3D Printing InfoFilament comparison
PAHT-CF vs PEBA
Compare printing settings, strength, heat resistance, dated prices and sources.
2 selected · all documented properties
| Property | High-temperature CF nylon (PAHT-CF)PA | PEBA (polyether block amide)FLEX |
|---|---|---|
| Market snapshot | ||
| Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots | $59.98/kg median; $49.99–$69.98/kg across 2 dated product listings | $60.99/kg median; $60.99–$60.99/kg across 1 dated product listings |
| Identity & Market | ||
| Base polymer / chemistry | High-temperature carbon-fibre nylon. Bambu Lab's PAHT-CF and Polymaker's PA612-CF15 both use a long-chain polyamide matrix for lower moisture uptake than PA6[1][2] | Polyether block amide: rigid polyamide and flexible polyether blocks.[3] |
| Densityg/cm³ | 1.03 (Polymaker PA612-CF15) and 1.06 (Bambu Lab), ISO 1183[1][2] | 1.01 g/cm³ (GB/T 1033; eSUN manufacturer data)[3] |
| Typical priceUSD/kg | 1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 60[1][4] | Not documented |
| Price range across brandsUSD/kg | 50–70 across brands; Bambu Lab 50, Polymaker Fiberon PA612-CF15 70[1][4] | Not documented |
| Market availability1–5 | Available from several mainstream brands[1][4] | Not documented |
| Spool sizes & diameters | 1.75 mm; 0.5 and 1 kg spools[4][1] | 1.75 mm diameter, 1 kg spool.[5] |
| Typical applications | Under-bonnet and near-motor parts needing 170 °C-plus heat deflection with less humidity drift than PA6[1][2] | Manufacturer applications include footwear, sports equipment and cushioning.[3] |
| Printing Parameters | ||
| Nozzle temperature°C | 260–290 (Bambu Lab)[1] | 230–260 °C; 240 °C recommended.[3] |
| Bed temperature°C | Not documented | 60–90 °C[3] |
| Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5 | Enclosure required (passive) — Bambu Lab specifies a 45–60 °C chamber[1] | Not documented |
| Recommended chamber temperature°C | 45–60 (Bambu Lab)[1] | Not documented |
| Part cooling fan | Not documented | 10–50% fan recommended; mechanical-test specimens used 50–100%.[3] |
| Bed surface & adhesion aid | PEI sheet with a glue stick, or a dedicated adhesive such as Magigoo[6][7] | PEI build plate[3] |
| Maximum volumetric flow (mm³/s; see test conditions)mm³/s | 8 at Bambu Lab's 100 mm/s cap on a 0.4 mm nozzle at 0.2 mm layer[1][8] | 9 mm³/s maximum in eSUN spiral-vase test; mechanical specimens used 2 mm³/s. Linear recommendation 25–110 mm/s is a separate quantity.[3] |
| Bed-adhesion difficulty1–5 | Needs a specific surface plus adhesive[6] | Not documented |
| Stringing / oozing tendency1–5 | Moderate — retraction tuning needed[7] | Not documented |
| Overall printing difficulty1–5 | Expert / industrial hardware only[1][9] | Not documented |
| Extruder requirement | 0.6 mm nozzle recommended by Bambu Lab; 0.4 and 0.8 also supported[1] | Not documented |
| Hardware Wear & Reliability | ||
| Nozzle hardness required1–4 | Hardened steel required — Polymaker measures brass nozzle life at about 9 h on PA612-CF15 and recommends hardened steel or ruby[2] | Not documented |
| Abrasiveness1–5 | Highly abrasive — standard CF composite; Polymaker puts brass nozzle life at roughly 9 h on PA612-CF15[2] | Not documented |
| Nozzle clog risk1–5 | High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles[9] | Not documented |
| Heat-creep / jam sensitivity1–5 | Moderate — good heatbreak cooling needed[6] | Not documented |
| Hotend requirement | May require an all-metal hot end (Simplify3D)[6] | Not documented |
| Moisture Behaviour | ||
| Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5 | High (0.8–2 %) — 0.88 % saturated at 25 °C / 55 % RH for Bambu Lab PAHT-CF, a third of its PA6-CF; Polymaker's PA612-CF15 reaches 2.2 % equilibrium[1][2][10] | Not documented |
