3D Printing Info

Filament comparison

PA6-GF vs PVB

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

Glass-fibre PA6 (PA6-GF) guidePVB guide

2 selected · all documented properties

Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore PA6-GF comparisonsMore PVB comparisons
PA6-GF vs PVB — documented properties and sources
PropertyGlass-fibre PA6 (PA6-GF)PAPVBSPECIALTY
Market snapshot
Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots$59.98/kg median; $39.99–$130.00/kg across 6 dated product listings$66.65/kg median; $49.32–$79.98/kg across 3 dated product listings
Identity & Market
Base polymer / chemistryPA6 reinforced with chopped glass fibre — Polymaker's grade is 25 wt%[1][2]Polyvinyl butyral — a printable thermoplastic whose surface can be smoothed with isopropyl alcohol instead of a hot solvent[3]
Densityg/cm³1.14 (Bambu Lab) and 1.20 (Polymaker Fiberon), ISO 1183[2][1]1.10 (Polymaker PolySmooth, ISO 1183); Prusament PVB 1.10[3][4]
Typical priceUSD/kg1 kg-equivalent spools span 40–130; the middle of the market is about 60[2][5][6]1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 80[5][7]
Price range across brandsUSD/kg40–130 across brands; SUNLU 40, YXPOLYER 45, Polymaker Fiberon and Bambu Lab 60, 3DXTech FibreX 87, Obsidian Nylon 6+GF 130[5][2][8][6][9]49–102 across brands; Polymaker PolySmooth 49 at 750 g, Prusament PVB 80–102 at 500 g[5][7]
Market availability1–5Stocked by most mainstream brands[2][5][8][6][9]Available from several mainstream brands[5][7]
Spool sizes & diameters1.75 and 2.85 mm; 0.5, 0.75 and 1 kg spools[5][8][2]1.75 and 2.85 mm; 0.5 and 0.75 kg spools[5][7]
Typical applicationsStiff, heat-resistant structural parts where a matte finish and lower cost beat carbon fibre[2][1]Display models and light guides where a layer-free surface matters more than strength[3]
Diameter tolerance± mmNot documented+/- 0.03 (Prusament PVB)[4]
Printing Parameters
Nozzle temperature°C260–290 (Bambu Lab)[2]215 +/- 10 (Prusament PVB)[4]
Bed temperature°CNot documented75 +/- 5 (Prusament PVB)[4]
Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5Enclosure required (passive) — Bambu Lab specifies a 45–60 °C chamber[2]Open frame is fine[3]
Recommended chamber temperature°C45–60 (Bambu Lab)[2]Not documented
Part cooling fanNot documented100 % part cooling (Prusament PVB)[4]
Bed surface & adhesion aidPEI sheet with a glue stick, or a dedicated adhesive such as Magigoo[10][11]Smooth PEI sheet or satin sheet; Prusa states a brim is not generally necessary[4]
Maximum volumetric flow (mm³/s; see test conditions)mm³/s10 at Bambu Lab's 130 mm/s cap on a 0.4 mm nozzle at 0.2 mm layer[2][12]Not documented
Bed-adhesion difficulty1–5Needs a specific surface plus adhesive[10]Not documented
Stringing / oozing tendency1–5Moderate — retraction tuning needed[11]Not documented
Overall printing difficulty1–5Expert / industrial hardware only[2][13]Easy — minor profile tuning; it prints close to PLA[3]
Extruder requirement0.6 mm nozzle recommended by Bambu Lab; 0.4 and 0.8 also supported[2]Not documented
Hardware Wear & Reliability
Nozzle hardness required1–4Hardened steel required — Polymaker measures brass nozzle life at about 9 h on PA6-GF25 and recommends hardened steel or ruby[1]Brass fine indefinitely[3]
Abrasiveness1–5Highly abrasive — standard GF composite; Polymaker puts brass nozzle life at roughly 9 h on PA6-GF25[1]Non-abrasive[3]
Nozzle clog risk1–5Very high — frequent jams without careful setup[13]Moderate — needs dry filament and a clean nozzle; Prusa calls PVB very prone to absorbing moisture and requires a 60 °C, 4 h dry before every print[14][13]
Heat-creep / jam sensitivity1–5Moderate — good heatbreak cooling needed[10]Not documented
Hotend requirementMay require an all-metal hot end (Simplify3D)[10]Not documented
Moisture Behaviour
Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5Very high (>2 %) — 2.56 % saturated at 25 °C / 55 % RH (Bambu Lab) and 3.33 % equilibrium (Polymaker Fiberon), the highest in the dataset[2][1]Very high (>2 %) — 2.36 % equilibrium water absorption (Polymaker PolySmooth), above every PLA and PETG grade here[3]
Equilibrium moisture content at ~50 % RH%2.56 saturated at 25 °C / 55 % RH (Bambu Lab); 3.33 equilibrium (Polymaker Fiberon PA6-GF25)[2][1]2.36 equilibrium water absorption (Polymaker PolySmooth); 2.09 for PolyCast; Prusament PVB takes up 0.18 in 24 h and 0.35 in 7 days at 24 °C and 22 % RH[3][15][4]
