3D Printing Info

Filament comparison

PC-GF vs PVB

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

Glass-fibre PC (PC-GF) guidePVB guide

2 selected · all documented properties

Open these two in the interactive comparisonMore PC-GF comparisonsMore PVB comparisons
PC-GF vs PVB — documented properties and sources
PropertyGlass-fibre PC (PC-GF)PCPVBSPECIALTY
Market snapshot
Listing priceUSD/kg; dated snapshots$71.27/kg median; $71.27–$71.27/kg across 1 dated product listings$66.65/kg median; $49.32–$79.98/kg across 3 dated product listings
Identity & Market
Base polymer / chemistryPolycarbonate reinforced with 30 wt% short glass fibre[1]Polyvinyl butyral — a printable thermoplastic whose surface can be smoothed with isopropyl alcohol instead of a hot solvent[2]
Densityg/cm³1.17 (measured on a 100 % infill printed part, ISO 1183-A)[1]1.10 (Polymaker PolySmooth, ISO 1183); Prusament PVB 1.10[2][3]
Typical priceUSD/kg1 kg spools cluster near 71[4]1 kg-equivalent spools cluster near 80[5][6]
Price range across brandsUSD/kg71 — BASF Ultrafuse PC GF30 at igo3d is the only priced listing found; Owens Corning sells XSTRAND GF30-PC in 500 g and 1 kg[4][1]49–102 across brands; Polymaker PolySmooth 49 at 750 g, Prusament PVB 80–102 at 500 g[5][6]
Market availability1–5Niche, a handful of specialist brands — neither Polymaker's nor 3DXTech's polycarbonate range contains a glass-fibre grade, but BASF Forward AM and Owens Corning both sell one through European retail[4][1][5][7]Available from several mainstream brands[5][6]
Spool sizes & diameters1.75 and 2.85 mm at +/- 0.05 mm; 500 g and 1 kg net spools[1]1.75 and 2.85 mm; 0.5 and 0.75 kg spools[5][6]
Typical applicationsFunctional prototyping for mechanical engineering, electronics and automotive[1]Display models and light guides where a layer-free surface matters more than strength[2]
Diameter tolerance± mm+/- 0.05 (Owens Corning XSTRAND)[1]+/- 0.03 (Prusament PVB)[3]
Printing Parameters
Nozzle temperature°C280-330 (Owens Corning XSTRAND GF30-PC)[1]215 +/- 10 (Prusament PVB)[3]
Bed temperature°C80-110 (Owens Corning XSTRAND GF30-PC)[1]75 +/- 5 (Prusament PVB)[3]
Enclosure / chamber requirement1–5Enclosure required (passive) — as for unfilled PC[8][9]Open frame is fine[2]
Part cooling fanNot documented100 % part cooling (Prusament PVB)[3]
Bed surface & adhesion aidPerforated plate, DimaFix or Magigoo PC glue (Owens Corning)[1]Smooth PEI sheet or satin sheet; Prusa states a brim is not generally necessary[3]
Overall printing difficulty1–5Not documentedEasy — minor profile tuning; it prints close to PLA[2]
Extruder requirementOwens Corning specifies a nozzle above 0.4 mm and hardened steel nozzles and drive wheels[1]Not documented
Hardware Wear & Reliability
Nozzle hardness required1–4Hardened steel required — Owens Corning states glass reinforcement shortens brass nozzle and drive-wheel life[1]Brass fine indefinitely[2]
Abrasiveness1–5Highly abrasive — 30 wt% glass fibre[1]Non-abrasive[2]
Nozzle clog risk1–5High — jams from moisture, heat creep or particles; PC already absorbs water from the air and Prusa lists glass-filled composites as a higher clogging risk[10][11]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[12][13]
Moisture Behaviour
Moisture absorption (hygroscopicity)1–5Negligible (<0.1 % EMC) — Owens Corning measures below 0.1 % at 23 °C and 50 % RH (ISO 62)[1]Very high (>2 %) — 2.36 % equilibrium water absorption (Polymaker PolySmooth), above every PLA and PETG grade here[2]
Equilibrium moisture content at ~50 % RH%Below 0.1 at 23 °C and 50 % RH, and below 0.1 at saturation (ISO 62)[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[2][14][3]
Drying temperature & timeNot documentedMaximum 60 °C for 4-8 h depending on how wet the filament is (Prusament PVB)[3]
Effect of moisture on strengthNo dry-versus-conditioned figures are published. Polymaker calls PC highly hygroscopic; absorbed water flashes to steam and shows as bubbling and poor layer adhesion[15][13]Polymaker publishes no dry-versus-conditioned figures; at 2.36 % equilibrium uptake the material has to be kept dry to print cleanly[2][13]
Storage requirementNot documentedSealed with desiccant[13]
Mechanical Properties
Tensile strength (XY)MPa65 at break (printed, ISO 527 at 1 mm/min)[1]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)[2][14][3]
Young's modulusMPa5400 (printed, ISO 527 at 1 mm/min)[1]2199 ± 43 printed XY and 2010 ± 69 printed Z, ISO 527 (PolySmooth); Prusament PVB gives 1700 +/- 100 in both print directions (ISO 527-1)[2][3]
Elongation at break%2.5 at break (printed, ISO 527 at 1 mm/min)[1]5.7 ± 0.5 printed XY, ISO 527 (PolyCast)[14]
