Not documented
Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m²12.9 ± 2.1 printed horizontal and 11.7 ± 1.2 printed vertical, ISO 179-1 notched[1]Not documented
Layer adhesion / Z tensileMPa32 ± 1 (Prusa Polymers interlayer adhesion test) — the highest interlayer figure Prusa publishes for any of its filaments[1]Not documented
Brittleness1–5Tough — absorbs impact, yields before breaking[1]Very ductile — bends far before failing[3]
Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / Rockwell70 Shore D (Prusa Polymers method)[1]81 Shore A and 30 Shore D (Fiberlogy FiberFlex 30D, ISO 7619)[3]
Creep resistance / sustained load1–5Not documentedPoor — no creep test at this hardness; a printed 95A TPU bar crept from 74.5 to 82.7 mm over 5 days at 1.25 kg[16]
Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5Excellent — living hinges viable[11]Excellent — living hinges viable[10]
Elasticity / flexibility1–5Semi-flexible[1]Rubbery / highly elastic[3]
Z strength as % of XY%84 — Prusa publishes a tensile anisotropy coefficient of 0.84, the ratio of Z to XY tensile strength[1]Not documented
Wear resistance & frictionNot documentedTear strength 95 kN/m (Fiberlogy FiberFlex 30D, ISO 34-1)[3]
Thermal Properties
HDT at 0.45 MPa°C58.7 (ISO 75, 0.45 MPa)[1]Not documented
HDT at 1.8 MPa°C49.9 (ISO 75, 1.8 MPa)[1]Not documented
Melting point / Vicat°CNot documented170 melting (Fiberlogy FiberFlex 30D, DSC)[3]
Environment & Chemical
UV resistance1–5Not documentedGood — years with some colour shift; Polymaker lists UV exposure among the conditions TPU withstands[10]
Chemical resistanceNot documentedWithstands industrial solvents and UV exposure (Polymaker)[10]
Water / humidity resistance in service1–5Absorbs water, properties shift[14]Not documented
Food contactNot documentedNot food safe without specific certification (Polymaker)[10]
Biodegradability / compostabilityBio-based — the monomer comes from castor oil[2]Not biodegradable[10]
RecyclabilityNot documentedNot accepted in household plastic collection[10]
Health & Safety
Fume toxicity1–5Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[17]Low hazard — minimal VOC and particle emission; TPU was not among the nine filaments in the chamber study[17]
VOC emission rateµg/minUp to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon; total VOC reached nearly 200 µg/min, the highest of the nine filaments tested[17]Not documented
Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min≈2 × 10⁸ median — low for ultrafine particles despite the highest VOC mass of any filament tested[17]Not documented
Hazardous species emittedCaprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament — the largest single-VOC emission rate measured in the study[17]Not documented
Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[17]Open a window / occasional ventilation[17]
Post-Processing
Sanding & machiningNot documentedDifficult to sand or smooth; Polymaker limits post-processing to trimming or tumbling[10]
Gluing & solvent weldingNot documentedCyanoacrylate bonds TPU; no common solvent welds it[10]
Vapour / chemical smoothingNot documentedNo practical vapour smoothing[10]
Support material pairingNot documentedPolymaker warns TPU supports are often very difficult to remove[10]
Solvents & Solubility
Soluble inDissolved at 23 °C by formic acid, phenol, m-cresol, 96 % sulphuric acid or hexafluoroisopropanol — all laboratory reagents.[18][19]DMF, DMSO, NMP and THF dissolve TPU; acetone, MEK and cyclohexanone are partial solvents. All laboratory reagents.[20]
Softened or crazed byMineral acids, oxidants, halogens and zinc chloride solutions attack the amide bond; ordinary solvents do not (BASF, PA6/66).[18]Toluene and benzene swell it up to +50 % by weight at 23 °C; esters swell it severely; ethanol and IPA soften it.[20]
Solvent welding & smoothing agentNone — nylon's only solvents are formic acid, phenol and HFIP, all of which degrade the part they wet.[18]None practical — the true solvents (DMF, THF, NMP) are laboratory reagents and leave the joint swollen and weak.[20]

Material entries describe families or representative grades, not an interchangeable specification for every spool. Test methods, orientations and conditions may differ. Unknown values are marked “Not documented”. Prices and source dates remain historical snapshots; check the linked guide for product details. Differences highlight text, not a universal winner.

Sources for this comparison

  1. Prusament PA11 Technical Datasheet v1.0 Prusa Polymers · 2026-07 · tds
  2. Prusament PA11 — material page Prusa Polymers · 2026-08 · doc
  3. FiberFlex 30D Technical Data Sheet Fiberlogy · 2026-08 · tds
  4. Recreus product catalogue Recreus · 2026-08 · vendor
  5. Chinchilla product page — print guidelines, spool sizes and price NinjaTek · 2026-08 · vendor
  6. NinjaFlex Edge product page — durometer, print guidelines and price NinjaTek · 2026-08 · vendor
  7. Filaflex 82A product page (Shore hardness and elongation) Recreus · 2026-08 · vendor
  8. NinjaFlex 85A Technical Specifications NinjaTek · 2026-08 · tds
  9. Flexible (TPE/TPU) — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
  10. TPU — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  11. PA (Nylon) — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  12. Extrudr Product Catalogue (DURAPRO PA12 data block) Extrudr · 2025-03 · tds
  13. Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  14. Moisture Conditioning — effect on printed nylon properties Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  15. PolyMide CoPA Technical Data Sheet V5.4 (dry and wet status blocks) Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  16. BambuLab TPU 95A HF vs Qidi TPU 95A HF — results spreadsheet My Tech Fun (Igor Gaspar) · 2024-02 · test
  17. Emissions of Ultrafine Particles and Volatile Organic Compounds from Commercially Available Desktop Three-Dimensional Printers with Multiple Filaments (Azimi et al.) Environmental Science & Technology 50(3) 1260-1268 · 2016-01 · paper
  18. Ultramid Nylon Chemical Resistance guide (unmodified PA6 B27E and PA66 A27E) BASF · 2026-08 · tds
  19. Chemical resistance — resistance of Ensinger plastics to chemicals (DIN 50 014, 23/50) Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
  20. Elastollan — Chemical properties: swelling and chemical resistance BASF · 2026-08 · tds