Drying temperature & time80 °C for 8–12 h (Bambu Lab)[2]Maximum 60 °C for 4-8 h depending on how wet the filament is (Prusament PVB)[4]
Symptoms when wetPopping and cracking during extrusion, then hard-to-diagnose defects[16]Not documented
Effect of moisture on strengthPolymaker publishes dry and wet printed blocks for PA6-GF25 itself: at 4.57 % moisture tensile falls 80.1 → 40.2 MPa and modulus 5357 → 1794 MPa, while notched Charpy rises 10.0 → 28.0 kJ/m²[1][16]Polymaker publishes no dry-versus-conditioned figures; at 2.36 % equilibrium uptake the material has to be kept dry to print cleanly[3][13]
Storage requirementSealed below 20 % RH with desiccant[13]Sealed with desiccant[13]
Hydrolysis at melt temperaturePolymaker specifies an 80–100 °C dry and storage below 20 % RH; no molecular-weight loss figure is published, and the wet data it does publish is conditioning rather than melt hydrolysis[17][18]Not documented
Mechanical Properties
Tensile strength (XY)MPa75 ± 6 (Bambu Lab) and 80.1 ± 1.8 (Polymaker Fiberon, dry/annealed) printed XY, ISO 527; Fiberon falls to 40.2 ± 2.1 conditioned to 4.57 % moisture. Stratasys FDM PA6/66-GF30-FR gives 60.2-61.1 at break and 61.7-62.3 at yield printed XZ (ASTM D638)[2][1][19]51.8 ± 0.7 printed XY, ISO 527 (PolySmooth); 53.2 ± 1.1 for PolyCast; Prusament PVB gives 50 +/- 5 at yield printed horizontal (ISO 527-1) and 57 +/- 1 on the filament (ISO 527)[3][15][4]
Young's modulusMPa2850 ± 260 (Bambu Lab) and 5357 ± 211 (Polymaker Fiberon, dry) printed XY, ISO 527; Fiberon falls to 1794 ± 84 conditioned. Stratasys FDM PA6/66-GF30-FR gives 5600-5830 printed XZ against 3050-3140 in ZX (ASTM D638)[2][1][19]2199 ± 43 printed XY and 2010 ± 69 printed Z, ISO 527 (PolySmooth); Prusament PVB gives 1700 +/- 100 in both print directions (ISO 527-1)[3][4]
Elongation at break%2.4 ± 0.2 dry (Polymaker Fiberon) to 3.9 ± 0.8 (Bambu Lab) printed XY, ISO 527; the Fiberon grade rises to 4.2 ± 0.7 conditioned[2][1]5.7 ± 0.5 printed XY, ISO 527 (PolyCast)[15]
Flexural strengthMPaNot documented72 +/- 1 printed horizontal and 73 +/- 3 printed vertical, ISO 178 (Prusament PVB)[4]
Flexural modulusMPa3670 ± 140 printed XY, ISO 178 (Bambu Lab)[2]2233 ± 106 printed XY, ISO 178 (PolyCast); Prusament PVB gives 2200 +/- 100 horizontal and 2300 +/- 100 vertical (ISO 178)[15][4]
Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m²10.0 ± 0.7 printed XY dry and 28.0 ± 1.0 conditioned, ISO 179 notched (Polymaker Fiberon); Bambu Lab 7.2 ± 2.3[1][2]7 +/- 1 printed horizontal and 10 +/- 1 printed vertical, ISO 179-1 notched (Prusament PVB)[4]
Other impact dataCharpy unnotched 27.2 ± 2.2 printed XY (Bambu Lab, ISO 179). Stratasys FDM PA6/66-GF30-FR gives Izod notched 74.6-77.1 J/m printed XZ against 17.2-22.1 in ZX (ASTM D256)[2][19]Charpy unnotched 55 +/- 7 printed horizontal and 59 +/- 12 printed vertical (Prusament PVB, ISO 179-1)[4]
Layer adhesion / Z tensileMPa27 ± 5 (Bambu Lab) and 60.7 ± 1.1 (Polymaker Fiberon, dry) printed Z, ISO 527 — the two makers differ by more than a factor of two; Fiberon falls to 26.3 ± 1.5 conditioned. Stratasys FDM PA6/66-GF30-FR gives 23.7-24.4 at break printed ZX (ASTM D638)[2][1][19]26.3 ± 2.1 printed Z, ISO 527 (PolyCast); Prusament PVB gives 49 +/- 5 at yield printed vertical (ISO 527-1) and 9 +/- 1 on Prusa's interlayer adhesion test[15][4]
Brittleness1–5Brittle — snaps with little warning; elongation at break 2.4 % in XY[1]Moderate[3]
Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / RockwellRockwell M88 / R117 on extruded PA66-GF30 stock (ASTM D785)[20]Shore D 77 (Prusa Polymers method)[4]
Creep resistance / sustained load1–5Good. Ensinger lists high creep resistance as a headline property of extruded PA66-GF30 stock; the rating is held below Excellent because equilibrium moisture uptake of 3.33 % softens the matrix in service[20][1]Not documented
Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5Good. Ensinger lists high fatigue strength as a headline property of extruded PA66-GF30 stock[20]Not documented
Elasticity / flexibility1–5Rigid[2]Rigid[3]