Flexural strengthMPa113 at yield (printed, ISO 178 at 2 mm/min)[1]72 +/- 1 printed horizontal and 73 +/- 3 printed vertical, ISO 178 (Prusament PVB)[3]
Flexural modulusMPa5500 (printed, ISO 178 at 2 mm/min)[1]2233 ± 106 printed XY, ISO 178 (PolyCast); Prusament PVB gives 2200 +/- 100 horizontal and 2300 +/- 100 vertical (ISO 178)[14][3]
Charpy impact, notchedkJ/m²Not documented7 +/- 1 printed horizontal and 10 +/- 1 printed vertical, ISO 179-1 notched (Prusament PVB)[3]
Other impact dataNot documentedCharpy unnotched 55 +/- 7 printed horizontal and 59 +/- 12 printed vertical (Prusament PVB, ISO 179-1)[3]
Layer adhesion / Z tensileMPaNot documented26.3 ± 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[14][3]
Brittleness1–5Brittle — snaps with little warning; 2.5 % elongation at break[1]Moderate[2]
Hardness (scale-specific)Shore A / Shore D / RockwellRockwell 70 (118) — the source does not name the scales and Shore D 79 on extruded unfilled PC stock (ASTM D785, D2240); no figure is published for a glass-fibre grade[16]Shore D 77 (Prusa Polymers method)[3]
Creep resistance / sustained load1–5Excellent — holds load for years. Room-temperature tensile creep of moulded unfilled PC ran unbroken at 41 MPa until the test was stopped, and 30 wt% glass raises the tensile modulus from about 2.3 to 5.4 GPa[17][1]Not documented
Elasticity / flexibility1–5Rigid[1]Rigid[2]
Z strength as % of XY%Not documented98 (Prusament PVB, printed vertical against horizontal tensile yield, ISO 527-1: 49 +/- 5 against 50 +/- 5) — the most isotropic printed material in this dataset[3]
Thermal Properties
HDT at 0.45 MPa°CNot documented68 (PolySmooth) and 67 (PolyCast), ISO 75 at 0.45 MPa; Prusament PVB 63 (ISO 75 at 0.45 MPa)[2][14][3]
HDT at 1.8 MPa°C137 (printed, ISO 75 Method A at 1.8 MPa)[1]66 (PolySmooth) and 53 (PolyCast), ISO 75 at 1.8 MPa; Prusament PVB 58 (ISO 75 at 1.8 MPa)[2][14][3]
Glass transition (Tg)°C145 (DSC, ISO 11357)[1]70 (DSC) for both PolySmooth and PolyCast[2][14]
Melting point / Vicat°C270 stated as melting point (ISO 11357) — unusual for an amorphous polymer, but this is the published figure[1]Amorphous — no melting point; Vicat 70 (PolySmooth) and 67 (PolyCast), ISO 306[2][14]
Thermal expansion (CTE)µm/m·K26.2 in XY and 77.4 in Z (printed, ISO 11359-2) — a threefold anisotropy, and the lowest in-plane expansion of any polycarbonate here[1]Not documented
Flammability / UL 94UL 94 V-0 verified (Owens Corning)[1]Not documented
Environment & Chemical
UV resistance1–5Good — years with some colour shift. Owens Corning lists UV resistance as a product benefit but publishes no exposure data[1]Not documented
Water / humidity resistance in service1–5Excellent — essentially unaffected; below 0.1 % water at saturation (ISO 62)[1]Not documented
Electrical & ESD propertiesElectrically insulating (Owens Corning)[1]Not documented
Health & Safety
Fume toxicity1–5Moderate — measurable VOCs and UFPs, ventilation advised[18]Low hazard — minimal VOC and particle emission; none of these materials was in the chamber study[18]
Ultrafine-particle emission rateparticles/min≈4 × 10¹⁰ median — the highest ultrafine-particle rate of the nine filaments in the chamber study, above every ABS tested[18]Not documented
Ventilation / filtration requirement1–5Ventilated room or enclosure recommended[18][9]Open a window / occasional ventilation[18]
Dust & fibre handling hazardOwens Corning warns that the glass reinforcement is abrasive when melted and advises sufficient ventilation and avoiding extrusion fumes[1]Not documented
Post-Processing
Vapour / chemical smoothingNot documentedIsopropyl alcohol vapour smoothing is the point of the material — Polymaker markets PolySmooth for hands-free post-processing to a layer-free surface[2]
Support material pairingNot documentedPolyDissolve S1 is rated for PVB (Polymaker)[19]
Dimensional accuracy & detailHigh dimensional stability is the headline benefit; the 26.2 um/m*K in-plane CTE is a third of unfilled PC's[1]PolyCast is the investment-casting variant of the same chemistry — it burns out cleanly rather than being smoothed[14]
Solvents & Solubility
Soluble inDichloromethane and chloroform dissolve the matrix and leave the fibre; DMF and dioxane do the same (Covestro).[20]Isopropyl alcohol dissolves it; Prusa describes PVB as soluble only in IPA, and it is not water-soluble.[12]
Softened or crazed byMethanol, butyl acetate, ether, 1 % NaOH and phthalate plasticisers stress-crack it; acetone, MEK and xylene swell it.[20]Not documented
Solvent welding & smoothing agentDichloromethane cement welds the resin, but the fibre keeps the joint from flowing closed. Controlled carcinogen.[21]Isopropyl alcohol: brushed or sprayed on for speed, or several hours in IPA vapour for a glass-like surface.[22][12]