| Equilibrium moisture content at ~50 % RH% | 0.88 saturated at 25 °C / 55 % RH (Bambu Lab PAHT-CF); 2.2 equilibrium (Polymaker PA612-CF15)[1][2] | Not documented |
| Drying temperature & time | 80 °C for 8–12 h (Bambu Lab)[1] | 70–75 °C for 6–8 h; re-dry after receiving or extended exposure.[3] |
| Effect of moisture on strength | Polymaker publishes dry and wet printed blocks for PA612-CF15 itself: at 2.57 % moisture tensile falls only 91.9 → 83.1 MPa and modulus 5137 → 3991 MPa — the PA612 backbone absorbs far less than PA6[2][11] | Not documented |
| Storage requirement | Sealed below 20 % RH with desiccant[9] | Not documented |
| Hydrolysis at melt temperature | Polymaker 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[12][13] | Not documented |
| Mechanical Properties | ||
| Tensile strength (XY)MPa | 92 ± 7 (Bambu Lab) and 91.9 ± 2.0 (Polymaker PA612-CF15, dry/annealed) printed XY, ISO 527; the Polymaker grade only falls to 83.1 ± 2.2 conditioned to 2.57 % moisture[1][2] | >16.5 MPa printed XY, GB/T 1040; manufacturer lower bound, not an exact measurement.[3] |
| Young's modulusMPa | 3860 ± 230 (Bambu Lab) and 5137 ± 192 (Polymaker PA612-CF15, dry) printed XY, ISO 527; Polymaker 3991 ± 137 conditioned[1][2] | Not documented |
| Elongation at break% | 2.6 ± 0.2 dry (Polymaker PA612-CF15) to 8.4 ± 1.8 (Bambu Lab) printed XY, ISO 527; Polymaker 4.1 ± 0.3 conditioned[1][2] | >520% printed XY, GB/T 1040; manufacturer lower bound.[3] |
| Flexural modulusMPa | 4230 ± 210 printed XY, ISO 178 (Bambu Lab)[1] | Not documented |
| Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m² | 8.1 ± 0.8 printed XY dry and 7.7 ± 0.5 conditioned, ISO 179 notched (Polymaker PA612-CF15)[2] | Not documented |
| Other impact data | Charpy unnotched 57.5 ± 3.4 and notched 22.8 ± 1.8 printed XY (Bambu Lab, ISO 179)[1] | Not documented |
| Layer adhesion / Z tensileMPa | 47 ± 5 (Bambu Lab) and 48.3 ± 3.9 (Polymaker PA612-CF15, dry) printed Z, ISO 527; Polymaker 35.6 ± 3.0 conditioned[1][2] | 7.5 MPa printed Z, GB/T 1040 (manufacturer test)[3] |
| Brittleness1–5 | Moderate[1] | Not documented |
| Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / Rockwell | Rockwell M88 / R117 on extruded PA66-GF30 stock (ASTM D785); no figure is published for a carbon-fibre long-chain nylon filament[14] | 90 Shore A nominal grade designation; do not compare numerically with Shore D or Rockwell.[5] |
| Creep resistance / sustained load1–5 | Good. Ensinger rates its PA66-CF30 compound for sustained static and dynamic load with 110 °C continuous service; the long-chain PA612 matrix takes up 0.88 % at saturation, a third of the same maker's PA6-CF, so it holds dimension better[15][2] | Not documented |
| Fatigue / repeated-flex resistance1–5 | Good. Ensinger states carbon-filled PA66 compounds have improved fatigue strength in tension, flexure and compression[15] | Not documented |
| Elasticity / flexibility1–5 | Rigid[1] | Not documented |
| Z strength as % of XY% | 51 (Bambu Lab) to 53 (Polymaker PA612-CF15), printed[1][2] | Not documented |
| Thermal Properties | ||
| HDT at 0.45 MPa°C | 175 (Polymaker PA612-CF15) and 194 (Bambu Lab), ISO 75 at 0.45 MPa[1][2] | Not documented |
| HDT at 1.8 MPa°C | 114 (Polymaker PA612-CF15) and 170 (Bambu Lab), ISO 75 at 1.8 MPa[1][2] | Not documented |
| Glass transition (Tg)°C | 70 (Bambu Lab, DSC)[1] | Not documented |
| Melting point / Vicat°C | 210 (Polymaker PA612-CF15) and 225 (Bambu Lab) melting, DSC; Vicat 206 (Polymaker)[1][2] | 110 °C Vicat softening (GB/T 1633, 120 °C/h, 10 N); not HDT or a continuous-use rating.[3] |
| Flammability / UL 94 | Flammable; no UL 94 rating published for the grades surveyed[12] | Not documented |
| Environment & Chemical | ||