Z strength as % of XY%36 (Bambu Lab) to 76 (Polymaker Fiberon), printed; Stratasys FDM PA6/66-GF30-FR gives 39-41 (ZX against XZ tensile at break, ASTM D638)[2][1][19]98 (Prusament PVB, printed vertical against horizontal tensile yield, ISO 527-1: 49 +/- 5 against 50 +/- 5) — the most isotropic printed material in this dataset[4]
Thermal Properties
HDT at 0.45 MPa°C182 (Bambu Lab) and 191 (Polymaker Fiberon), ISO 75 at 0.45 MPa. Stratasys FDM PA6/66-GF30-FR gives 161 printed XY and 185 XZ (ASTM D648 at 66 psi)[2][1][19]68 (PolySmooth) and 67 (PolyCast), ISO 75 at 0.45 MPa; Prusament PVB 63 (ISO 75 at 0.45 MPa)[3][15][4]
HDT at 1.8 MPa°C157 (Polymaker Fiberon) and 158 (Bambu Lab), ISO 75 at 1.8 MPa[2][1]66 (PolySmooth) and 53 (PolyCast), ISO 75 at 1.8 MPa; Prusament PVB 58 (ISO 75 at 1.8 MPa)[3][15][4]
Glass transition (Tg)°C67 (Bambu Lab) and 70.4 (Polymaker Fiberon), DSC; Stratasys measures 51.5 on FDM PA6/66-GF30-FR (ASTM D7426)[2][1][19]70 (DSC) for both PolySmooth and PolyCast[3][15]
Melting point / Vicat°C214.5 (Polymaker Fiberon) and 219 (Bambu Lab) melting, DSC; Vicat 210–212 (ISO 306)[2][1]Amorphous — no melting point; Vicat 70 (PolySmooth) and 67 (PolyCast), ISO 306[3][15]
Thermal expansion (CTE)µm/m·K48.6 on extruded PA66-GF30 stock (ASTM D696; source states 2.7e-5 in/in/°F). Stratasys measures much higher on printed FDM PA6/66-GF30-FR — 95.4 over -20 to 5 °C and 214 over 25 to 80 °C in XY (ASTM E831)[20][19]Not documented
Flammability / UL 94Flammable; no UL 94 rating published for the grades surveyed[17]Not documented
Environment & Chemical
UV resistance1–5Months outdoors before embrittlement — unstabilised polyamide yellows under UV[11]Not documented
Chemical resistanceWithstands oils, fuels and alkalis[11]Not documented
Water / humidity resistance in service1–5Absorbs water, properties shift[16]Not documented
Food contactNot food-contact certified as filament[11]Not documented
Biodegradability / compostabilityNot biodegradable[11]Not documented
RecyclabilityNot accepted in household plastic collection[11]Not documented
Electrical & ESD propertiesSurface resistivity above 10¹² ohm — insulating (Polymaker Fiberon, ANSI/ESD S11.11)[1]Not documented
Health & Safety
Fume toxicity1–5Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[21]Low hazard — minimal VOC and particle emission; none of these materials was in the chamber study[21]
VOC emission rateµg/minUp to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon and the largest single-VOC rate in the study[21]Not documented
Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min≈2 × 10⁸ median for nylon — low for particles despite the highest VOC mass measured[21]Not documented
Hazardous species emittedCaprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament[21]Not documented
Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[21]Open a window / occasional ventilation[21]
Dust & fibre handling hazardGlass fibre is bound in the matrix; avoid inhaling sanding dust[1]Not documented
Post-Processing
Sanding & machiningSands poorly — gums rather than powders[10]Not documented
Gluing & solvent weldingCyanoacrylate; no common solvent welds polyamide[10]Not documented
Vapour / chemical smoothingNo practical vapour smoothing[10]Isopropyl alcohol vapour smoothing is the point of the material — Polymaker markets PolySmooth for hands-free post-processing to a layer-free surface[3]
Support material pairingNot documentedPolyDissolve S1 is rated for PVB (Polymaker)[22]
Dimensional accuracy & detailNot documentedPolyCast is the investment-casting variant of the same chemistry — it burns out cleanly rather than being smoothed[15]
Solvents & Solubility
Soluble inFormic acid, phenol, m-cresol and hexafluoroisopropanol dissolve the matrix at 23 °C, leaving the fibre; laboratory reagents.[23]Isopropyl alcohol dissolves it; Prusa describes PVB as soluble only in IPA, and it is not water-soluble.[14]
Softened or crazed byZinc chloride solutions stress-crack the nylon matrix, alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it, mineral acids attack it.[23]Not documented
Solvent welding & smoothing agentNone — nylon's only solvents (formic acid, phenol, HFIP) degrade the part, and the fibre blocks surface flow anyway.[23]Isopropyl alcohol: brushed or sprayed on for speed, or several hours in IPA vapour for a glass-like surface.[24][14]