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. XSTRAND GF30-PC Data Sheet Owens Corning · 2019-04 · tds
  2. PolySmooth Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  3. Prusament PVB Technical Datasheet v1.1 Prusa Polymers · 2022-02 · tds
  4. BASF Ultrafuse PC GF30 Black 2.85 mm 1.000 g igo3d · 2026-08 · vendor
  5. Polymaker product catalogue Polymaker · 2026-08 · vendor
  6. Printed Solid product catalogue Printed Solid · 2026-08 · vendor
  7. 3DXTech product catalogue 3DXTech · 2026-08 · vendor
  8. PolyLite PC Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  9. ABS / ASA / PC Usage Guide Bambu Lab Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  10. Composite materials filled with carbon, kevlar or glass Prusa Knowledge Base · 2026-08 · doc
  11. Polycarbonate — Ultimate 3D Printing Materials Guide Simplify3D · 2026-08 · doc
  12. Prusament PVB — material page Prusa Polymers · 2026-08 · tds
  13. Wet Filament — signs, causes and drying Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  14. PolyCast Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  15. PC — material basics Polymaker Wiki · 2026-08 · doc
  16. TECANAT natural (PC) — stock shape properties Ensinger · 2026-08 · tds
  17. Experimental data for creep and dynamic mechanical properties of polycarbonate and polycarbonate/ABS Data in Brief 42:108264 · 2022-06 · paper
  18. 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
  19. PolyDissolve S1 Technical Data Sheet V5.4 Polymaker · 2024-11 · tds
  20. Makrolon — The chemical resistance (Makrolon 2800, 6 days at 23 °C and 50 °C) Covestro · 2016-12 · tds
  21. Weld-On 3 Acrylic Plastic Cement — technical data sheet (shipped as dichloromethane) IPS Corporation · 2002-07 · tds
  22. Improve your 3D prints with chemical smoothing Prusa Research · 2026-08 · doc