| UV resistance1–5 | Months outdoors before embrittlement — unstabilised polyamide yellows under UV[7] | Not documented |
| Chemical resistance | Withstands oils, fuels and alkalis[7] | Not documented |
| Water / humidity resistance in service1–5 | Absorbs water, properties shift — less than PA6 but more than PA12[11][1] | Not documented |
| Food contact | Not food-contact certified as filament[7] | Not documented |
| Biodegradability / compostability | Not biodegradable[7] | Not documented |
| Recyclability | Not accepted in household plastic collection[7] | Not documented |
| Electrical & ESD properties | Surface resistivity above 10¹² ohm — insulating (Polymaker PA612-CF15, ANSI/ESD S11.11)[2] | Not documented |
| Health & Safety | ||
| Fume toxicity1–5 | Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[16] | Not documented |
| VOC emission rateµg/min | Up to 180 caprolactam, the dominant VOC from nylon and the largest single-VOC rate in the study[16] | Not documented |
| Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min | ≈2 × 10⁸ median for nylon — low for particles despite the highest VOC mass measured[16] | Not documented |
| Hazardous species emitted | Caprolactam, at up to 180 µg/min from nylon filament[16] | Not documented |
| Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5 | Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[16] | Not documented |
| Dust & fibre handling hazard | Fibre is bound in the matrix; sanding dust should not be inhaled[12] | Not documented |
| Post-Processing | ||
| Sanding & machining | Sands poorly — gums rather than powders[6] | Not documented |
| Gluing & solvent welding | Cyanoacrylate; no common solvent welds polyamide[6] | Not documented |
| Vapour / chemical smoothing | No practical vapour smoothing[6] | Not documented |
| Solvents & Solubility | ||
| Soluble in | Formic acid, phenol, m-cresol and hexafluoroisopropanol dissolve the matrix at 23 °C, leaving the fibre; laboratory reagents.[17] | Not documented |
| Softened or crazed by | Zinc chloride solutions stress-crack the nylon matrix, alcoholic calcium chloride dissolves it, mineral acids attack it.[17] | Not documented |
| Solvent welding & smoothing agent | None — nylon's only solvents (formic acid, phenol, HFIP) degrade the part, and the fibre blocks surface flow anyway.[17] | Not documented |
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
- Bambu Filament Technical Data Sheet — PAHT-CF Bambu Lab · 2026-08 · tds
- Fiberon PA612-CF15 Technical Data Sheet V1.1 Polymaker · 2024-12 · tds
- eSUN PEBA-90A Technical Data Sheet v1.0 (Aug 2025), checked 2026-10-17 eSUN · 2025-08 · tds
- Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
- eSUN PEBA-90A official product page: 1 kg price and product identity eSUN · 2026-10-17 · vendor
- Nylon — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
- PA (Nylon) — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Max volumetric speed Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
- Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Bambu Filament Technical Data Sheet — PA6-CF Bambu Lab · 2026-08 · tds
- Moisture Conditioning — effect on printed nylon properties Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
- Fiberon PA6-CF20 Technical Data Sheet V1.1 Polymaker · 2024-12 · tds
- PolyMide CoPA Technical Data Sheet V5.4 (dry and wet status blocks) Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
- TECAMID 66 GF30 black (PA66-GF30) — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
- TECACOMP PA66 CF30 black — injection-moulding compound Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
- 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
- Ultramid Nylon Chemical Resistance guide (unmodified PA6 B27E and PA66 A27E) BASF · 2026-08 · tds