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. Fiberon PA6-GF25 Technical Data Sheet V1.1 Polymaker · 2024-12 · tds
  2. Bambu Filament Technical Data Sheet — PA6-GF Bambu Lab · 2026-08 · tds
  3. PolySmooth Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  4. Prusament PVB Technical Datasheet v1.1 Prusa Polymers · 2022-02 · tds
  5. Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
  6. SUNLU Nylon-6 Glass Fiber (PA6-GF) 3D Printer Filament 1 kg — product page SUNLU · 2026-08 · vendor
  7. Printed Solid product catalogue Printed Solid · 2026-08 · vendor
  8. 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
  9. YXPOLYER PA6-GF Black 1 kg — product page YXPOLYER · 2026-08 · vendor
  10. Nylon — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
  11. PA (Nylon) — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  12. Max volumetric speed Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
  13. Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  14. Prusament PVB — material page Prusa Polymers · 2026-08 · tds
  15. PolyCast Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  16. Moisture Conditioning — effect on printed nylon properties Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  17. Fiberon PA6-CF20 Technical Data Sheet V1.1 Polymaker · 2024-12 · tds
  18. PolyMide CoPA Technical Data Sheet V5.4 (dry and wet status blocks) Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  19. FDM PA6/66-GF30-FR — Material Data Sheet Stratasys · 2026-07 · tds
  20. TECAMID 66 GF30 black (PA66-GF30) — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
  21. 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
  22. PolyDissolve S1 Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  23. Ultramid Nylon Chemical Resistance guide (unmodified PA6 B27E and PA66 A27E) BASF · 2026-08 · tds
  24. Improve your 3D prints with chemical smoothing Prusa Research · 2026-08 · doc